Candidate handbook
RAIF candidate handbook
Responsible AI Foundation
Everything that applies to the RAIF certification exam: what it covers, how the exam works, how it is scored and where to study.
Blueprint version 1, published on November 2, 2026.
What the certification attests
The entry point for any professional who uses AI: how AI fails, its risks, the main frameworks, data protection basics and responsible use at work.
You use AI tools at work
You draft, summarize or analyze with generative AI every week and want to know where the line is on confidential data, checking outputs and telling people AI was involved.
You are starting out in AI governance or privacy
You want a structured first view of the risks, the main frameworks and the vocabulary before choosing a deeper path such as RAIP or DPAI.
You lead a team that is adopting AI
Your people already use AI tools and you need a shared baseline: what is acceptable, what must be escalated and who is responsible for what.
Prerequisite
None. You can take the certification exam directly.
Certification exam format
- Questions
- 50
- Duration
- 60 min
- Pass mark
- 70%
- Languages
- English, Portuguese, Spanish
The pass mark is fixed: you pass with 70% correct answers, with no curve and no comparison with other candidates.
Domains and weights
Questions are drawn for every certification exam, always in this proportion. The weights are the same the exam engine uses.
| Domain | Questions | Weight | Where to study |
|---|---|---|---|
1. AI fundamentals for non-specialists What AI, machine learning and generative AI actually are, in plain terms, and where they predictably fail: confident wrong answers, outdated knowledge and patterns learned from skewed data. | 8 | 16% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 1, AI fundamentals for non-specialists |
2. Risks and harms Recognizing bias, hallucination, privacy leaks, security abuse and misuse in everyday situations, and judging which harm matters most in a given use and who would bear it. | 10 | 20% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 2, Risks and harms |
3. Principles and frameworks What the OECD AI Principles, the NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001 and the EU AI Act risk tiers each ask of an organization, at overview level, and how they fit together. | 10 | 20% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 3, Principles and frameworks |
4. Data protection basics for AI Core GDPR and LGPD concepts applied to AI: when data is personal, why pasting it into a prompt or a training set is processing, and what the DPO is there for. | 7 | 14% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 4, Data protection basics for AI |
5. Responsible use at work Following an acceptable use policy, keeping confidential information out of public tools, keeping a human in the decision and recording how an AI output was checked before it was used. | 10 | 20% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 5, Responsible use at work |
6. Roles and accountability Who answers for an AI tool in the organization, from the person using it to the system owner and the governance function, and when a concern must be escalated instead of worked around. | 5 | 10% | RAIF Syllabus, domain 6, Roles and accountability |
Certification exam rules
- Format
- Online certification exam, in your browser, with no scheduling and no exam centre. You can take the exam in English, Portuguese or Spanish. Questions describe work situations and ask for a decision. Every question has four options and exactly one correct answer.
- Time
- The clock runs on the server and starts when you open the certification exam. It does not pause: reloading the page, switching devices or closing the browser does not give time back. When time runs out, the exam is submitted with what you have answered.
- Navigation
- You can go back, change answers and flag questions for review. Before you finish, a screen shows what is answered, flagged and blank.
- Scoring
- Your score is compared with the pass mark, with no curve. A blank question counts as wrong, and there is no partial credit.
- Result
- Immediate, with your score for each domain. It is kept in your account and does not appear on the certificate or the public profile.
- Voucher
- There is no payment. The exam right (the "voucher") is issued when you enrol in the free path with a verified e-mail, and each candidate has one active right at a time. It is used when the certification exam is opened.
- New attempt
- If you do not pass, you may retake the exam free of charge within 7 calendar days of the result. The retake appears in your account with a Retake button, and the result e-mail states the deadline. After that, the right expires, and a new free enrolment is possible after a 30-day wait. The same cycle applies to a later failure.
- Refund
- Nothing is charged, so there is nothing to refund.
- Technical problem
- Come back through the same address: the certification exam resumes with the same questions and the answers already saved. If a platform failure compromises your exam, a new attempt is released at no cost.
- Credential
- Issued when you pass, with a public verification code. It never expires: it is valid until revoked. There is no renewal, no continuing education (CPD) requirement and no annual fee.
- Revocation
- A credential can be revoked for fraud, disclosure of questions, false identity, misleading use or administrative error. The code remains searchable and shows the revocation.
- Integrity
- The certification exam is individual and closed book, including artificial intelligence assistants. There is no camera, microphone or screen recording. During the exam, copying, cutting and selecting the text of the questions are disabled, and leaving the exam window is not allowed. Each exit is recorded and flagged on screen; exits shorter than 3 seconds do not count. From the 9th exit, the credential, if you pass, may be reviewed and is issued within 3 business days, not immediately. On the 10th, the exam is ended and scored with the answers given so far. None of this appears on the certificate.
- Accessibility
- The certification exam screen works with keyboard and screen reader. Anyone with a disability or health condition that affects their reading or response time requests 25% extended time in the account, in Certification exams, before using the voucher, with a self-declaration. For another adjustment, write to [email protected].
Where to study
Study by domain, using the weights above and the frameworks listed on the certification page.
Short on time? Study by weight: the domains below are in the order of how much they count in the certification exam.
- Risks and harms (20%)
- Principles and frameworks (20%)
- Responsible use at work (20%)
- AI fundamentals for non-specialists (16%)
- Data protection basics for AI (14%)
- Roles and accountability (10%)