ACCA Qualification
ACCA is not an exam but a whole professional education, sat at exam centres in more than a hundred countries. It covers everything a chartered accountant might meet: law, tax, audit, reporting, management accounting and strategy.
The honest unit of measurement is years, and the honest cost is a subscription you pay every year until you finish.
Certificate facts
- Level
- Expert
- Field
- Finance & accounting
- Access
- Paid
- Assessment
- Proctored exam
- Questions
- Thirteen exams at three levels: three Applied Knowledge, six Applied Skills and four Strategic Professional (two essentials and two of four options), plus the Ethics and Professional Skills module
- Languages
- EnglishACCA's exam pages read for this record do not name an exam language; its syllabuses and exam guidance are published in English.
- Price
- 160 GBP (read 26 September 2026)
- Validity
- never expires
- Exam delivery
- Computer-based exams at centres in more than 100 countries, on demand or in four sessions (March, June, September, December); remote sittings where no centre exists
Prerequisites: Registration as an ACCA student; exemptions are available for recognised prior study, for a fee per exam. Membership also requires 36 months of relevant experience under the Professional Experience Requirement and the Ethics and Professional Skills module.
Renewal: The qualification does not expire. Staying an ACCA member means paying an annual fee; the member continuing-development rules were not read for this record.
Source: certificate page at ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) · Price: One Applied Skills exam at standard entry (December 2026 session); ACCA prices in GBP. 2026: initial registration 89 GBP, annual subscription 140 GBP; December 2026 standard entry 160 GBP per Applied Skills exam, 282 GBP for Strategic Business Leader, 208 GBP for Strategic Business Reporting and each Options exam; Ethics and Professional Skills module 83 GBP. Late entry costs far more. Applied Knowledge exam fees are not shown on the fees page (read 2026-09-26)
How to prepare
1. Online courses
Courses and practice questions from the directory that target exactly this exam — details, price and the provider link (affiliate) are on the course page.
- Preparation courseACCA Financial Accounting and Reporting (FA, FR) - 2026 ExamThe FA and FR papers.
- Preparation courseACCA Financial Management (FM, AFM) - 2026FM and the AFM option.
- Practice testsACCA F3: Financial Accounting (FA) - Practice TestFA practice questions.
- Preparation courseACCA: AA (F8) - Audit and assuranceThe Audit and Assurance paper.
Book the exam
Delivered by Computer-based exams at centres in more than 100 countries, on demand or in four sessions (March, June, September, December); remote sittings where no centre exists. Schedule with ACCA (Association of Chartered Certified Accountants) (opens in a new tab)
Affiliate disclosure: the course link above is an affiliate link — buying through them may earn us a commission at no extra cost to you. The vendor's learning path and booking links carry no commission.
Three levels and a module, in that order
| Level | Exams | What you gain |
|---|---|---|
| Applied Knowledge | Business and Technology (BT), Financial Accounting (FA), Management Accounting (MA) | The foundations; check exemptions first if you hold an accounting degree |
| Applied Skills | Corporate and Business Law (LW), Taxation (TX), Financial Reporting (FR), Performance Management (PM), Financial Management (FM), Audit and Assurance (AA) | With Applied Knowledge and the ethics module, the Advanced Diploma in Accounting and Business, benchmarked at UK bachelor's level |
| Strategic Professional | Strategic Business Reporting (SBR) and Strategic Business Leader (SBL), plus two of AFM, AAA, ATX and APM | Benchmarked at UK master's level; with experience, the route to membership |
The Ethics and Professional Skills module runs alongside the exams and is required for both the diploma and membership. So is the Professional Experience Requirement: thirty-six months of relevant work, which can be accumulated while you study. ACCA estimates twelve to eighteen months for the Applied Skills stage, the same again for Strategic Professional, and three to four years from start to membership depending on how you pace the exams and the experience.
When and where the exams happen
Every exam is taken on a computer. Some are available on demand throughout the year, with a result on screen at the end; others run in four sessions, in March, June, September and December, with results about six weeks later. Session exams are booked through ACCA's Exam Planner before a deadline, and entering late costs well over twice the standard fee. ACCA works with exam centres in more than a hundred countries and offers remote sittings where no centre exists.
The subscription runs whether you sit exams or not
ACCA invoices its annual student subscription every November, due by 1 January, and it is payable even in a year with no exams. Leave it unpaid and you may be removed from the student register and charged re-registration on top of what is owed. A pause in studies is therefore never free.
- Take it for a career in audit, practice or statutory reporting, where the breadth of law, tax and assurance is the point.
- Take it if a recognised award partway through appeals: the Advanced Diploma after the first two levels, and an optional University of London BSc alongside.
- Look at the CMA instead if you already work in a company's finance team and want a management accounting credential in two exams rather than thirteen.
Exemptions are worth checking before you register, because recognised prior study can remove exams from the route. Each exemption carries its own fee, a little below the standard entry for the same level, and the real saving is the months of study it spares. Ask your university or previous awarding body which ACCA exams its courses map to before registering, because the exemption decision shapes the whole plan.
What a question looks like
Written by us in the exam's style. It is not a real question from any question bank, and we do not publish those.
You are the new finance director of a listed manufacturer. The chief executive wants to capitalise development costs on a project whose commercial viability is doubtful, arguing that it will reassure investors before a share issue. Draft your response to the board.
This is the Strategic Professional style: no single right number, but a right line of reasoning. Marks come from applying the reporting standard, recognising the ethical threat, and communicating professionally to a board, all in one answer.
What it costs to get and to keep
| Item | Amount | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Initial registration | not published | 89 GBP, paid once when you register as a student (read 26 September 2026) |
| Annual student subscription | not published | 140 GBP for 2026, due each year by 1 January whether or not you sit exams (read 26 September 2026) |
| Applied Skills exam, standard entry | not published | 160 GBP each for the December 2026 session (entry closes 2 Nov); late entry 409 GBP (read 26 September 2026) |
| Strategic Professional exams, standard entry | not published | December 2026: Strategic Business Leader 282 GBP, Strategic Business Reporting 208 GBP, each Options exam 208 GBP; late entry 467 GBP each (read 26 September 2026) |
| Ethics and Professional Skills module | not published | 83 GBP (read 26 September 2026) |
| Exemptions | not published | 86 GBP per Applied Knowledge exemption and 114 GBP per Applied Skills exemption (read 26 September 2026) |
| Applied Knowledge exams | not published | not listed on the fees page read; check ACCA's exam-fees section before booking (read 26 September 2026) |
How much preparation, from where you are
- School leaver or non-accounting graduate
- You start at Applied Knowledge with no exemptions. The full route is a multi-year commitment; most of the time goes into the six Applied Skills exams.
- Accounting graduate
- Check exemptions first; your degree may cover part of the route. Budget most of your time for Financial Reporting and the Strategic Professional papers.
- Experienced accountant with another body's qualification
- Exemptions can remove much of the early work, but Strategic Business Leader and the options still have to be sat.
What passing this does not prove
- Any single software package; the computer-based exams test knowledge and judgement, not tools.
- Your ability to run a practice, win clients or manage staff.
- Advanced spreadsheet modelling, which programmes such as the FMVA teach.
- Speed: the long route rewards persistence as much as talent.
Against the alternatives
- Certified Management Accountant (CMA®)
- The CMA is two exams on management accounting and corporate finance. ACCA is a full chartered qualification including audit, tax and law. For statutory accounting and audit, ACCA; for a corporate finance role, the CMA is faster.
- Financial Modeling & Valuation Analyst (FMVA®)
- FMVA teaches modelling skills in a few months online. It is a useful companion to ACCA's Financial Management and Advanced Financial Management papers, not a substitute for a professional qualification.
ACCA Qualification — quick answers
How much does ACCA cost in total?
It depends on exemptions, how many exams you sit and how long you take, because the subscription recurs every year. The cost table itemises the 2026 fees in pounds; add tuition and study materials, which ACCA does not set.
How long does ACCA take?
ACCA estimates three to four years from starting to membership, including thirty-six months of relevant experience that can run in parallel with the exams.
Can I get exemptions?
Yes, for recognised degrees and qualifications. Each exemption is charged per exam, at a lower rate than sitting it.
When can I call myself an ACCA member?
You become one after passing the exams, completing the ethics module and meeting the experience requirement, then applying for membership.
What do I get halfway through?
After the Applied Knowledge and Applied Skills exams and the ethics module, ACCA awards the Advanced Diploma in Accounting and Business, benchmarked at UK bachelor's level.
Where this certificate sits in the field
What comes next
Concepts this certificate draws on
Glossary entries with the reason each one matters for ACCA Qualification.
- Double-entry bookkeeping
Examined from Financial Accounting upward through the ladder.
- Accruals
Examined from Financial Accounting upward through the ladder.
- Financial statements
Examined from Financial Accounting upward through the ladder.
- WACC
Examined from Financial Accounting upward through the ladder.
- AML
Examined from Financial Accounting upward through the ladder.
Last reviewed 26 September 2026 · Getting Digital