SEE Part 1 study plan: pass in 8 weeks

Plan on eight weeks at 8–10 hours a week for SEE Part 1. That is honest for someone who knows basic tax but does not prepare returns for a living. If you prepare individual returns every season, five or six weeks is realistic; if you are starting from zero, allow ten to twelve. Part 1 covers six domains from dependency tests to estate tax, and four weeks is rarely enough to learn that breadth and still practise under exam conditions.

The plan follows the official scored-question counts, so the hours go where the marks are.

The plan at a glance

Before week 1, download the 2025 Form 1040 instructions and Publication 17 for 2025. The exam tests the law as amended through December 31, 2025, and several figures changed in 2025. Studying from older material is the easiest way to lose marks. See the study resources for the full list.

Week 1: preliminary work and taxpayer data (14 questions)

• Filing requirements and due dates, and the five filing statuses with their tests.
• Dependency: qualifying child (relationship, age, residency, support, joint return) and qualifying relative, plus the tiebreaker rules.
• Residency status: resident versus nonresident alien, green card and substantial presence, ITINs.
• The “kiddie tax” on a child’s unearned income.
• Foreign account reporting (FBAR and Form 8938) at overview level, and the premium tax credit’s household income and household size.

Read the preliminary work guide and Publication 501 alongside Pub 17.

Weeks 2 and 3: income and assets (17 questions)

Two weeks, because it is one of the two largest domains and the widest.

Week 2: wages, interest and dividends, gambling income, cancellation of debt (including insolvency), alimony, scholarships, hobby and barter income, constructive receipt, passive activity rules, Schedule K-1 items, and Forms 1099-MISC, 1099-NEC and 1099-K.

Week 3: retirement income (traditional and Roth IRAs, Form 8606 basis, rollovers, early distribution exceptions, required minimum distributions, inherited accounts, Social Security taxability), then property: basis of purchased, gifted and inherited assets, capital gain netting, the home sale exclusion, installment sales, like-kind exchanges, wash sales and virtual currency. Close with adjustments to income: HSAs, the self-employment tax deduction, self-employed health insurance, and student loan interest.

Use the income and assets guide. Work every basis example by hand; basis questions reward practice, not reading.

Week 4: deductions and credits (17 questions)

• Standard deduction versus itemizing, and each Schedule A category: medical (the AGI floor), taxes (the state and local limit), mortgage and investment interest, charitable gifts and their records, casualty losses.
• The qualified business income deduction from the individual’s side.
• Credits: child tax credit and credit for other dependents, child and dependent care, education credits, earned income credit (including preparer due diligence), adoption, foreign tax credit, premium tax credit, retirement savings contribution credit, and energy credits.

For each credit, write one line: who qualifies, whether it is refundable, and the form. See the deductions and credits guide.

Week 5: taxation (15 questions)

Alternative minimum tax and the prior-year minimum tax credit, self-employment tax, household employees, underpayment penalties and the safe harbors, excess Social Security withholding, clergy and military provisions, income in respect of a decedent, net investment income tax, Additional Medicare Tax, and other taxes such as first-time homebuyer credit repayment. The taxation guide sets out the mechanics.

Week 6: advising and specialized returns (22 questions together)

Advising (11): filing status choices and joint and several liability, innocent versus injured spouse, estimated tax planning, capital versus ordinary character, education and retirement planning, marriage and divorce, carryovers, and amended returns and refund claims. See the advising guide.

Specialized returns (11): estate tax (gross estate, marital deduction, portability, Form 706), gift tax (annual exclusion, gift splitting, Form 709) and international information reporting (FBAR, Forms 8938, 3520, 5471, 8865). See the specialized returns guide.

These two domains are only 22 questions together, but they are where candidates without planning or estate experience lose easy marks.

Week 7: first full mock exam

Sit 100 questions in 3.5 hours, closed book, with an on-screen calculator only, and follow the real three-section structure: 1–34, 35–67, 68–100, with no going back. If you will test remotely, practise without paper.

Then sort every miss into one of three buckets: did not know the rule, knew the rule but misread the facts, or calculation error. Each needs a different fix: rereading, slower reading, or more worked examples.

Week 8: second mock and logistics

Take a second full mock early in the week. Spend the remaining hours on your two weakest domains and on the cheat sheet. Confirm your PTIN, appointment time, ID and, for remote testing, your system check. See exam day.

Habits that turn knowledge into marks

• Always ask which year. Questions are about 2025 unless stated. If you remember a figure but not its year, reason from the rule instead.
• Find the filing status first. Many thresholds and phase-outs depend on it, and the question often hides it in the facts.
• Read EXCEPT questions twice. Mark each option true or false before choosing.
• Leave nothing blank. The score is based on the number of questions answered correctly, so a guess costs nothing that a blank would not.

Short on time? Compress week 1 and week 6, never weeks 2–4. Income, deductions and credits are 34 of the 85 scored questions.

Check where you stand with the free sample questions before week 1 and the 20-question practice test after week 6.