FDNY Certificate of Fitness · Code F-01
F-01 Fire Guard for Impairment
The card the FDNY requires of anyone standing a fire watch while a building’s sprinkler, standpipe or alarm system is out of service. No experience is needed to sit the exam, which is why it is the usual first certificate for anyone entering building work in the city.
Course price
$200
3 months access
Studied in the Tauris Training app.
Who needs it
Who holds the F-01
Building staff, security staff and contractors who are assigned to fire watch. In any occupancy where a required fire protection system is out of service, the Fire Code requires a fire watch, and it has to be kept by one or more people holding the F-01. For the first four hours of an out-of-service condition affecting no more than 50,000 square feet, a trained person designated by the building owner may stand the watch. After that, or for any larger area, only an F-01 holder can.
The fire guard patrols the affected areas, keeps the fire watch record, and knows how to notify the Fire Department and what to do in an emergency. The FDNY study material covers the patrol, the daily record, notification and emergency procedures, the sprinkler, standpipe and alarm systems the guard is standing in for, portable extinguishers, and lithium-ion battery safety.
What the FDNY asks
To apply
You are at least 18
With a reasonable understanding of English.
Government-issued photo ID
Presented when you apply and when you take the exam.
A $25 FDNY application fee
Paid to the FDNY, on top of the course price.
Exam day
20 questions at FDNY Headquarters
- Format
- 20 multiple-choice questions on a touch-screen computer, with 30 minutes to complete it.
- Pass mark
- 70%
- Where
- FDNY Headquarters, 9 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn
- FDNY application fee
- $25 per attempt, paid to the FDNY
- Valid for
- Three years, then $15 to renew
Questions people actually ask
About the F-01
Who needs an F-01 Certificate of Fitness in NYC?
Anyone standing a fire watch in a New York City building where a required fire protection system is out of service. The Fire Code allows a trained person designated by the owner to cover the first four hours if the affected area is 50,000 square feet or less; beyond that, the watch has to be kept by an F-01 holder. It is the certificate building staff, security staff and contractors hold for fire watch duty.
What is the F-01 exam like?
Twenty multiple-choice questions on a touch-screen computer at FDNY Headquarters, 9 MetroTech Center, Brooklyn, with 30 minutes to complete it. The pass mark is 70%. The $25 FDNY application fee is paid online before you arrive, and each attempt is a separate application. Retesting on the same calendar day is not permitted.
Do I need experience to get an F-01?
No. The FDNY lists no special requirements for the F-01 beyond the general ones for every Certificate of Fitness: being at least 18 with a reasonable understanding of English, government photo ID, and the application fee. It is the usual first certificate for anyone entering building work in New York City.
How long is the F-01 valid?
Three years, like most Certificates of Fitness, with a $15 renewal fee. The FDNY emails a courtesy notice 90 days before it expires. A certificate more than a year past its expiration date cannot be renewed and you sit the exam again.
Your building has more than one system
The FDNY issues a Certificate of Fitness per system or hazard. All 36 courses, or group enrollment for a whole crew.