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ACCA Qualification Structure Explained

By The Exam Atlas Editorial Team · Verified 2026-05-29

ACCA is structured into three exam levels plus ethics and experience. This is a plain-English summary; ACCA’s official materials are authoritative.

Applied Knowledge

  • Business and Technology (BT)
  • Management Accounting (MA)
  • Financial Accounting (FA)

Applied Skills

  • Corporate and Business Law (LW)
  • Performance Management (PM)
  • Taxation (TX)
  • Financial Reporting (FR)
  • Audit and Assurance (AA)
  • Financial Management (FM)

Strategic Professional

  • Essentials: Strategic Business Leader (SBL), Strategic Business Reporting (SBR)
  • Options (choose two): Advanced Financial Management, Advanced Performance Management, Advanced Taxation, Advanced Audit and Assurance

Ethics and experience

The Ethics and Professional Skills module is completed alongside the exams, and the Practical Experience Requirement (36 months of relevant supervised work) is needed to qualify. Most exams require 50% to pass.

FAQ

How is ACCA structured?
Three exam levels (Applied Knowledge, Applied Skills, Strategic Professional) totalling up to 13 exams, plus the Ethics and Professional Skills module and a practical experience requirement.

Sources