Find more information on the activities we consider as misconduct.
Misconduct includes (but is not limited to) any act or omission which brings, or is likely to bring, discredit to ACCA, a student, affiliate, member, or firm of ACCA or to the accountancy profession. This may include serious breaches of ACCA's regulations and/or exam guidelines. Engaging in misconduct risk invalidating your results, as well as impacting the creditibility, security and fairness of the ACCA Qualification.
To further support your understanding of misconduct, we have provided some examples below.
A broad term that encompasses a range of student behaviours which have the intention to gain an unfair advantage in any aspect of the ACCA Qualification or exams through dishonesty or fraud. Such behaviours may be intended to give an advantage to yourself and/or other students and includes for example:
Collusion is where student's collaborate with others and present the work of one or more other persons as their own. This may include:
Is where another person completes any part of the ACCA Qualification on behalf of a student and this may be paid or unpaid. The key element is that the work of another person, who may be a friend, family member, colleague or commercial provider, is falsely submitted as the candidate’s own work.
Individuals and organisations who offer contract cheating risk students becoming a victim of crime themselves and subject to disciplinary action.
Is where a student impedes or prevents others from completing any part of the ACCA Qualification or from performing at their best. For example a student who creates an unnecessary disturbance at an exam centre could be investigated for misconduct.
Misrepresentation of identity includes both:
Is where an attempt is made to mispresent their personal circumstances to seek an advantage in any aspect of the ACCA Qualification. This may include any of the following misconduct activities:
Is where a student's attempts to use the work of another person, or resubmit or largely reuses their own work previously is submitted for assessment.
The vast majority of students study for the ACCA Qualification in a way that upholds our ethical values. To avoid being at risk of an investigation, you should adhere to our Qualification integrity values.
View our Qualification integrity values
If you are struggling with any aspect of the ACCA Qualification, we have a range of study and wellbeing support resources which can help you.
Access study support resources
Risk facing damaging consequences to their future prospects. We have sophisticated processes to identity potental cases of misconduct and each case is thoroughly investigated.
Act ethically, access our support and avoid the temptation of taking up offers from individuals or third parties who falsely claim they can provide shortcuts to completing the ACCA Qualification.