ICAEW CFAB exam modules

As a student, it is your responsibility to be familiar with ICAEW CFAB regulations at all times. The regulations cover:

• entry requirements,
• photo identification you need to bring to any exam,
• what you and cannot take into the exam hall with you,
• you must be seated in the exam hall 30 minutes before an exam,
• how may exam attempts you are allowed,
• misconduct,
• failure to appear at an exam,
• and much more...

Read ICAEW CFAB regulations now

ICAEW provides plenty of free resources to help you with your exam studies.

Exam support and syllabus

• errata sheets (if applicable) – these highlight any errors that have been found in the learning materials (download these first so you know you are always studying the correct text)
• study webinar for each module –these explain how the exam marks are awarded, and how to allocate your time in the exam,
• sample questions.

Find these in the study resources area at icaew.com/cfabstudyresources

What to expect in the exams

Before you start your exam revision, you must read the ICAEW CFAB computer-based exam guidance document. This shows you the different type of exam questions, how to start/end your exam session, how to review and change your answers and the items you can take into the exam.

Please note that from the 1 January 2019 you will need to take your own calculator to the exam. Please ensure that you bring a calculator on the day of your exam, as calculators will no longer be provided by the test centre. Please note that only calculators from the approved list are permitted. An on-screen calculator available for use should you need it.

Each of the ICAEW CFAB modules is examined by a 1.5 hour computer-based exam. You can take these in any order and at any time of year. The pass mark for each exam is 55%.

There are many test centres across the world where you can sit an ICAEW CFAB exam.

If you are booking through the Pearson Vue website you will need to sign in. Your Pearson Username and Password are both 'ICAEW' followed by your student number (eg, ICAEW1234567). You will then be prompted to change your password for security, but your username will remain the same.

From the 4 March you can book your ICAEW CFAB exams at my.icaew.com/examsonline, or to access this page via your online training file, simply log in to your training file, go to the Examinations tab and click on 'Apply for an exam' This will take you straight to the booking site. You will book you exam with Pearson Vue, but you wont need any additional log in details.

Before you attend an exam you must read the ICAEW CFAB exam regulations.

ICAEW regulations allow a maximum of four attempts at each ICAEW CFAB module. However if your employer is financially supporting your studies, you should check with them first how many exam attempts they are happy to allow you as they may decide to allow you fewer attempts.

An attempt is counted when you apply for an individual exam and have seen the content of that exam. The following does not count as an attempt:

• you apply for an exam but do not attend on the day,
• you apply for an exam and cancel it before you attend / withdraw before you attend,
• the exam cannot be completed and/or the result determined due to system failure or an exceptional event beyond the control of ICAEW.

You will not be permitted under any circumstances to transfer exam attempts from one module to another. Any student who does not pass an exam within the permitted four attempts will be entitled to apply for a concession if they believe they have the grounds to do so.

Find out more

If you feel your exam performance may be hindered due to a health condition, disability, or specific learning difficulty (SpLD), we may be able to put access arrangements in place to support you during an exam. If you would like arrangements to be in place for your ICAEW CFAB exams, your access arrangement application needs to be submitted 21 days before the exam date. Please do not book your exam until your arrangements have been confirmed to you.

Before you submit your access arrangement application, please read the below guidance for access arrangements. There are two guidance documents to read. The first one is only for SpLDs such as dyslexia. The second relates to arrangements for medical conditions, pregnancy, breastfeeding and prayer time during exams.

Although the process is the same regardless of the reason you are applying, the evidence required to support an application for access arrangements for a specific learning difficulty (SpLD) differs from other applications. Please note that you may need to refer to both guides if you are applying for more than one reason.

Applying for access arrangements for SpLDs

Applying for access arrangements for medical conditions, pregnancy, breastfeeding and prayer time during exams

If you are applying for access arrangements due to a medical condition, we recommend you use the below medical statement.

Medical statement for access arrangements

Please note that all access arrangements applications and enquiries must now be submitted online at my.icaew.com/examsonline. Email and postal applications will no longer be accepted.

You can reschedule an exam provided you notify your chosen assessment centre at least 24 hours in advance. If you have booked an exam but are unable to attend due to illness or serious injury, you should advise the exam centre and reschedule the assessment date directly with the exam centre. 

Failure to notify the exam centre in time could affect any fee refunds to which you might be entitled.

You will receive a reminder email 48 hours before your scheduled exam time. You will need to ensure that all details are accurate and if your plans have changed, you can reschedule or cancel your exam up to 24 hours before you are due to sit to be eligible for a refund. 

Should an incident occur during an exam which you believe affected your performance, you may be able to apply for exam disruption appeal.

As students receive the results of a Certificate level examination 24 hours from sitting the exam, the process to apply for exam disruption appeal is different to applying for any of the ACA Professional and Advanced level exams and is not yet available to apply for online.

Therefore you can make an application for exam disruption appeal by emailing examdisruptionappeal@icaew.com with any supporting evidence within 7 days of your exam.

Before making an application, please refer to the policy which details the types of incidents we would consider.

Each exam costs £70.

You can access your results by logging on to the ICAEW CFAB students website. Results are usually available within 24 hours.

ICAEW will send you a certificate for each module you sit / pass. Once you’ve passed all the ICAEW CFAB all the ICAEW CFAB exams, we will send you a certificate of achievement from ICAEW – a world-leader of the accountancy and finance profession. All certificates are issued on a four-weekly cycle, so it may take up to four weeks after your exam date for you to receive your certificate in the post.

You can choose to forward an electronic copy of any results to your employer from your results page.

ICAEW will send you a certificate for each exam that you pass. Once you've passed all the modules of the ICAEW Certificate in Finance, Accounting and Business, we will send you a certificate of achievement from ICAEW - a world leader of the accountancy and finance profession.

The certificates are issued on a four-weekly cycle, so it may take up to four weeks for you to receive your certificate in the post.

Please make sure that ICAEW has your correct postal address at all times. You can update your contact details through the ‘My account’ link at the top of the student website.

Please note that this certificate does not entitle you to use any designatory letters after your name or to refer to yourself as a member of ICAEW nor does it entitle you to any rights that come with ICAEW membership. ICAEW treats any misuse as a serious offence.

ICAEW regulations allow a maximum of four attempts at each of the ICAEW CFAB exam modules. However, if your employer is making a financial contribution towards your studies, they may choose to limit the number of attempts. You should check with your employer first.

If you fail an exam, you will need to book your exam directly with the exam centre.

Before you resit an exam, you should make time to do extra revision. Make sure you access the free study resources. For example, there is a study webinar for each module – this tells you how the exam marks are awarded and how to allocate your time in the exam.

Access ICAEW CFAB study resources