ACCA RELOADED

Tuesday, 23 December 2014

FIA | FAB Accountant in Business |Syllabus areas

Major syllabus areas for fia , fab paper and detailed contents are given below:

The business organization , stakeholders and external environment

- Types of business organization

- Stakeholders of business organization

- Political and legal factors affecting business organization

- Micro economic factors

- Macro economic factors

- Social and demographic factors

- Technological factors

- Environmental factors

- Competitive factors

Business organizational structure , functions and governance

- Business organizational structure and design

- Formal , informal organizational structure

- Culture of organization

- Business organization committees

- Governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR)

Accounting and reporting systems , Controls and compliance

- The relationship between accounting and other businesses

- Accounting and finance functions within business organization

- Laws and regulations governing accounting and auditing

- The sources of internal , external financial information

- The purpose of internal , external financial information

- Financial systems , procedures and related IT applications

- Internal controls , authorization , security of data and compliance within business organization

- Fraud and fraudulent behaviour , detection and prevention e.g money laundering

Leading and managing individuals and teams

- Leadership , management and supervision

- Recruitment and selection of employees

- Individual and group behaviour within business organization

- Team formation , development and management

- Motivating individuals and groups within organization

- Learning and training at work

- Review and appraisal of individuals performances

Personal effectiveness and communication

- Personal effectiveness techniques

- Consequences of ineffectiveness at work

- Competence frameworks and personal development

- Sources of conflicts and techniques for conflict resolution & referral

- Business communication

Professional ethics in business and accounting

- Fundamental principles of ethical behaviour

- Corporate codes of ethics

- Ethical conflicts and dilemma

- The role of regulatory and professional bodies in promoting ethics and professional behaviour

FIA |MA2 Managing Costs and Finances |Syllabus

Major syllabus areas for fia , ma2 paper and detailed contents are given below:

Management information

- Management information requirements

- Cost accounting systems

- Cost classification

Cost recording

- Accounting for labour

- Accounting for material

- Accounting for other expenses

Costing techniques

- Absorption costing

- Marginal costing

- Job and batch costing

- Process costing

- Service costing

Decision making

- Cost - volume - profit (CVP) analysis

- Factors affecting short term decision making

- Principles of discounted cash flow

Cash management

- Nature of cash and cash flow

- Cash management

- Cash budgets

- Investing and financing

Spreadsheets

- Spreadsheet system overview

- Using spreadsheets on computer systems

- Presenting information in spreadsheet systems

FIA | FA2 Maintaining Financial Records | Syllabus

Major syllabus areas for fia , fa2 paper and detailed contents are given below:

Generally accepted accounting principles and concepts

- The key accounting principles and their characteristics

- Maintaining financial records

- The regulatory framework

Basic book keeping - Principles and Procedures

- The elements of financial statements

- The books of prime entry and flow of accounting information in the production of F.S.

The preparation of Journal and ledger accounts

- Preparing journals from books of prime entry

- Preparation of ledger accounts

Recording transactions and events

- Sales and purchases

- Inventory

- Cash

- Receivables , payables and provisions

- Tangible N.C.A and depreciation

- Accruals & Prepayments

- Capital and finance cost

Trial balance preparation and errors

- Trial balance

- correction of errors

Reconciliations

- Control account reconciliations

- Bank reconciliation

Trial balance extension

- Preparation of extended T.B

- Preparation of final accounts

Partnerships

- Partnership agreements

- Partnership financial statements and accounting records

- Change in partnership structure

FIA |MA1 Management Information| Syllabus areas

Major syllabus areas for fia , ma1 paper and detailed contents are given below:

The nature and purpose of cost and management accounting

- Nature of business organisation and accounting systems

- Nature and purpose of management information

Source documents and coding data

- Sources of information

- Coding system

Costs classification by nature , behaviour and purpose

- Cost classification and behaviour

- Cost units, cost centres , profit and investment centres

Recording costs : labour , material and expenses

- Accounting for labour costs

- Accounting for material costs

- Accounting for other expenses

- Accounting for product costs

Budgeting and variances - Information

- Basic budgeting and comparison information

- Reporting management information (budgeted vs actual )

Spreadsheet system

- Spreadsheet system overview - Basic understanding

- Using spreadsheets on computer systems

- Presentation of information in spreadsheets

FIA|FA1 Recording Financial Transactions|syllabus

Major syllabus areas for fia , fa1 paper and detailed contents are given below:

Types of business transactions and documentation

- Business transactions types

- Business documentation types

- The process of recording these transactions and documents in accounting systems.

The double entry system and duality of transactions

- Books of prime entry

- Dual / Double entry system

- The journal

- Financial statements elements-Proforma & Explanation

Banking system and transactions

- Banking procedures

- Banking documentation

Payroll / Wages

- Wages transactions process and documentation into accounting systems

Ledger accounts

- Preparation of ledger accounts

Cash and bank

- Maintaining a cash book

- Maintaining petty cash book

Sales and credit transactions

- Sales recording procedure

- Customer accounts and control accounts

Purchases and credit transactions

- Purchases recording procedure

- Supplier,s accounts and reconciliations

Reconciliation

- Purpose of control accounts and reconciliations

- Cash book reconciliation

- Receivables control accounts reconciliation

- Payables control accounts reconciliation

Preparing trial balance

- Trial balance preparation

- Correction of errors

FIA CBE exams specimen |Online CBE,s practice

Computer based exams ( CBE,s ) for first seven papers of Foundation in Accountancy ( FIA ) are available here .You have to practice these demo CBE exams online .This will give you the experience and idea for sitting in your final CBE exams.You can also get an idea of your preparation level by analyzing your achieved marks in your attempted CBE demo exam.The links for CBE exams are given below , follow them to start a demo exam :)

1-Introductory Certificate in Financial and Management Accounting

FA1-Recording Financial Transactions CBE demo exam Online

MA1-Management Information CBE demo exam online

2-Intermediate Certificate in Financial and Management Accounting

FA2-Maintaining Financial Records CBE demo exam online

MA2-Managing Costs and Finance CBE demo exam online

3-Diploma in Accounting and Business

FAB-Accountant in Business (Full CBE Exam Online)	FAB (Full Exam) Answers

FAB-Accountant in Business (Extra MTQs)	FAB (Extra MTQs) Answers

FMA-Management Accounting (Full CBE Exam Online)	FMA (Full Exam) Answers

FMA-Management Accounting (Extra MTQs)	FMA (Extra MTQs) Answers

FFA-Financial Accounting (Full CBE Exam Online)	FFA (Full Exam) Answers

FFA-Financial Accounting (Extra MTQs)	FFA (Extra MTQs) Answers

FIA annual subscription fees and closing payment date !

The annual subscription fee is due and payable on 1 January each year for every student to remain an active student, otherwise your account will be de-activated .For activation of your account you have to pay your all unpaid dues to ACCA with registration fees and then you will be re-registered with ACCA again as an active FIA student .

Confirmation of your unpaid fees can be obtained from your national ACCA office or from your my ACCA account.Subscription fee should be paid before 31st January to keep your balance and account up to date , otherwise you must have to pay your subscription fee before appearing in any FIA exam. After paying subscription fee you will be able to pay exam fee for your papers and then finally can attempt your papers.

Below fee structure and registration dates are for june 2015 ACCA FIA June 2015 schedule . For more info about latest ACCA paper fees structure, dates and how to pay your fee simply Click Here.

FIA initial registration fee £79

FIA annual subscription fee £83

FIA papers , exam fee and closing dates to remember !

Closing dates are Easy to remember dates
The closing dates for early, standard and late exam entry are so easy to remember - 8 is the date!

FIA Exams - Important Closing dates
June exams
8 March	Early entry (online only)
8 April	Standard exam entry (online and paper)
8 May	Late exam entry (online only)

December exams
8 September	Early entry (online only)
8 October	Standard exam entry (online and paper)
8 November	Late exam entry (online only)

FIA Exams - Papers Fees For June 2015 Session
Papers Names	Exam entry period	June 2015 exam fee(per exam)	December 2015 exam fee (per exam)
FA1, FA2, MA1, MA2	Early	£50	£--
	Standard	£53	£--
	Late	£210	£---
FAB, FFA, FM, FAU, FTX, FFM	Early	£71	£--
	Standard	£76	£--
	Late	£231	£---

P7 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

ACCA P7 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014 .
Note :These tips should only be used in along with proper studying.Please also read all the Examiner’s Articles which are available on the ACCA Global website.

Core areas (as per examiner’s approach article) likely to be examined in every paper:

Engagement planning and risk assessment (Business risk & risk of material misstatement)
Engagement procedures (or evidence)

Ethics and professional issues

Completion (matters to consider/evidence on file) and engagement reporting Current topics.

Subjects of recent articles:

IAASB Developments

Reporting on audited financial statements – significant changes proposed

Significant topics not examined for at least 18 months:

Understanding the entity

Related party transactions
Relying on the work of others including experts

Review of interim FS

Tendering

Joint audits Transnational audits

Opening balances

Subsequent events

Internal audit

Audit of social and environmental and integrated reporting

The examiner will set 5 questions, which will all have multiple elements, so it is likely that topics other than the ones noted above will be examined in the December 2014 exam.

The examiner has noted that questions will not be restricted to topic areas (e.g. question 5 will not necessarily be on audit reporting) and instead we should expect to see topics spread across a number of questions.

In addition, please note the case study questions in section A will have the requirements embedded in the question (see the article from the examiner ‘Changes in question style’). 4 professional marks will be available within one of the section A case study questions.

Finally, please note that the questions in the exam now have a fixed number of marks as follows:

Question 1: 35 , Question 2: 25 marks
Questions 3 to 5: 20 marks each

P6 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

These should only be used in along with proper studying. Please also read all the Examiner’s Articles which are available on the ACCA Global website.

Corporation tax

- Consortium relief
- Overseas aspects: CFCs
- Anti-avoidance: pre entry capital losses and trading losses - R&D
- Intangibles
- Patent box

Capital gains

- Reliefs: rollover, gift, disincorporation

Inheritance tax

- BPR/APR
- Deed of variation
- New IHT rate for charitable legacies
- Lifetime gifts computation

Income tax

- Income tax comps at marginal rates
- Benefits: car - Share incentive plans
- Overseas aspects

Personal financial planning

- VCT / seed EIS

Trusts

- Description and income tax aspects

VAT

- Registration - Pre-registration input VAT

Scenarios

- Employed vs. self-employed
- Sole trader vs. company - Lease vs. buy
assets: net cost
- IHT vs CGT for gifts

Stamp duty and SDLT
Ethics

P5 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

Focus on these tips along with proper studies. Also read Examiner, s articles available on ACCA website for this paper.

Benchmarking

CSFs and KPIs ( key performance indicators )

Modern role of management accountant

Ethics/ CSR ( Corporate social responsibility )

ABM/ costing

Rewards and evaluation of a performance management system Evaluation of a performance measurement system

Divisional performance appraisal

BCG

Corporate failure

Performance Prism or building block

NFPOs ( not for profit organisations )

Quality

EMA ( environmental management accounting )

P4 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

Remember that these tips are only genius guesses so can't be relied on completely without proper studies. So first of all focus on proper studying and then take a look at these core syllabus areas which are expected in December 2014 p4 exams.

ACCA P4 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014 :-

1-Currency hedging and interest rate hedging
- read the two recent articles published on the ACCA website .( Current examiner thinks critically about question 1 and makes highly technical and strategical )

2-Black Scholes option pricing model

3-Business valuation, especially using the free cash flow to firm methodology

4-Cost of capital calculations (including asset and equity betas) and Adjusted Present Value

5-Also read acca technical articles relevant to P4 paper which are available on ACCA website.

P3 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

ACCA P3 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014

NOTE:

These should only be used in conjunction with proper studying.No body can guarantee that these topics will appear in the actual ACCA exams as we have not seen the exam papers.

ACCA examiners are not predictable so it is vital that all main syllabus areas are revised fully.

These tips are based on Kaplan’s experience and understanding of the ACCA exams and will help focus your last minute revision.

Please also read all the Examiner’s Articles which are available on the ACCA Global website.

1-Project management and benefits management

2-The POPIT model

3-Strategy evaluation 4-Managing strategic change and culture

5-Decision making techniques

6-Strategic analysis

P2 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

ACCA P2 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014.

NOTE:

These tips should only be used in conjunction with proper studying.No body can guarantee that these topics will appear in the actual exam paper as we have not seen the ACCA exam papers.

ACCA Examiners are not predictable so it is vital that all main syllabus areas are revised fully.These exam tips are based on Kaplan’s experience and understanding of the ACCA exams and will help focus your last minute revision. Please also read all the Examiner’s Articles which are available on the ACCA Global website.

Here are some suggestions of key areas which may be tested in December 2014 exams:

Q1 Groups and ethics :-

Question 1 is so important to passing P2 that students must thoroughly practice a wide range of consolidation questions.

However, after a break of two sittings, it would not be a surprise to see a consolidated statement of financial position examined.

Q2 and Q3 :-

The examiner continues to test revenue, provisions and non-current assets held for sale on a regular basis. IAS 41 Agriculture is new to the syllabus and should be considered highly examinable. Some areas that have not been tested recently, or in less detail than expected, include:

-Share-based payments (IFRS 2)

-Impairment (IAS 36)

-Deferred tax (IAS 12)

-IFRS 10 and Control

Q4 – Essay-style question:-

ACCA have widely advertised the inclusion of Integrated Reporting in their syllabi and therefore students should make sure that they are familiar with the contents and purpose of an Integrated Report. However, question 4 in recent P2 exams has focussed on extant accounting standards and documents.

If this continues, then IAS 36 Impairment of Assets could be tested or, perhaps, the Framework.

P1 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams |ACCA

ACCA P1 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014.

NOTE:

These tips should only be used in conjunction with proper studying. No body can guarantee that these topics will appear in the actual exam as we have not seen the ACCA exam papers. Examiners are also not predictable, so it is vital that all main syllabus areas are revised fully. Theese tips are based on Kaplan’s experience and understanding of the ACCA exams and will help focus your last minute revision.

Please also read all the Examiner’s Articles which are available on the ACCA Global website .

1-Corporate governance comparison of approaches – public v private sector

2-Conflict of interest and independence

3-Stakeholders and stakeholder claims

4-Effective internal control systems

5-Function and importance of internal audit 6-Risk correlation and strategies for management of such risks

7-Ethical standpoints and their application to business decision

8-Corporate codes of ethics critique and improvements

9-Tucker’s ethical decision making model

10-Corporate Social Responsibility:

–Comparison of approach (profit and not for profit organisations) Integrated reporting

F9 kaplan exam tips december 2014 exams|ACCA

ACCA F9 Key Examinable Areas for December 2014 .

Investment appraisal:

This is a key topic which is highly likely to be examined every time. The most common technique assessed is NPV with inflation and taxation. It is worth bearing in mind that IRR has not been tested for over three years so may pop up in some form. It is wise to be prepared for applications of NPV such as replacement analysis as well as the more general discussion aspects relating to risk and uncertainty. In the most recent sitting capital rationing carried a substantial number of marks.

Working Capital Management:

Another key topic which is likely to examined every time. In recent sittings, the examiner has seemed fond of testing the cash operating cycle and also receivables management. It is wise to be prepared for a question focussing on payables management or inventory management. A discussion about funding strategies is a key discursive element.

Valuations:

This has been examined in virtually every F9 exam to date. The PE ratio and dividend valuation methods still appear to be the more examinable areas. Cash flow based values have yet to be examined. There are often high scoring discursive elements in this area of the syllabus for being able to discuss the implications of something on the value of the business or perhaps the various valuation methods. A discussion of the Efficient Market Hypothesis carried a fair few marks in the most recent sitting.

Business Finance: This topic has been heavily examined recently and in particular the impact of financing on ratios is an area the examiner likes. Candidates should make sure they are able to discuss the impact that different policies may have on a company by being able to both calculate and interpret financial ratios. Ability to be able to discuss the characteristics of various sources of finance is paramount and most importantly to able to relate suggestions/ comments to the scenario at hand.

Cost of Capital:

This topic features in virtually every exam to a greater or lesser extent. Good coverage of all of the syllabus areas is therefore essential to ensure students can handle any eventuality on the day. Candidates should feel confident when using the CAPM formula and calculating the overall cost of capital (WACC) and going on to discuss the impact of the cost of capital on investments. It has been a while since the examiner has focussed on a discussion relating to gearing theories.

Risk Management:

Within this section of the syllabus, foreign exchange risk has been examined more often than interest rate risk. However, both are fairly under-examined areas of the syllabus as a whole and so this is a topic worth being on top of. Questions in this area can often be wholly discussional or may involve some basic calculations. The Financial Management Function and The Financial Management Environment:

We can probably expect an element of these syllabus areas to feature as a tag on discursive element within one question on the exam. This part of the question can provide some easier knowledgebased marks and therefore is worth some focus.

The examiner repeatedly comments that this area of the syllabus is not dealt with by students as well as it should be. Perhaps this is due to focus being given to other more technically challenging parts of the syllabus but this area can provide some relatively easy knowledge marks so should not be over-looked.