Updated for the new CAMS exam (CAMS7)
ACAMS changed the CAMS exam in July 2025. It now has four domains: risks and methods of financial crime (30%), frameworks and regulation (20%), building a compliance programme (30%) and a new domain on tools and technologies (20%). Our questions and domain scores follow the new outline, including 40 questions on monitoring, screening, investigations, data and AI. Many older prep materials still follow the old exam.
What is CAMS?
CAMS (Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist) is the anti-money laundering certification of ACAMS, the Association of Certified Anti-Financial Crime Specialists. It is the most widely recognised AML credential worldwide and often a requirement or strong plus in AML, KYC and financial crime job adverts. In July 2025 ACAMS relaunched it as an enhanced programme (internally "CAMS7") with four core courses, sector and jurisdiction electives and a new exam simulator.
Who is it for?
- AML, KYC and transaction monitoring analysts who want to move up
- Financial crime investigators and SAR/STR reporting officers
- Compliance officers and MLROs at banks, payment firms, fintechs and crypto firms
- Auditors, consultants, lawyers and regulators working on AML
- People moving into compliance from operations, audit, law enforcement or law
Eligibility
- Active ACAMS membership
- 40 eligibility credits from education, experience and training: e.g. bachelor's degree 20 credits, master's 30, JD/PhD 40; 10 credits per year of relevant work experience; 1 credit per hour of financial crime training
- Credits from the CAMS learning path itself count towards eligibility, so many candidates qualify by completing it
Exam format
| Questions | 120 multiple-choice and multiple-select (knowledge and scenario based) |
|---|---|
| Time | 3.5 hours, no scheduled breaks |
| Pass mark | 75 (scaled); no penalty for guessing |
| Delivery | Pearson VUE test centre or online proctoring from home/office (where available) |
| Results | Pass/fail shown on screen at the end |
| Languages | English plus German, Portuguese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Arabic, Japanese, Russian, French, Korean and Spanish (check availability for the new programme) |
Exam domains
| Understanding risks and methods of financial crime | ~30% |
|---|---|
| Global AFC frameworks, governance and regulations | ~20% |
| Building an AFC compliance programme | ~30% |
| Tools and technologies to fight financial crime | ~20% |
Cost in 2026
| Certification package, private sector | US$2,095 |
|---|---|
| Certification package, public sector | US$1,595 |
| Virtual Classroom add-on | about US$595 when bundled |
| Retake (new authorisation) | US$299 private / US$199 public |
| Recertification every 3 years | US$200–300 plus 60 CPE credits |
Included: Study guide (PDF), flashcards, four core e-learning courses, two electives (one sector, one jurisdiction), exam simulator with 1,000+ questions, and the exam.
Prices from ACAMS, in US dollars, checked November 2026. Prices change and can differ by region; confirm on the official site before you buy.
How to register, step by step
- Join ACAMS (membership is required).
- Buy a CAMS certification package on acams.org.
- Work through the learning path (core courses plus your sector and jurisdiction electives).
- Submit your application once you have 40 eligibility credits; ACAMS approves it.
- Schedule the exam with Pearson VUE (test centre or online) using the emailed instructions.
- Sit the exam: bring two valid government IDs or prepare your room for online proctoring.
- Recertify every three years with 60 credits (at least 12 from ACAMS training).
Retakes: After a failed attempt you wait 30 days (second fail: 60 days, then 90 days) and buy a new authorisation to test.
Official links
Preparing for CAMS
Read our complete CAMS preparation guide, see what the syllabus and modules cover, and how renewal works. Then test yourself: our CAMS bank has 195 exam-style questions with explanations.
Find out where you stand
Free 10-question CAMS test, scored by exam domain. No account needed.
Independent guide, not affiliated with ACAMS. Facts checked November 2026; always confirm on the official website.