ACCA Exams List: All 13 Papers by Level

How many ACCA exams are there?

There are 13 ACCA exams, split across three levels:

• Applied Knowledge: 3 exams, all compulsory.
• Applied Skills: 6 exams, all compulsory.
• Strategic Professional: 4 exams. Two Essentials that everyone sits, plus two Options you choose from four.

That makes 15 papers on the list, but you only sit 13 of them. On top of the exams, ACCA requires the Ethics and Professional Skills module and a minimum of 36 months of relevant work experience with nine performance objectives (the practical experience requirement ). Every exam is computer-based, and the pass mark for every ACCA exam is 50%.

If you hold a degree or another accounting qualification, you may not need to sit all 13. See ACCA exemptions .

Applied Knowledge: 3 exams

These introduce business, management accounting and bookkeeping. Each is a two-hour exam taken on demand: you book it with an exam centre at any time of year and see your result at the end of the exam.

• BT, Business and Technology: how businesses are organised and governed, the role of the finance function, leadership, teams and professional ethics. Section A has 30 two-mark and 16 one-mark objective test questions. Section B has six four-mark multi-task questions, one on each main area of the syllabus.
• MA, Management Accounting: costing, budgeting, standard costing and variances, and performance measurement. Section A has 35 two-mark objective test questions. Section B has three ten-mark multi-task questions on budgeting, standard costing and performance measurement.
• FA, Financial Accounting: double entry, trial balances, reconciliations and preparing the financial statements of a single company and a simple group. Section A has 35 two-mark objective test questions. Section B has two 15-mark multi-task questions, one on consolidation and one on accounts preparation.

All questions are compulsory, so you need the whole syllabus. Our Applied Knowledge exams guide goes deeper on each one.

Applied Skills: 6 exams

This level builds the technical core: law, tax, reporting, audit, performance and finance. Apart from Corporate and Business Law, these are three-hour session exams, sat in the March, June, September or December sessions, with results about six weeks later.

• LW, Corporate and Business Law: the English legal system, contract and tort, employment law, company formation, finance and management, insolvency and corporate fraud. A two-hour objective test exam: 25 two-mark and 20 one-mark questions in Section A, and five six-mark multi-task questions in Section B. The English (LW-ENG) and Global (LW-GLO) versions are on demand; other country versions are sat in sessions.
• PM, Performance Management: specialist costing, decision-making, budgeting, advanced variances and performance measurement in divisions and the public sector. It builds directly on MA.
• TX, Taxation: UK income tax, corporation tax, capital gains tax, inheritance tax, VAT and national insurance, plus how the tax system is run. TX has country variants; this guide describes TX-UK.
• FR, Financial Reporting: IFRS Accounting Standards, preparing and interpreting the financial statements of single companies and groups. It builds on FA.
• AA, Audit and Assurance: the audit process from planning and risk assessment through internal control, evidence and reporting.
• FM, Financial Management: investment appraisal, working capital, sources of finance, the cost of capital, business valuation and managing risk.

The Applied Skills exam pattern

PM, TX, FR and FM share the same three-section pattern for 100 marks:

• Section A: 15 objective test questions of 2 marks each (30 marks).
• Section B: three case questions, each with five 2-mark objective test questions on one scenario (30 marks).
• Section C: constructed response questions where you write your answer in a spreadsheet or word processor (40 marks). PM, FR and FM have two 20-mark questions. TX has one 10-mark and two 15-mark questions, with the 15-mark ones on income tax and corporation tax.

AA is different. Section A has three 10-mark case questions, each with five objective test questions. Section B has one 30-mark and two 20-mark constructed response questions, mostly on planning and risk, internal control and audit evidence.

Strategic Professional: 4 exams

All Strategic Professional exams are session-based and last 3 hours 15 minutes. ACCA says you should complete the Ethics and Professional Skills module before attempting any of them. There are no objective test questions at this level: every answer is written, and part of the marks go to professional skills such as communication, analysis and scepticism.

The two Essentials (sit both)

• SBL, Strategic Business Leader: leadership, governance, strategy, risk, technology, finance and change, all examined through one integrated case study. You get pre-seen information on the organisation two weeks before the exam. Each exam has 80 technical marks and 20 professional skills marks.
• SBR, Strategic Business Reporting: group accounts, complex standards, sustainability reporting, ethics in reporting and how stakeholders read the numbers. Section A has two scenario questions worth 30 and 20 marks. Section B has two 25-mark questions. Four marks are for professional skills.

The four Options (choose two)

• AFM, Advanced Financial Management: strategic financial decisions, advanced investment appraisal, mergers and acquisitions, reconstruction and treasury risk management. Builds on FM.
• APM, Advanced Performance Management: strategic management accounting, performance improvement models, performance reporting systems and the impact of technology and data analytics. Builds on PM.
• ATX, Advanced Taxation: UK taxes in combination, tax planning for individuals and companies, and ethics. Builds on TX.
• AAA, Advanced Audit and Assurance: audit planning for complex clients, professional and ethical issues, quality management, group audits and other assurance work. Builds on AA.

Each Option follows the same pattern: Section A is a 50-mark case study, and Section B has two 25-mark scenario questions. Across the exam, 80 marks are technical and 20 are professional skills. Picking well matters for your career, so read how to choose your ACCA Options and our Strategic Professional exams guide .

Objective tests and constructed response: what the pattern means

The ACCA exam pattern moves from short questions to long written answers as you progress:

• Applied Knowledge and LW: objective test questions (multiple choice and similar item types) and multi-task questions, where one scenario has several short tasks. Speed and breadth matter most.
• Applied Skills (except LW): 60 marks of objective tests and 40 marks of constructed response, where you build workings in a spreadsheet and write explanations.
• Strategic Professional: all constructed response, with professional skills marks. Planning your answer and writing for the reader matter as much as technical knowledge.

That shift is why most students find the jump to Applied Skills hard, and why the hardest ACCA exam is usually one at Strategic Professional.

Where to go next

• Best order for ACCA exams : the sequence that works and why.
• Which ACCA exams to take together : pairing papers in one session.
• ACCA exam dates : session dates and booking deadlines.
• ACCA pass rates : how each paper compares.

ACCA has announced a redesigned qualification, with the first new exams from July 2027. If you are partway through, check ACCA's transition guidance for how your passes carry across.

Study every ACCA paper with VIVA

We teach all 15 papers on the list, from BT through to all four Options, with video lessons and an AI Tutor in every lesson. Start at ACCA courses , browse Applied Knowledge , Applied Skills and Strategic Professional , or see ACCA prices .

Sources: ACCA Qualification structure , ACCA About our exams , ACCA syllabus and study guides 2026-27 for BT , MA , FA , LW-ENG , PM , TX-UK , FR , AA , FM , SBL , SBR , AFM , APM , ATX-UK and AAA , The future ACCA Qualification , checked 7 November 2026.