Series 66 Cheat Sheet.

If the question says … the answer is …

• If the stem describes trading authority with no power to withdraw, then the adviser does not have custody; if it describes the adviser as trustee or deducting fees, then it does.
• If a security is exempt, then only its registration is excused; antifraud still applies and the agent still registers.
• If the exemption is for an isolated non-issuer transaction, then it covers that sale only, never the security going forward.
• If the client chose the security and the action and the agent chose only timing and price on the same day, then no written authority is needed; anything broader needs it.
• If a representative trades on material nonpublic information, then it is insider trading whichever account benefits.
• If a choice says a guarantee against loss is fine in writing or with a waiver, then that choice is wrong.
• If the client has died, then discretionary authority is over and the executor gives instructions.
• If an emailed wire request goes to a new overseas account, then call a number already on file before anything moves.
• If stock is gifted, then the recipient takes the donor's basis; if it is inherited, then basis steps to market value.
• If a structured note promises principal protection, then the surviving risk is the issuer's credit.
• If rates have fallen and the bond is callable at a premium, then the risk is call risk; if rates are rising, then interest-rate risk.
• If the adviser shows gross performance, then net performance must appear with at least equal prominence.

Numbers that decide questions

Outline weights

Shares of our 304-question bank, by area. NASAA publishes the official outline weights on FINRA's page.

• Laws, Regulations, and Guidelines: 139 questions in our bank
• Client Investment Recommendations and Strategies: 90 questions in our bank
• Investment Vehicle Characteristics: 51 questions in our bank
• Economic Factors and Business Information: 24 questions in our bank

Night-before checklist

• Say the custody triggers from memory: trustee, fee deduction, client login. Trading authority alone is not one.
• Say the four labels: churning, front running, switching, unauthorized trading, each with its one-line definition.
• Reread the exemption rules above until exempt no longer sounds like immune.
• Put the $177 receipt, the confirmation and your identification together; plan to be at the center 30 minutes early.
• Pace plan: a minute and a half each, flag and move, and treat every item as scored.