PER - Practical experience requirements - ACCA practical experience requirement (PER) guide

Oct 28, 2026

Guide to ACCA’s practical experience requirement (PER), outlining what trainees must complete to qualify as ACCA members. Explains that PER is built on IFAC International Education Standard 5 and consists of achieving five Essentials and four Technical performance objectives, completing 36 months of qualifying accounting or finance experience verified by a practical experience supervisor, and recording progress through online My Experience in myACCA. Covers why PER matters, how to obtain the right experience, and how performance objectives work.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

THE BASICS

What is ACCA’s practical experience requirement (PER)?

Why is the PER important?

MEETING THE REQUIREMENTS

How do I get the right type of experience?

What if I am studying full time or not in a relevant job?

What are performance objectives?

How do I complete my performance objectives?

What is a practical experience supervisor?

What is the performance objectives exemption?

What if I want a practising certificate in the future?

What is a PER audit?

PER Practical experience requirements Contents 1 THE BASICS What is ACCA’s practical experience requirement (PER)? Why is the PER important? 2 MEETING THE REQUIREMENTS How do I get the right type of experience? What if I am studying full time or not in a relevant job? What are performance objectives? How do I complete my performance objectives? What is a practical experience supervisor? What is the performance objectives exemption? What if I want a practising certificate in the future? What is a PER audit? 3 USING MY EXPERIENCE TO FOLLOW THE PER PROCESS Using My Experience You and your practical experience supervisor Targeting performance objectives Writing your performance objective statements Reviewing and gaining sign-off. The basics WHAT IS ACCA’S PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT (PER)? ACCA’s practical experience requirement (PER) is a key component of the ACCA Qualification. To become an ACCA member all trainees – students and affiliates – must successfully complete: 01 • the ACCA exams • the Professional Ethics module • the practical experience requirement. ACCA’s PER is based on the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) International Education Standard 5, Practical Experience Requirements.ACCA’s PER develops the professional knowledge and values, ethics and behaviours needed to become a professionally qualified accountant. There are three components to the PER: • achieve five (5) Essentials and any four (4) Technical performance objectives by gaining the experience required to achieve the necessary elements and complete a statement for each performance objective, which are signed off by your practical experience supervisor* • complete 36 months’ experience in one or more accounting or finance-related role which is verified by your practical experience supervisor. • regularly record your PER progress in your online My Experience record, which can be accessed via myACCA. WHY IS THE PER IMPORTANT? In order to perform effectively as an ACCA qualified accountant, you need to develop your skills in the workplace as well as passing the exams. The PER helps you to: • apply in practice the knowledge and techniques you are gaining through your studies towards the ACCA exams • observe and be involved in real-life work situations that help you to develop professional skills, attitudes and behaviours • develop your judgment, encouraging you to reflect on the quality of your work and how you may improve your performance in the future. Employers expect ACCA members to show high levels of knowledge and ability in the workplace, and behave ethically. PER enables you to confirm the quality of your workplace performance. ALL RECORDED IN MY EXPERIENCE 36 months 9 performance objectives * Unless your employer is a Gold or Platinum approved employer and they have taken advantage of the performance objective exemption; in this case you should regularly record your progress towards achieving 36 months’ experience in your online My Experience record. 02 We recommend that you start to plan your search for a relevant role prior to leaving full-time study. [Visit](Visit www.accacareers.com)[ www.accacareers.com](Visit www.accacareers.com). You could also ask your tuition provider for support and ideas. Meeting the requirements HOW DO I GET THE RIGHT TYPE OF EXPERIENCE? ACCA trainees work in every sector and size of organisation. Wherever you work, it is important to look for the opportunities to help you meet your PER and to obtain 36 months’ experience in a relevant role, or roles. Ideally, you should have a job where most of your time is spent on activities and tasks related to accounting, finance, audit and assurance, or in other related technical areas such as taxation, insolvency, and forensic accounting. If your job only includes some accountancy or finance work then the time you spend on these activities can still count towards your 3

FAQs

What are the three components of ACCA’s practical experience requirement (PER)?

PER requires completing ACCA exams, the Professional Ethics module, and the PER itself. The PER then consists of achieving required Essentials and Technical performance objectives with sign-off, completing 36 months of verified qualifying experience, and recording progress in My Experience via myACCA.

How can you count experience if your job includes only part-time accounting or finance work?

You can claim relevant time based on the percentage of your working time spent on accounting or finance tasks. When you enter the percentage in My Experience, the relevant time you can claim is calculated automatically.

What are performance objectives and how do you achieve them?

Performance objectives are indicators of effective performance that set the minimum workplace standard trainees must demonstrate. You need to be in a relevant role to achieve nine performance objectives (all five Essentials and any four Technical objectives) and submit performance objective statements for review and sign-off.

Oct 28, 2026

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