Helix Accountants

For the ICAEW ACA

The ACA question bank that teaches, not just tests.

Certificate, Professional and Advanced. An explanation behind every answer, the mis-step behind every wrong option, and written practice marked against the marks on offer.

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What revising here looks like

Four screens from a real session.

The question

Every wrong option names your mis-step.

ACA distractors are almost correct: each one is the output of one specific error. Helix tags the error on every wrong option, so a wrong answer tells you which habit to fix.

The workings

Computations, built band by band.

The tables are on screen in the real exam. The marks are for how the computation is built, so Helix lays each working out band by band, the way the marker wants it written.

The proforma

Recall it line by line.

A proforma you can read is not yet one you can write. Helix hides the lines and asks you to bring each back, with the reason it belongs there.

The written paper

Marked the way the papers are marked.

Type the answer in full, as you will on the day. Helix marks it against the mark allocation and names the points you earned and the ones you missed. Generic answers score few marks in the real exam, and they score few here.

ACA Certificate · Accounting FundamentalsQ 12

A business prepares accounts to 31 March 2026. It paid rent of £10,800 on 1 January 2025 and £12,000 on 1 January 2026, each covering the calendar year ahead. What is the rent expense for the year ended 31 March 2026?

  • A£11,100CorrectNine months of the 2025 rent plus three months of the 2026 rent. The expense follows the period, not the payment.
  • B£12,000Cash, not accrualsThe cash paid in the year. Accruals accounting charges the period the rent covers.
  • C£10,800Prior-period figureThe whole 2025 payment. The year end cuts across both payments.
  • D£11,700Apportioned backwardsThree months of £10,800 plus nine of £12,000. The fractions are swapped.
The question

Every wrong option names your mis-step.

ACA distractors are almost correct: each one is the output of one specific error. Helix tags the error on every wrong option, so a wrong answer tells you which habit to fix.

ACA Certificate · Accounting FundamentalsQ 12

A business prepares accounts to 31 March 2026. It paid rent of £10,800 on 1 January 2025 and £12,000 on 1 January 2026, each covering the calendar year ahead. What is the rent expense for the year ended 31 March 2026?

  • A£11,100CorrectNine months of the 2025 rent plus three months of the 2026 rent. The expense follows the period, not the payment.
  • B£12,000Cash, not accrualsThe cash paid in the year. Accruals accounting charges the period the rent covers.
  • C£10,800Prior-period figureThe whole 2025 payment. The year end cuts across both payments.
  • D£11,700Apportioned backwardsThree months of £10,800 plus nine of £12,000. The fractions are swapped.
The workings

Computations, built band by band.

The tables are on screen in the real exam. The marks are for how the computation is built, so Helix lays each working out band by band, the way the marker wants it written.

ACA Certificate · Tax FundamentalsTax year 2025/26
Employment income£60,000
Personal allowance£12,570 at 0%£0
Basic rate£37,700 at 20%£7,540
Higher rate£9,730 at 40%£3,892
Income tax liability£11,432
The proforma

Recall it line by line.

A proforma you can read is not yet one you can write. Helix hides the lines and asks you to bring each back, with the reason it belongs there.

ACA Professional · Tax Compliance and Planning

Adjustment of trading profits

Recall each figure, then tap the line to check.

Profit before tax480,000
The written paper

Marked the way the papers are marked.

Type the answer in full, as you will on the day. Helix marks it against the mark allocation and names the points you earned and the ones you missed. Generic answers score few marks in the real exam, and they score few here.

ACA Professional · Assurance, Risk and Reporting4 marks

Explain the audit risks arising from the new licence contract.

Revenue may be overstated if the licence fee and the two-year support service are not unbundled, and the whole fee is recognised on signing.+1
The contract spans the year end, so cut-off of the support element is a risk.+1
The auditor should ensure revenue is correct.Too vague to score. Name the risk in the scenario, not the wish.0
Point missedMissed: the revenue-linked bonus gives management an incentive to overstate.2 / 4

Try it now

Answer a real question before you sign up.

A short run of real Certificate questions, marked and explained as you go. No account, no card.

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The exams

Three levels, one path to chartered.

ACA Certificate

The entry stage · six on-demand CBEs

Beta

Six objective papers sat in any order: accounting, assurance, business performance, tax, law and ethics, with the mis-step behind every wrong option named.

  • ·Book on demand, year-round
  • ·Pass mark 55%
  • ·Named mis-step on every wrong option
  • ·Free now, founding access at launch
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ACA Professional

The middle stage · six scenario papers

Beta

Scenario tasks typed in the exam software and marked against printed mark allocations. Helix drills the knowledge spine and marks written work the same way.

  • ·Next sitting 7–9 December 2026
  • ·Pass mark 55%
  • ·AI-marked written practice
  • ·Free now, founding access at launch
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ACA Advanced

The final stage · three open-book exams

Beta

Corporate Reporting, Strategic Business Management and the Case Study, marked on professional skills. Helix drills the technical spine and marks reports against the grid.

  • ·Next sitting 2–4 November 2026
  • ·Pass mark 50%
  • ·Report marking on the skills grid
  • ·Free now, founding access at launch
Explore ACA Advanced →

Price

Free while in beta.

The whole bank is free at five questions a day, no card. When the unlimited pass opens, founding members get in first at a held rate. Leave your email on any exam page to join its list.

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