How to Register for the SQE or EAQE

You do not register with the Estate Agents Authority (EAA) itself. The EAA has appointed the Institute of Professional Education And Knowledge (PEAK) of the Vocational Training Council (VTC) to run both qualifying exams, and you register with the PEAK Examination Centre (Examination Handbook, August 2026, para 2.3). Seats go first come, first served, and registration closes early if they fill, so the details below are worth getting right the first time.

Before you register: who is barred

The handbooks list people who may not register for, or sit, each exam. Neither the EAA nor PEAK checks this for you. If you register while barred, you are disqualified and lose the fee (para 5.2).

A further bar applies to cheats: anyone convicted of a dishonest or fraudulent act relating to any EAA qualifying exam is disqualified from that exam and barred from registering for any qualifying exam for 2 years from the conviction (handbook Appendix 6, Warning 2).

Paper-based exams (EAQE and paper SQE)

Both registration methods open 5 weeks before the exam, at 9 am on the start date.

Accepted ID documents are a Hong Kong Identity Card, a passport, a PRC Resident Identity Card, or an Exit-entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macao. Use the same document on exam day: the ID you bring must be the one stated on your entry form. For postal entries, send one Entry Form and one cheque per envelope and pay enough postage.

Computer-based SQE

Registration for the computer-based SQE is online only, on the PEAK Exam Centre website. The registration period, payment methods and booking rules are in PEAK’s Application Procedure for the CBE (CBE handbook, para 6.2). The fee is the same HK$650 as the paper SQE. Before booking, PEAK recommends going through its “Demonstration of Computer-Based Examination” so the screen layout is familiar on the day.

Upcoming registration windows

Registration for the 20 October 2026 SQE closed on 6 October. Our exam schedule tracks the dates and the EAA’s schedule page is the official source.

Fees

• SQE: HK$650 (paper or computer-based).
• EAQE: HK$900.

Fees are not refundable and cannot be transferred to another candidate or another exam, except in exceptional circumstances with the EAA’s approval (handbook para 7.1). If you are unsure whether you are barred under para 5.1, settle that before paying. As at Oct 2026; confirm current fees on eaa.org.hk.

Choosing and changing your language

You choose English or Chinese when you register, and you receive the question book (or, for the CBE, the Supplementary Information Book) only in that language. You can change the language before the deadline in the Application Procedure, for an administration fee set out there (handbook section 8). Pick the language you read fastest in. Part II extracts are long, and reading speed matters.

Special arrangements

If you need special arrangements, for example because of a disability or a medical condition, apply in writing to the EAA through the PEAK Exam Centre at least 2 weeks before the exam, with reasons and supporting documents such as a medical certificate. The EAA decides, and it may charge an administration fee (handbook section 8).

After you register: the Admission Form

• PEAK sends your Admission Form, with the date, time and venue, according to the Application Procedure. If it does not arrive in time, or details are wrong, contact PEAK.
• Check your name, ID number, exam date and time, and question language against your entry form. Ask PEAK in writing to correct any mismatch at least 1 week before the exam.
• If you registered online, print the Admission Form on blank white A4 paper and bring it.
• Sit at the venue printed on the form. Turning up at another venue can mean refusal or a 3-mark deduction.

Source: Paper-based Examination Handbook, para 9 and Appendix 6, section A–B.

Exam-day checklist

• Arrive 15 minutes early with the original Admission Form and the original ID document named on your entry.
• Paper exams: HB pencils, a soft eraser and a sharpener. No pencils are provided.
• No calculators, smart watches or dictionaries. A watch that only tells the time is allowed and useful, since not every room has a clock.
• Late arrivals are admitted up to 45 minutes after the start, with no extra time.

Results

Paper-based results are posted on the 14th working day after the exam, and computer-based SQE results on the 7th. You can check online at the PEAK website for one month using your candidate number and the first four digits of your ID number. There is no checking by phone or email. Keep your result slip: you need it for your licence application, which must be made within 12 months.

Sources: Paper-based Examination Handbook (Aug 2026) and Computer-based Examination Handbook (Aug 2026). Enquiries: EAA hotline 2111 2777; PEAK (VTC) Examination Centre 2919 1467.