Structure of the ACCA F1 paper
Section A contains 16 one mark objective questions and 30 two mark questions objective test questions (pick one answer from a number of alternatives).
Section B will contains 6 four mark multi-task questions. Multi-task questions (MTQs) contain a series of tasks which relate to one or more scenarios.
Emphasis of the ACCA F1 exam
The syllabus and study guide take you through:
Work effectively in accountancy and finance
Principles of internal control
Evaluating accounting systems
Professional ethics in accounting and finance
Professional values and basic business legislation
Business environment, structure and governance
Leadership management and communication
Structure of the ACCA F2 paper
Section A will contain 35 two mark objective questions.
Section B will contain 3 ten mark multi-task questions – one will be on Budgeting, one will be on Standard costing, and one will be on Performance measurement.
Structure of the F3 paper
Section A will contain 35 two mark objective questions.
Section B will contain 2 fifteen mark multi-task questions. One will test consolidations and the other will test accounts preparation.
Structure of the ACCA F4 paper
The exam will be a two-hour paper, with all questions being compulsory.
Section A will comprise 25 objective test questions of 2 marks each, and 20 objective test questions of 1 mark each.
Section B will comprise five 6 mark multi-task questions.
Emphasis of the ACCA F4 exam
Major areas covered in exams are administration as an alternative dispute remedy, sale of goods law and company law. Typically 5 or 6 questions in each exam are from these 3 areas.
In the scenario questions, the examiner is looking for a student’s ability to establish the area of law involved, analyse the problem, identify the general principles of law relevant to the question and then apply those principles to the situation in the question, often with the requirement of giving advice to one or more of the parties involved.
Structure of the ACCA F5 paper
There are two sections to the exam – Section A will comprise 20 multiple choice questions of 2 marks each; Section B of the exam comprises three 10 mark questions and two 15 mark questions. The two 15 mark questions will come from decision making techniques, budgeting and control, and/or performance measurement and control areas of the syllabus.The Section A questions and the other questions in section B can cover any areas of the syllabus.
There are 3 hours for the exam, plus 15 minutes of reading time.
Overall, approximately 50% of the exam involves calculations, and approximately 50% is written.
Emphasis of the ACCA F5 exam
Although most of the arithmetic involved is not difficult in itself, the calculation parts of questions are designed to check that you understand the techniques, and can decide what information is relevant, rather than checking that you have just learned rules.
For the written parts of questions there is some learning involved, but most of them are again checking that you understand the techniques – that you can explain them, that you can discuss advantages and disadvantages, and that you can identify the problems of applying them in practice.
Structure of the ACCA F6 paper
There are no changes to the syllabus in the December 2014 Exams
There are no changes to the format of the exam in the December 2014 Exams
The paper will be predominantly computational and will have five questions, all of which will be compulsory.
Question one will focus on income tax and question two will focus on corporation tax. The two questions will be for a total of 55 marks, with one of the questions being for 30 marks and the other being for 25 marks.
Question three will focus on chargeable gains (either personal or corporate) and will be for 15 marks.
Questions four and five will be on any area of the syllabus, can cover more than one topic and will respectively be for 15 marks.
There will always be a minimum of 10 marks on value added tax. These marks will normally be included within question one or question two, although there might be a separate question on value added tax.
National Insurance Contributions will not be examined as a separate question, but may be examined in any question involving income tax or corporation tax.
Emphasis of the ACCA F6 exam
The exam will require you to prepare a computation for each of the main taxes correctly including the relevant items and in addition for businesses a Capital Allowances computation, Adjustment of profit statement will be required along with an understanding of the application of the VAT system to that business.
Structure of the ACCA F7 paper
The exam is a three-hour paper, with all questions being compulsory, and with 15 minutes reading time.
There will be two sections to the exam:
Section A will comprise 20 multiple choice questions of 2 marks each.
Section B will comprise one 30 mark questions and two 15 mark questions.
(The 30 mark question will examine the preparation of financial statements for either a single entity or a group. The section A question and the other questions in Section B can cover any areas of the syllabus.)
Structure of the ACCA F8 paper
Part A – 20% (12 multiple choice questions: four questions for 1 mark each, eight for 2 marks each)
Part B – 80% (six compulsory questions: four questions for 10 marks each, two questions for 20 marks each
Structure of the ACCA F9 paper
There are two sections to the exam:
Section A comprises 20 multiple choice questions of 2 marks each;
Section B comprises three 10 mark questions and two 15 mark questions.
The two 15 mark questions will come from working capital management, investment appraisal, and business finance areas of the syllabus. The Section A questions and the other questions in Section B can cover any areas of the syllabus.
There are three hours for the exam, plus 15 minutes of reading time.
Approximately 50% of the marks will be for calculations and approximately 50% will be written.