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AAA exam format (Sept 2026 to June 2027 study guide)
| Part | What you get | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Section A | One compulsory case study set at the planning stage (40 technical + 10 professional skills) | 50 |
| Section B | 2 compulsory questions of 25 marks each (20 technical + 5 professional skills in each) | 50 |
| Total | 100 | |
| Pass mark | 50 | |
| Time | 3 hours 15 minutes, computer-based |
All the professional skills are tested in Section A. One Section B question always comes mainly from completion, review and reporting. The other can come from any of syllabus areas A, B, C, D or F. ACCA made no syllabus changes for September 2026 to June 2027.
What the AAA syllabus covers
- A. Regulatory environment: the laws and rules auditors work under.
- B. Professional and ethical considerations: ethics and professional conduct, including ACCA's Code of Ethics.
- C. Quality management: quality management at firm level and on each engagement.
- D. Planning and conducting an audit: materiality, risk assessment and gathering evidence.
- E. Completion, review and reporting: going concern, subsequent events, misstatements and the auditor's report.
- F. Other assignments: assurance and review work beyond the statutory audit.
- G. Current issues and developments: usually built into the case study or a Section B question, not set as a full question.
- H. Professional skills: analysis and evaluation, professional scepticism and judgement, commercial acumen and communication.
- I. Employability and technology skills: working on the computer-based exam's response options and presenting data clearly.
All questions use IFRS Accounting Standards. Regulations issued by 31 August 2025 are examinable. ACCA sets AAA in international (INT), UK and Irish (IRL) versions; the UK and IRL versions use the UK or Irish auditing and ethical standards.
Where marks are lost in AAA
- Materiality. Some candidates used operating profit instead of profit before tax, and a few used prior-year figures. Some worked out a threshold and then did not apply it. Many justified materiality only by saying the client was new. Use profit before tax for the current year, apply the threshold to each risk, and give reasons from the scenario. Higher risk means a lower materiality, not a higher one. (examiner's report, March/June 2026)
- Risk prioritisation. The partner's email asked for the risks of material misstatement in priority order. Many candidates did not do it and lost professional marks. Writing "the risks are listed in priority order" earns nothing. Keep business risk and risk of material misstatement apart, and leave out risks the client does not have, such as IFRS 8 for an unlisted group. (examiner's report, March/June 2026)
- Audit procedures. Vague procedures such as "determine joint control" scored poorly, and so did leaning on board minutes or written representations. Each procedure needs a clear source and a clear purpose. Many answers also gave too few procedures for the marks on offer. (examiner's report, March/June 2026)
- Completion and the auditor's report. Many candidates gave a separate opinion for each misstatement. Assess the misstatements together and give one opinion. Do not list every report option, and answer both halves of the requirement, the matters to consider and the evidence you expect on file. Some candidates also wasted time recalculating materiality that the completion-stage question had already given. (examiner's report, March/June 2026)
The briefing notes go to an engagement partner. Explaining basics, such as what a business risk is or how to calculate materiality, earns nothing and can cost communication marks.
How our AAA mocks work
- Pick your plan: Every Chapter Test Series (a test for every chapter and 2 full mock exams), Part-wise Test Series (5 part tests and 2 full tests), Full Syllabus Mock Tests (2 full tests) or Every Chapter Series + Mentor. All questions are original, written by our faculty in the current exam pattern, not ACCA past papers. The full tests follow the exam: a 50-mark case study and two 25-mark Section B questions.
- You attempt each mock under timed conditions and upload your answers.
- Our faculty check your answers within 48 hours of upload. You get marks for each question and comments on what cost you marks.
- Our faculty answer your doubts on your checked mock.
- On the Every Chapter Series + Mentor plan, a mentor builds a week-by-week plan to your sitting and reviews your mock results with you.
What happens to AAA in September 2027?
June 2027 is the last sitting of the current AAA exam. From September 2027, AAA is replaced by SAA Audit and Assurance Professional, and a pass in AAA carries across as credit. The new structure needs only 1 option at Strategic Professional, against 2 today.
