FIN CERT COMPREHENSIVE STUDY GUIDE
2026 COMPLETE QUESTIONS ANSWERS
VERIFIED
● Unearned Income. Answer: Any income that comes from investments
and other sources unrelated to employment services. Examples: interest
from a savings account, bond interest, alimony, and dividends from
stock
● Exemptions (aka allowance) and how they work. Answer: If you are
not claimed as a dependent on another
taxpayer's return, then you can claim one personal tax
exemption. The exemption reduces your taxable income just like a
deduction does, but has fewer restrictions to claiming it. If you are
married and file a joint tax return, both you and your spouse each get an
exemption.
● Exemptions (aka allowance) and how they work PART 2. Answer: The
IRS allows you to take additional exemptions for each dependent you
claim. Frequently, the source of these exemptions are the children who
live with you for more than half the year, are under 19 years old (or
under 24 if a full-time student) and who don't provide more than half of
their own financial support during the tax year.
,● Liquidity - what does it mean?. Answer: The ability to convert an asset
to cash quickly and with
minimal impact to the price.
● Liquidity - what financial products are liquid?. Answer: Examples:
Cash, Most stocks, money market instruments and government bonds.
● Gift cards - how do they work?. Answer: A gift card is a restricted
monetary equivalent is issued by retailers or banks to be used as an
alternative to a non-monetary gift.
● Gift cards - how do they work - fees?. Answer: Prepaid cards, gift
cards, and gift certificates cannot expire within five years of activation
or unless the terms of the expiration are clearly disclosed. The law bans
dormancy fees, inactivity fees or service fees on gift cards unless there
has been no activity in a 12-month period and the issuer clearly discloses
all fees before the gift card is purchased.
● Gift cards - how do they work - fees? (Exclusions). Answer: Prepaid
phone cards , re-loadable cards, loyalty
or rewards cards, cards issued for admission to special
events or venues and certificates issued in paper form only are exempt.
● Discretionary income and budget surplus. Answer: The amount of an
individual's income that is left for
, spending, investing or saving after taxes and personal
necessities (such as food, shelter, and clothing) have been paid.
Discretionary income includes money spent on luxury items, vacations
and non-essential goods and services.
● Money orders - high rate of counterfeits. Answer: A certificate that
allows the stated payee to receive cash
on-demand, usually issued by governments and banking institutions. A
money order functions much like a check, in that the person who
purchased the money order may stop payment.
● Why does the US currency have value?. Answer: Its value is only
based on what we can get in exchange for it. Or put it another way,
money has value as long as other people believe the money you give
them can be
exchanged for the goods and services they desire in the
future.
● Opportunity cost. Answer: The second-best alternative (or the value of
that
alternative) that must be given up when scarce resources are used for
one purpose instead of another
2026 COMPLETE QUESTIONS ANSWERS
VERIFIED
● Unearned Income. Answer: Any income that comes from investments
and other sources unrelated to employment services. Examples: interest
from a savings account, bond interest, alimony, and dividends from
stock
● Exemptions (aka allowance) and how they work. Answer: If you are
not claimed as a dependent on another
taxpayer's return, then you can claim one personal tax
exemption. The exemption reduces your taxable income just like a
deduction does, but has fewer restrictions to claiming it. If you are
married and file a joint tax return, both you and your spouse each get an
exemption.
● Exemptions (aka allowance) and how they work PART 2. Answer: The
IRS allows you to take additional exemptions for each dependent you
claim. Frequently, the source of these exemptions are the children who
live with you for more than half the year, are under 19 years old (or
under 24 if a full-time student) and who don't provide more than half of
their own financial support during the tax year.
,● Liquidity - what does it mean?. Answer: The ability to convert an asset
to cash quickly and with
minimal impact to the price.
● Liquidity - what financial products are liquid?. Answer: Examples:
Cash, Most stocks, money market instruments and government bonds.
● Gift cards - how do they work?. Answer: A gift card is a restricted
monetary equivalent is issued by retailers or banks to be used as an
alternative to a non-monetary gift.
● Gift cards - how do they work - fees?. Answer: Prepaid cards, gift
cards, and gift certificates cannot expire within five years of activation
or unless the terms of the expiration are clearly disclosed. The law bans
dormancy fees, inactivity fees or service fees on gift cards unless there
has been no activity in a 12-month period and the issuer clearly discloses
all fees before the gift card is purchased.
● Gift cards - how do they work - fees? (Exclusions). Answer: Prepaid
phone cards , re-loadable cards, loyalty
or rewards cards, cards issued for admission to special
events or venues and certificates issued in paper form only are exempt.
● Discretionary income and budget surplus. Answer: The amount of an
individual's income that is left for
, spending, investing or saving after taxes and personal
necessities (such as food, shelter, and clothing) have been paid.
Discretionary income includes money spent on luxury items, vacations
and non-essential goods and services.
● Money orders - high rate of counterfeits. Answer: A certificate that
allows the stated payee to receive cash
on-demand, usually issued by governments and banking institutions. A
money order functions much like a check, in that the person who
purchased the money order may stop payment.
● Why does the US currency have value?. Answer: Its value is only
based on what we can get in exchange for it. Or put it another way,
money has value as long as other people believe the money you give
them can be
exchanged for the goods and services they desire in the
future.
● Opportunity cost. Answer: The second-best alternative (or the value of
that
alternative) that must be given up when scarce resources are used for
one purpose instead of another
