Be the professional families call before the estate becomes a crisis
Most estates fail despite having a lawyer, a CA, an insurer and an advisor — because no one sees the whole picture. The Chartered Trust & Estate Planner™ makes you that professional: the one who reconciles ownership, law, tax, liquidity and family before it's too late.
Every professional did their job. The estate still failed.
In estate after estate, the tax was filed, the policy was placed, the Will was drafted and the portfolio was managed — yet the family still ended up in dispute. Ownership, control, law, tax, liquidity and succession were each sitting in a different room, and no one held them together. That missing professional is the estate planner.
Five professionals. Five partial views. One estate.
Each expert sees only their own domain. CTEP trains you to see — and connect — all of them.
The MFD sees folios
…but not that a nominee is a custodian, not the owner — and that a Will can override the nomination.
The CA sees tax
…but a tax-efficient HUF can become a succession time-bomb once daughters' coparcenary rights apply.
The lawyer sees the Will
…but a Will can't fix a partnership that dissolves on death, or HUF and jointly-held assets outside its reach.
The insurer sees policies
…but not estate liquidity — whether cash is actually available on day 1 to settle the estate.
The advisor sees the plan
…but not whether it survives the client's death — across NRI heirs, FEMA and cross-border tax.
The CTEP sees the whole estate
You hold all five views at once — the professional clients call before they sign anything.
India's only complete estate-planning credential
The Chartered Trust & Estate Planner™ teaches the entire discipline in one place — wills, succession, trust creation and management, business & IP succession, intergenerational transfer and estate taxation.
It covers resident and non-resident clients alike — from asset protection and family governance to cross-border structures and FEMA — so you can advise India's wealthiest families with genuine authority.
Built for client-facing professionals
Is the Chartered Trust & Estate Planner right for you?
This may be suitable if…
- You advise families, HNI clients, business owners or investors who need clarity on inheritance, nomination, wills, trusts or succession
- You are a wealth manager, MFD, financial planner or insurance advisor wanting to add estate-planning conversations
- You are a tax or legal professional building structured estate and succession knowledge
- You serve family offices or multi-generational client relationships
This may not be the right fit if…
- You are looking only for a basic personal-finance course
- You expect to practise law or give legal opinions — this builds advisory knowledge, not a legal qualification or licence
What it does for your career & practice
Estate planning isn't just another course — it's a positioning shift that changes the clients you attract and the fees you command.
Own a high-value niche
India's only dedicated estate-planning credential — rare expertise, very little competition.
Become the lead advisor
The professional clients consult first — before the lawyer, the CA or the banker.
Deeper, stickier relationships
Estate work spans generations — it retains families and the assets they hold with you.
Premium, retainer-based fees
Advisory, not transactional — HNI families pay for judgement, not products.
A new revenue line
Add succession & estate services to your existing practice — no starting over.
A globally recognised charter
Awarded by AAFM/GAFM, recognised in 151+ countries — credibility that travels.
Why CTEP™ — specifically for you
The same certification, a different unlock depending on where you start today.
Own the family, not just the portfolio
Estate planning is the conversation that retains UHNW families for generations — and the one most advisors can't lead. CTEP lets you.
From tax to total succession
You already see the whole balance sheet. Add succession and serve HNI families end-to-end — and avoid the HUF & titling traps that surface after death.
From products to legacy
A nominee isn't an owner. Clients need someone who plans succession, not just nominations — become the trusted advisor, not just the agent.
Beyond the policy
MWP trusts, estate liquidity and beneficiary structuring make you the planner who protects the whole family — not just the premium.
The estate lawyer HNIs retain
Most Wills miss testamentary trusts, business succession and FEMA. CTEP makes you the lawyer family offices keep on call.
Complete the plan
Estate planning is the final, missing stage of a financial plan. Make your plan survive the client — and win the whole family as clients.
Four situations CTEP™ prepares you for
Composite cases drawn from real estate-planning failures — and exactly what a trained estate planner does differently.
"He built the business with his son. His daughter inherited half the value."
A ₹7.5 cr business split equally — with no buyout plan — lost nearly half its value in disputes. CTEP teaches business-succession structuring, estate equalisation, shareholders' agreements and family settlements.
"They divided the factory. They forgot the name."
Two brothers inherited a 40-year-old brand 50:50; neither could use it alone. Revenue fell from ₹22 cr to ₹9 cr. CTEP teaches IP & goodwill as estate assets, trusts as IP-holding structures and deadlock mechanisms.
"The estate was in India. The children's lives were abroad."
Indian parents, NRI heirs, no Will — they could inherit but couldn't administer or repatriate. CTEP teaches intestate succession, executors, FEMA repatriation and NRI/OCI estate administration.
"Equal inheritance. Not equal protection."
A father left an equal share to a son who couldn't manage money; ₹2.1 cr was gone in 26 months. CTEP teaches private discretionary trusts, creditor-aware structuring, trustee roles and letters of wishes.
Six units that make you an estate-planning specialist
From the fundamentals to advanced cross-border planning — grounded in the actual Indian legal framework.
After CTEP™, you'll be able to —
Learn at your pace, apply immediately
65 on-demand lessons
~11.5 hours of video across 6 units — on mobile and desktop, anytime.
One full year of access
Revisit any module as you apply it with real clients.
Case-based teaching
Real failure patterns and the structures that prevent them — not abstract theory.
Online examination
Sit the exam online with a 50% pass mark — flexible scheduling.
Get the detailed CTEP™ syllabus & fee sheet
Unit-by-unit breakdown, the laws covered, exam pattern and current fees — straight to your inbox.
Free PDF · no spam · unsubscribe anytime.
A specialist sees what a single-domain advisor can't
| When the client dies… | A CTEP estate planner | A single-domain advisor |
|---|---|---|
| View of the estate | ✓ The whole estate as one system | ✕ Only their own domain |
| Business & IP succession | ✓ Structured in advance | ✕ Usually out of scope |
| NRI / cross-border (FEMA) | ✓ Planned asset-by-asset | ✕ Often discovered too late |
| Trusts (discretionary, MWP, testamentary) | ✓ A core toolkit | ✕ Rarely used |
| Will + nomination + titling | ✓ Reconciled together | ✕ Assumed to agree |
| Protecting a vulnerable heir | ✓ Designed into the plan | ✕ Not addressed |
A premium, high-trust advisory niche
Estate planning is retainer-based, relationship-led work with India's wealthiest families — low competition, high value.
Our alumni work at top financial companies — globally
CTEP™ professionals advise wealthy families across the world's leading private banks, trust companies and wealth managers — the designation is recognised in 150+ countries.
Private Bank
Private BankJulius BaerBNP ParibasWealth ManagementLGTPrivate Banking
Private BankSantanderPrivate BankingBMOPrivate WealthScotiabankABN AMROJ. Safra SarasinLombard OdierIndosuezWealth ManagementRepresentative global employers of finance professionals. Company names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners; shown for identification only. AAFM India does not guarantee placement.
A global community across 150+ countries
AAFM-certified professionals practise in the world's major financial centres.
United States
United Kingdom
India
UAE
Singapore
Hong Kong
Canada
Australia
Switzerland
Germany
Saudi Arabia
Qatar
Kuwait
Malaysia
China
South AfricaLearn from estate-planning practitioners
The team that built India's wealth-advisory profession and trained tens of thousands of professionals.
See CTEP™ in action
A real alumnus story, plus a quick look at what the program covers.
What CTEP™ charter-holders say
“Highly recommend this course to anyone who wishes to understand the domestic & international estate-planning landscape. The material is very comprehensive and well thought through — a great perspective on inheritance laws in Singapore, UK & USA.”
“CTEP™ is a fantastic course — it gives deep insight into trust and estate planning. I’m very happy to find an in-depth, well-recognised course on the subject from AAFM India.”
“A very comprehensive curriculum that introduces you to the newness of estate planning in India. It truly helped me develop a deep understanding of the subject.”
“CTEP will help me scale up my business in the Super-HNI segment. It’s definitely relevant — financial planning is incomplete without estate planning.”
94% of our students say the training helped advance their careers
A few of our CTEP® alumni and their roles. The "94%" figure is from AAFM India — verify before publishing.
Become the estate-planning expert families seek out
India has 8.5L+ HNI families and almost no certified specialists. Spend 15 minutes with an advisor and see if CTEP™ fits your practice.
Explore every step of the CTEP™ journey
The Chartered Trust & Estate Planner pathway is a connected set of pages — start anywhere, each links back here.
CTEP™ — frequently asked
The CTEP™ (Chartered Trust & Estate Planner) is a specialist designation in trust, succession and estate planning — covering wills, private and family trusts, and cross-border (NRI/FEMA) succession. Awarded under the AAFM/GAFM global standards and recognised in 151+ countries, it is India's dedicated estate-planning credential.
Any client-facing finance or legal professional — MFDs, RIAs, insurance advisors, CAs, lawyers, wealth managers and private bankers — plus graduates entering wealth advisory who want a high-value specialisation.
You can register after clearing 12th standard (10+2). Graduation in any stream is required to be awarded the certification.
≈65 on-demand video lessons across 6 units, with one year of access on mobile and desktop, followed by a online MCQ examination (75 questions · 150 marks · 115 minutes) — 50% to pass, no negative marking — available at 5,000+ test centres worldwide. Most candidates finish in 3–6 months.
No. CTEP builds the law from the ground up in a practical, case-based way — finance professionals without a legal background complete it successfully and apply it with clients.
The CTEP™ programme registration fee is ₹47,200 (incl. study material; taxes as applicable); the examination is ₹5,000 + GST. Confirm current fees, EMI options and offers with a counsellor.
Yes — CTEP™ is awarded under the AAFM / GAFM global standards framework, recognised across 151+ countries.
From enquiry to charter in five steps
Free counselling
Confirm fit, eligibility and timeline with an advisor.
Enrol
Register and unlock the e-learning platform.
Learn
Work through 6 units at your own pace, with 1-year access.
Clear the exam
Sit the online exam (50% to pass), flexible scheduling.
Get chartered
CTEP™ awarded under AAFM/GAFM — recognised globally.
Start your CTEP™ journey today
Request a call back and our counsellors will share the full syllabus, fees and the next batch — and answer any questions about eligibility or how CTEP fits your practice.