The Estate Agents Qualifying Examination (EAQE) is the licensing exam for anyone who wants to operate as a licensed estate agent in Hong Kong, rather than as a salesperson employed by one. It has 50 questions across two separately graded parts, and the exam does not use a single pass percentage the way many licensing tests do.
How many questions are on the EAQE?
The EAQE has 50 multiple-choice questions in total, divided into two parts that are timed and marked together but scored independently. Part I is 30 stand-alone questions worth 60 marks. Part II is 20 case-analysis questions worth 40 marks, each built around a short real-world scenario rather than asked as an isolated fact. Candidates get 3 hours (180 minutes) to complete both parts.
What is the pass mark for the EAQE?
There isn’t a single number, which is the detail most people searching for a “pass mark” miss. Instead, each part carries its own 60% threshold: Part I requires at least 36 of its 60 marks, and Part II requires at least 24 of its 40 marks. A candidate must clear both thresholds in the same sitting; there is no blended or averaged score across the two parts. A separate overall 60% clause exists in the EAA’s candidate handbook, but it applies only in cases where marks have already been deducted for a breach of the examination regulations, not to an ordinary sitting.
Can Part I make up for a weak Part II, or vice versa?
No. Because the two parts are graded against separate thresholds, passing one does not offset failing the other. A candidate who scores 55 of 60 in Part I but only 20 of 40 in Part II fails the exam overall, even though their combined raw score would clear 60% of the full 100 marks. The same is true in reverse: a strong Part II cannot rescue a Part I score below 36. Anyone preparing for the EAQE needs to treat the two parts as two separate exams that happen to share a paper and a clock, not as one pool of marks to average out.
What is Part II actually testing?
Part II’s 20 questions are case-analysis items, built on a scenario rather than a plain question-and-answer format. In the real paper, these questions hang off one or two shared case studies, so a single scenario supports several questions in a row. The judgement required draws on the same syllabus as Part I, things like an agent’s statutory duties, disclosure obligations, and what happens when a client asks for something the rules do not allow, but applied to a concrete situation instead of recalled as a definition.
What topics does the EAQE cover?
The EAQE syllabus spans eight parts, published as Appendix 1 of the EAA’s Handbook for Candidates (2024 edition):
- Part 1: Introduction to the real estate agency trade in Hong Kong
- Part 2: The Estate Agents Ordinance and estate agency practice, including licensing conditions, a licensee’s statutory duties, and the Code of Ethics
- Part 3: Laws governing estate agency practice and conveyancing procedures
- Part 4: Land registration, land search, and property information systems
- Part 5: Building-related knowledge, property classification, and property management
- Part 6: Principles and practice of property valuation
- Part 7: Leasing and tenancy matters
- Part 8: Effective agency management and supervision of salespersons
Parts 2, 4, and 7 are examined at the highest expected level of knowledge (Level 4), while Parts 5 and 6 are examined only at an awareness level (Level 1), which is a useful signal for where to spend revision time.
How can I prepare for the two-part pass structure?
Since neither part can rescue the other, the most reliable preparation drills Part I’s stand-alone questions and Part II’s case-analysis format separately, rather than treating the whole bank as one mix. The RiverMap Learning EAQE app organises practice by all eight syllabus parts and includes a dedicated case-analysis bank of 70 original scenario questions for Part II practice, alongside a timed mock that scores the two parts separately, matching how the real exam is graded. Every one of its 437 questions is written from scratch against the publicly published EAQE syllabus, and each names the ordinance or syllabus point it rests on so a candidate can check the source directly. The full syllabus is published by the Estate Agents Authority at eaa.org.hk. This app is an independent revision aid and is not endorsed by, sponsored by, or affiliated with the Estate Agents Authority, PEAK, or the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.