How much does it cost to complete ACCA in Sri Lanka?

Starting from A/L with no exemptions, the ACCA institute fees come to about £2,892 (≈ Rs 1.13m at Rs 392/£1): £89 registration, £140 annual subscription over four years, all 13 exam entries at standard booking, and the £83 Ethics module. A degree holder with 9 exemptions pays around £2,440. Tuition is extra and varies by college.

What are the ACCA exemption fees, and how many exemptions can a degree get?

A recognised commerce or accounting degree can exempt all 9 exams up to Applied Skills (3 Applied Knowledge + 6 Applied Skills). Strategic Professional is never exempt. ACCA charges an exemption fee of £86 per Applied Knowledge exam and £114 per Applied Skills exam — cheaper than sitting them (£98 and £160 respectively), so exemptions save both money and time.

Is CIMA or ACCA cheaper in Sri Lanka?

On a like-for-like full pathway from A/L over four years, ACCA is the cheaper baseline (about £2,892 vs roughly £3,018 for CIMA at Tier 3 rates). CIMA's case-study exams (£231–£303 each) push its exam bill higher. Your own exemptions, region tier and years change the result — the calculator's comparison card shows both for your inputs.

How much is the ACCA annual subscription per year?

The ACCA annual subscription is £140 for 2026, due before 1 January every year you stay registered — even years you sit no exams. Over a typical four-year journey that is £560. CIMA's annual subscription is £150, but CIMA includes your first year in the £99 registration fee, so you pay it from year two.

What is the total cost of ACCA from AAT Sri Lanka to membership?

AAT-SL passed finalists usually receive the three Applied Knowledge exemptions. That leaves 6 Applied Skills and 4 Strategic Professional exams. Over three years at standard entry the ACCA institute fees are about £2,716 (≈ Rs 1.06m): £89 registration, £420 subscription, £258 exemption fees, £1,866 exam entries and the £83 Ethics module.

Does this calculator include tuition and class fees?

No. It counts only the fees ACCA and CIMA bill you directly — registration, subscription, exemption fees, exam entries and the Ethics module. Tuition at a college (LMD, CA Sri Lanka, ABE, etc.) is unregulated, varies widely, and is deliberately excluded so you can see the fixed, unavoidable institute cost on its own.

Why is the total shown in both GBP and LKR?

Both ACCA and CIMA bill in pounds sterling. The rupee figure is a straight conversion at the GBP→LKR rate you enter (pre-filled with an indicative CBSL selling rate of Rs 392/£1). Because the exchange rate moves, the LKR number is labelled indicative — set it to your own bank or card rate for an accurate estimate.

What is the difference between standard and late ACCA exam entry?

ACCA has two booking windows: standard and late. Late entry costs far more — an Applied Skills paper jumps from £160 to £409, and a Strategic Professional paper from £208 to £467. There is no early-entry discount in 2026, so standard is already the best price. The calculator's booking-window note shows exactly what late entry would add.

Sri Lanka · Education

ACCA & CIMA Fees in Sri Lanka — Qualification Cost Calculator

Add up the real cost to qualify as an ACCA or CIMA member — registration, subscription, exemption and exam-entry fees — itemised in GBP and LKR from any starting point, with an ACCA-vs-CIMA comparison. Tuition excluded, sources cited.

By Induwara Ashinsana— Executive Director, Ryzera TechnologiesUpdated Jul 18, 2026

Cost to qualify

13 exams · fees verified 2026

Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. Figures are the institute's own fees in GBP; private tuition and study material are not included.

Starting point

Where you begin. This pre-fills the usual exemptions — edit them below if yours differ.

Sit all 13 exams. Highest exam-entry cost, no exemption fees.

Exempted exams

Toggle any exam you already hold an exemption for. You pay its exemption fee (if any) instead of the exam entry fee.

Exam booking window

Late entry costs materially more per paper. Book at standard to save.

Years to completion

1–8 years. Subscription is billed each year.

GBP → LKR rate

Rs/ £1

Indicative CBSL selling rate (1–2000). Edit to your bank's rate.

Add-ons

Ethics module is required for membership. Re-registration only applies if your membership lapsed.

Default: full pathway from A/L, 4 years, standard entry.

Total cost (LKR)

Rs 1,133,664

at Rs 392/£1 · indicative

Total cost (GBP)

£2,892

Billed by the institute in GBP

Exam entry fees (GBP)

£2,160

13 exams sat

Registration + subs + exemptions

£732

0 exemptions

Itemised breakdown

Item	GBP	LKR
Initial registration (one-time)	£89	Rs 34,888
Annual subscription × 4 years £140/yr	£560	Rs 219,520
Exam entry fees × 13 Standard booking window	£2,160	Rs 846,720
Ethics & Professional Skills module Required for ACCA membership; completed once.	£83	Rs 32,536
Total to qualify	£2,892	Rs 1,133,664

Booking-window impact: booking every remaining exam at the late deadline instead of standard would add £2,456 (≈ Rs 962,752). You are already on the cheaper standard window.

Re-sit sensitivity: a failed paper adds one exam-entry fee — e.g. re-sitting SBL costs £282 (≈ Rs 110,544). Re-sits are not baked into the total above.

ACCA vs CIMA

Full pathway from A/L, no exemptions, ethics/module included, over 4 years at Rs 392/£1.

Qualification	GBP	LKR
ACCACheaper baseline	£2,892	Rs 1,133,664
CIMA (CGMA)	£3,018	Rs 1,183,056

A like-for-like baseline. Your own exemptions and years change your personal total above.

ACCA figures transcribed from accaglobal.com; CIMA figures compiled from AICPA & CIMA 2026 fee guidance (Tier 3, Rest of World). GBP→LKR uses an indicative CBSL rate you can edit. Full source links are under Sources & references below. Institute fees only — tuition and materials excluded.

How it works

This calculator sums only the fees ACCA and CIMA bill you directly — the fixed, unavoidable institute cost. Both bodies price in pounds sterling, so every figure is held in GBP and the rupee total is a straight conversion at the GBP→LKR rate you enter. Tuition, study texts and revision courses are set by private colleges, vary widely, and are deliberately left out.

For ACCA, the total is built from five parts. Initial registration (£89) is charged once. The annual subscription (£140) is multiplied by your years to completion, because ACCA bills it every calendar year you stay registered. Exemption fees apply to any exam you skip — £86 per Applied Knowledge exam and £114 per Applied Skills exam; Strategic Professional is never exempt, capping exemptions at nine. Exam entry fees are summed for every exam you still sit, priced by booking window: an Applied Skills paper is £160 at standard entry and £409 late, while Strategic Professional papers run £208–£282 standard and £467 late. Finally the Ethics & Professional Skills module (£83), required for membership, is added when toggled on.

For CIMA (CGMA), registration is £99 and includes your first year's subscription, so the £150 annual subscription is counted from year two. CIMA does not charge a fee for standard study-based exemptions. Exam fees are summed per assessment: Certificate objective tests £90, Operational and Management objective tests £130, Strategic objective tests £185, and the three case studies at £231 (Operational), £240 (Management) and £303 (Strategic). CIMA fees are region-tiered — the figures here are Tier 3 (Rest of the World), which Sri Lanka falls under; confirm your tier on the official portal before relying on the CIMA side.

The exam schedule is cross-checked for internal consistency (ACCA totals 13 exams; CIMA totals 16 assessments) before any badge is shown. The side-by-side card recomputes both bodies on the same footing — full pathway from A/L, no exemptions, over the years you choose — so you can see which is cheaper for a from-scratch start, while the tiles above reflect your personal exemptions and route.

Worked examples

ACCA · relevant degree · 9 exemptions · standard · 3 years

Initial registration: £89
Annual subscription: £140 × 3 = £420
Exemption fees: 3 Applied Knowledge × £86 + 6 Applied Skills × £114 = £258 + £684 = £942
Exam entries (4 Strategic Professional, standard): £282 + £208 + £208 + £208 = £906
Ethics & Professional Skills module: £83
Total: £2,440 → Rs 956,480 (at Rs 392/£1)

ACCA · straight from A/L · 0 exemptions · 4 years — standard vs late

Registration £89 + subscription £140 × 4 = £560
Standard exam entries: 3 AK × £98 + 6 AS × £160 + 4 SP (£282+£208+£208+£208) = £294 + £960 + £906 = £2,160
Ethics module: £83 → Standard total £2,892 → Rs 1,133,664
Same route at late entry: AK £294 + 6 AS × £409 (£2,454) + 4 SP × £467 (£1,868) = £4,616; + reg/subs/ethics
Late total £5,348 → Rs 2,096,416 — booking late costs £2,456 more

CIMA (CGMA) · straight from A/L · 0 exemptions · 4 years

Registration £99 (first year's subscription included)
Annual subscription: £150 × 3 (years 2–4) = £450
Certificate: 4 objective tests × £90 = £360
Operational: 3 × £130 + case study £231 = £621; Management: 3 × £130 + £240 = £630
Strategic: 3 × £185 + case study £303 = £858
Total: £3,018 → Rs 1,183,056 (at Rs 392/£1, Tier 3 rates)

Frequently asked questions

Sources & references

ACCA figures were transcribed from accaglobal.com and CIMA figures compiled from the AICPA & CIMA 2026 Tier-3 fee guidance on 2026-07-18. Both institutes review their fees annually; this page is re-checked whenever a new schedule is published. The LKR total is indicative — set the GBP→LKR rate to your own bank or card rate.

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