NISM Series XIX-D study plan

Map the Category I vs Category II AIF classification logic and list the sub-categories (venture capital, SME, infrastructure, angel, and the residual Category I route) with the eligibility conditions that separate them

Reconstruct the registration pathway for an AIF scheme: application content, fit-and-proper criteria for sponsors and managers, and the conditions attached to registration

Summarise permitted and prohibited investment activity for Category I and II schemes, including the concentration and uninvested-corpus rules, in a one-page table you can recall from memory

Draft the fee and expense framework as it applies to a Category I or II scheme, distinguishing management fee, performance-linked fee and recoverable expenses

Explain the obligations a manager owes to the scheme throughout the life cycle: scheme launch, close-ended tenure, extension rules, winding up and liquidation timelines

Differentiate the disclosure and reporting duties owed to investors, to the regulator and to the trustee or board of the AIF

Trace how the AIF framework sits alongside the general securities market regulation, the companies law and the tax regime, and identify which rule prevails in a conflict

Build a timeline of a scheme's life from launch to final distribution with every regulatory deadline marked

Outline the legal structure options available to a Category I or II AIF (trust, company, limited liability partnership) and state the governance consequence of each

State the eligibility and disqualification tests for key personnel, sponsors, trustees and directors, and apply them to short hypothetical fact patterns

Describe the regulator's inspection, enquiry and enforcement powers and the sequence in which they are typically exercised

List the consequences of non-compliance with registration conditions, including suspension, cancellation and directions to wind up

Explain the conflict-of-interest rules that bind a manager across multiple schemes, including allocation of investment opportunities and co-investment situations

Describe the segregation and custody expectations for scheme assets, and the role of the trustee, custodian and auditor in safeguarding them

Summarise the valuation framework for unlisted securities and the manager's responsibility for a documented valuation policy

Apply the related-party transaction rules to a scenario where the manager proposes to transact with an affiliate

Draft the core contents of a scheme's compliance manual: roles, escalation, record-keeping and periodic reporting calendar

Explain the risk management expectations for a Category I or II scheme: concentration risk, liquidity mismatch in close-ended structures, leverage monitoring and counterparty exposure

Describe the audit, annual report and investor reporting cycle, and what each document must contain

Identify the record retention and information-sharing obligations that apply to a manager and its outsourced service providers

Explain the fiduciary duties of a manager and how they are discharged in fee setting, valuation and exit decisions

Analyse investor protection mechanisms: disclosure standards, consent requirements for material changes, side letters and equal treatment of investors

Describe how the manager should handle a scheme-level grievance, a valuation dispute and a request for early redemption in a close-ended fund

Apply the code of conduct expectations to a manager's marketing and distribution activity, including performance presentation

Revisit Category I and II classification and fee rules through practice questions, and log every error with the rule it tested

Revisit governance and investor protection through practice questions, and log errors the same way

Rank your weakest five sub-topics by error rate and re-read only those sections

Memorise the numerical thresholds, timelines and percentage limits scattered across all four domains into a single recall sheet

Sit two full-length timed mock tests under exam conditions and score them domain by domain

Re-teach your three weakest sub-topics aloud or in writing without referring to notes

Reduce the numerical thresholds sheet and error log to a final half-page revision card

Confirm exam-day logistics and rehearse the time-per-question budget against the actual paper structure