I went that route back in 1999. The problem was that there were very few places that offered a course back then outside of the really expensive BPP revision courses. It was tough just working through the manuals on my own but I got there, so if I can do it then I'm sure you could but I would have preferred to have taken a course.
Stuart, I am studying with tolley's a correspondence course - I bought the manuals for all 3 exams for May & October 2014. I am only able to study for 1 of the exams this year (I've taken on far too much) so you might be interested that I am selling to the courses on ebay for Paper 3 Business Compliance and Paper 2 Business Tax & Accounting Principles. I am selling them for £150.00 because they are current and up-to date and for the 2014 exams. They cost me £249.50 each but as they are no use to me now as I won't have time to do them I decided to sell. Here is a link to them both.
Sorry im just going to use the BPP text book for the first paper and see how I get on.. I should have exemption from paper 2 .. Sorry
I guess your doing paper 1, how are you finding it?
From looking at the syllabus I think I have covered the basics/majority of the syllabus from my AAT and ACCA(F6) Exams but im sure these will be more in depth :)
Yes I'm doing paper 1 at the minute. I am only qualified to ICB Level 3 and wanted to do the ATT as I do a lot of tax returns, so this paper is perfect for that reason. I am really enjoying it, there is so much to learn and a lot of information to remember but really interesting and enjoyable. I started the AAT a few years back but it really wasn't relevant to the work that I do. I also have all the tolley's handbooks (about 8) they are like tax dictionary's - and although I should be using them I rarely do as I have no idea how to! WHen you take the exams ATT give you the tax rates and tables which are brilliant as it's a whole load of information that you don't actually have to remember and they save a lot of time looking things up. If you don't already have a copy of one of these - I can email you one if you like?
I have no idea about ACCA (far too complex for me) but I would say that ATT paper 1 is in far more depth than the AAT.
I think that the major difference with ACCA over other bodies tax exams is that ACCA F6 and P6 is a mixed bag where with ATT you have a better idea of what will be tested when you open the paper (that makes it more appealing to me).
I find the ACCA papers really enjoyable as you are thrown into real world situations and need to advise the client on their best options and I think when you get to higher level ATT it would certainly be good practice to try doing the ACCA exams.
You can see all of the old ACCA exams and stock answers back to 2007 for free on their site but with tax that of course is about as useful as a pork pie in a synagogue and its better to get the Kaplan or BPP exam kits where questions from old papers are updated to the latest finance act.
As an aside, my tax kit which gives me sufficient knowledge to work in this business is :
BPP I-learn course for ACCA paper P6
Kaplan study text for ACCA paper P6 (by far the largest of any accountancy book at A4 * 6cm!).
Kaplan exam kit for paper P6
Melville Taxation
Total annual cost for that little lot is around £112. (£20+£35+£17+£40).
Its worth noting that tax is tax regardless of whether its at F6 or P6 so P6 also includes everything from F6.
You may however wish to replace the exam kit for P6 with the exam kit for F6 (but still study at the higher level).
As an aside I note that there was mention of taking exemption from ATT exams but I feel that where the source of the exemption was taken under a different finance act it should not be valid as for tax we are learning to give advice and our advice becomes outdated with each finance act.
Just my personal; opinion there,
all the best and good luck with your studies,
Shaun.
__________________
Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
Stuart, I am studying with tolley's a correspondence course - I bought the manuals for all 3 exams for May & October 2014. I am only able to study for 1 of the exams this year (I've taken on far too much) so you might be interested that I am selling to the courses on ebay for Paper 3 Business Compliance and Paper 2 Business Tax & Accounting Principles. I am selling them for £150.00 because they are current and up-to date and for the 2014 exams. They cost me £249.50 each but as they are no use to me now as I won't have time to do them I decided to sell. Here is a link to them both.
-- Edited by rachel_mclean on Sunday 26th of January 2014 01:11:39 PM
Hello Rachel
I registered to ask the very question Stuart started this thread with...spooky.
After much research, I am thinking of studying ATT to up my skills! I've had a look at your EBay listings, but think I'd rather do the Personal Taxation first, however, do you know if exams can be done in any order and how many hours a week do you think you need to put in (I know it depends on how quickly we pick things up) to be ready for 1 exam in May. I'd love to get the three exams done by November, so would be great to have an insight on the study load from you perspective.
The exams can be done in any order. Each paper does not relate to any other, each one starts with the basics from scratch. There might be some repetition with paper 3 business compliance (PAYE,NIC & VAT) in paper 6 VAT as both cover vat but I'm not entirely sure. I would seriously not recommend buying all the books at once!!! like me, then realising there is no way you can be ready to take all 3 exams in one go! and then have to buy them again because they are out of date.
I'm not the sharpest tool in the box but I try hard and I really am interested in what I am studying so for me personally I am taking a year to study each paper and studying on average 2 nights a week - I try to get anywhere between 2 and 4 chapter done a week. I have also worked out that I will have about 7 weeks before the exam for revision. I am probably taking a lot longer than most to study but I want to actually learn the subject thoroughly rather than learning enough to pass the exam. I know that a lot of people take all 3 papers in one year, and some even 3 in one exam sitting. The tolley's books are great and are written so than anybody can understand them.
For paper 1 there are 2 parts - Personal Tax and Capital Gains tax, the first has 45 chapters and the second 28. So that would be a lot to learn before May!!! But if you know a lot of it anyway I imagine it will be much easier, it's not hard work but just a lot of work.
I wouldn't like to say for sure but I think it's possible to take one exam in May if you started now. You would have to put a lot of work, I read somewhere on the Tolley website that 6 months study of 2 nights a week and a day at the weekend was sufficient (but I don't know how many exams this is for). ATT say that they recommend 6 months study before taking the exams (again I don't know how many exams).
Going by just the thickness of the study manuals paper 3 business compliance is by far the smallest , it has 2 sections VAT and PAYE & NI and they are thinner than the other papers. Paper 2 is the biggest, there are 4 sections. Paper 1 is somewhere in the middle.
and one more thing.... the tolley yellow and orange handbooks that you are allowed to take into the exams. Although they don't teach how to lay out all the tax calculations they DO contain all the rules - but they are difficult to use and hard to find what is where.
I got just the basic correspondence course will Tolley's - it's not much of a correspondence course as there is no 'correspondence'. You get the study manuals, discount for the yellow and orange handbooks, some on-line tutorial videos and a practice paper for each exam that is marked by tolley's. There is also a forum you can ask questions on.
-- Edited by rachel_mclean on Sunday 26th of January 2014 04:09:33 PM
Hi mike,
I think u may be too late to sit the paper in May, unles u have already registered as a student as I think u have to do it by end of October to sit May Exams and by end of April for November exams.. But u should be able to sit the e- assessments at any time ;)
