How Many ACCA Exams Are There in Total?

How Many ACCA Exams Are There in Total?

The total number of exams in the ACCA Qualification is 13. These papers are split across three distinct levels: Applied Knowledge (3 exams), Applied Skills (6 exams), and Strategic Professional (4 exams). You may be eligible for exemptions which can reduce the total number.

Why this actually matters

Knowing the exact number of exams helps you map out your study plan, budget for fees, and set realistic completion timelines. For a time-poor, full-time professional, understanding the full scope of the journey prevents you from getting overwhelmed by uncertainty and focusing on the wrong things at the wrong time.

Structured breakdown

• Applied Knowledge (3 exams): This is the foundation. It introduces you to the world of accounting and business. The exams are Business and Technology (BT), Management Accounting (MA), and Financial Accounting (FA).
• Applied Skills (6 exams): This level builds on the knowledge from the first. It gives you the strong, broad, and practical finance skills required of a professional accountant. The exams are Corporate and Business Law (LW), Performance Management (PM), Taxation (TX), Financial Reporting (FR), Audit and Assurance (AA), and Financial Management (FM).
• Strategic Professional (4 exams): This is the final level. It prepares you for future leadership positions. It consists of two compulsory Essentials exams and two Options exams.
• Essentials (2 exams): Both are required. They are Strategic Business Leader (SBL) and Strategic Business Reporting (SBR).
• Options (Choose 2 of 4): You must choose two exams from Advanced Financial Management (AFM), Advanced Performance Management (APM), Advanced Taxation (ATX), and Advanced Audit and Assurance (AAA). Your choice should align with your career goals.
• Ethics and Professional Skills Module (EPSM): This is a mandatory online module that you must complete. While not a formal exam, it is a requirement for membership. It should ideally be completed before you sit your first Strategic Professional exam.
• Practical Experience Requirement (PER): To qualify as an ACCA member, you must also complete 36 months of relevant work experience and achieve 9 performance objectives. This is done alongside your exams.

If you're working full-time

Balancing a full-time job with 13 exams is a marathon, not a sprint. Do not plan to study for more than one exam per session, especially at the Strategic Professional level. A realistic schedule is sitting one exam per quarter, which maps to four exams per year. This translates to a 3-4 year journey, assuming no fails. On a weekday, aim for a focused 90-minute session. Use weekends for longer 4-hour sessions, focusing on question practice under timed conditions. Your commute can be used for reviewing concepts on your phone, but your core study time must be at a desk. Be realistic about your energy levels; burning out is a bigger risk than falling behind your ideal schedule.

Common mistakes

• Ignoring exemptions: Not checking your exemption eligibility is leaving free passes on the table. Use the official ACCA exemptions calculator.
• Poor Option choice: Selecting Strategic Professional Options that don't match your job or career aspirations. This makes studying a chore and the exam harder to pass.
• Underestimating the Ethics module: Leaving the EPSM until the very end. It's a required component, and the skills it teaches are directly relevant to passing the Strategic Professional exams, especially SBL.
• Neglecting the PER: Thinking you only need to pass exams. You must log your 36 months of Practical Experience Requirement concurrently to qualify without delays.
• Rushing the levels: Attempting too many papers at once. This spreads your focus too thin and is a common reason for failing.
• Not budgeting correctly: Forgetting to account for all fees: exam entry, subscription fees, and tuition costs. This can cause financial stress and disrupt your progress.
• Skipping the Applied Skills foundation: If you have exemptions, you might feel you can ignore the underlying material. This is a mistake, as the Strategic Professional level builds directly on this knowledge.

How examiners think

Examiners are not trying to trick you; they are testing your ability to think and act like a professional accountant. For them, a good answer is not about reciting the textbook. It's about application. For example, at the Strategic Professional level, simply listing technical knowledge will score very few marks. The examiner wants to see you apply that knowledge to the specific scenario in the question, provide balanced arguments, and communicate your answer in a clear, professional format. They reward structure, clarity, and the ability to prioritise information. For calculation questions, showing your workings is critical, as you can earn follow-through marks even if your final answer is incorrect. They want to see your thought process, not just the final number.

FAQ

Calm summary

Your next concrete step is to confirm your starting point. Use the official ACCA exemptions calculator on their website this week to see if your prior qualifications reduce the 13-exam total. Based on that result, map out the exams you need to take. If you are new, your focus is the first Applied Knowledge paper. If you are part-way through, confirm which paper you will sit in the next exam cycle. Do not think about all 13 exams at once. Just focus on the next one.