Level IV Certificate in Advanced Bookkeeping and Accounting
From April 2014
Course Code L4C
Level 4 Certificate in Advanced Bookkeeping & Accounts syllabus
Introduction
The Level IV Certificate in Advanced Bookkeeping and Financial Statements covers the production of a set of accounts from incomplete records, advanced partnership accounts and the preparation and interpretation of internal management accounts for incorporated bodies.
Limits of the qualification
Where reference is made in the syllabus to preparing financial statements for incorporated businesses, this qualification covers the production of internal use financial statements only. Those who wish to prepare financial statements for issuance to third parties under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as well as Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) in the United States of America should successfully compete this qualification and then take the Level IV Unit in Financial Reporting. Those who wish to prepare the related Federal and State Income Tax Returns for these entities should successfully complete this qualification and then take the Level IV Unit in Income Tax Preparation for the relevant type of entity (individual, partnership, S-corporation, C-corporation, or non-profit organization).
Occupational Role: self-employed bookkeeper / senior employed bookkeeper
On completion of this qualification candidates will be able to carry out the role of an employed or self-employed bookkeeper, producing draft year-end financial statements for corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies in both a manual and a computerized system within the above limitations. Successful candidates will also be able to properly account for the admission or termination of a partner in a partnership.
Prior Knowledge
Before commencing the study at this level, the candidate should have achieved ICBUSA Level III Certificate in Bookkeeping and Accounting or its equivalent with another awarding body.
Qualification aims
On completion of this level of study a candidate will be able to:
- Prepare a set of accounts for an organization from incomplete records.
- Prepare a set of final accounts for a limited liability company (LLC) for internal management purposes.
- Prepare a set of final accounts for a limited liability partnership (LLP, income statement and balance sheet only – the preparation of notes will not be tested).
- Adjust the capital share of partners in the event of a change of partnership profit sharing ratio.
- Interpret financial statements by calculating and explaining ratios for profitability and liquidity.
Assessment and Grading
The testing of knowledge and skills for this qualification will comprise two online assessments, one of which will be taken in the candidate’s home or place of work, the other of which will be taken at an external ICB center. Note: the assessment may also test elements of the Level II Certificate in Bookkeeping and the Level III Certificate in Bookkeeping and Financial Statements.
Examination ABA7 – Final management accounts of incorporated businesses
Home /place of work based assessment to include:
- Final financial statements including adjustments for a corporation or a limited liability corporation (LLC) (internal management use financial statement format only) (30% weighting)
- Corporations and LLCs (5% weighting)
- Incomplete records (20% weighting)
- Partnership and LLC profit sharing ratios (15% weighting)
- Calculation and interpretation of key financial ratios (5% weighting)
- Testing in a computerized accounts system for any and/or all of the above (25% weighting)
Examination ABA8 – Level IV External Assessment
- A single assessment to be taken at a third party testing center affiliated with ICBUSA will be a mixture of multiple-choice and data entry questions which will cover all elements of the syllabus.
This full qualification will be graded at Distinction with Honors, Distinction, Merit, Pass or Fail
Both the test and the examination must be successfully achieved to gain the full qualification.
The assessments will each generate an accreditation notification.
The home or office based assessment will be graded as follows:
Distinction 95 -100%
Merit 90 - 94%
Pass 85 - 89%
Fail 0 - 84%
The assessment taken at an external ICB center will be graded as follows:
Distinction 90 -100%
Merit 80 - 89%
Pass 70 - 79%
Fail 0 - 69%
Once all tests have been successfully completed, a final certificate can be applied for and will be will be graded at Distinction with Honors, Distinction, Merit or Pass. Unit results will be aggregated. To achieve the relevant grade in the full qualification, the following aggregate points must be achieved:
Distinction with Honors 195 points and above
Distinction 185 – 195 points
Merit 170 – 184 points
Pass 155 – 169 points
Level of Membership
Successful achievement at the full qualification will lead to the offer to upgrade to Fellow of ICB and the award of the designatory letters FICB.
