ACCA AA December 2026: Going Concern Procedures That Actually Score Marks

Going concern procedures score when they name the document, the period and the comparison. "Discuss with management" scores nothing. Learn to write procedures the examiner can tick.

What the marking actually rewards

In AA, going concern is a classic Section B or C scenario: falling revenue, a loan due for repayment, a lost customer. The requirement is almost always "recommend audit procedures" or "explain the matters to consider". Those are two different questions, and mixing them up is the commonest way to lose marks.

ISA 570 puts the evaluation of management's assessment at the centre. The auditor must cover the period management has used, and if that is less than 12 months from the date of the financial statements, ask management to extend it. That 12-month point is a regular mark in its own right.

Examiners reward procedures that are specific and testable: a named document, an action, and what you are looking for. Vague verbs such as "check", "review" or "discuss" with no object earn little. Procedures must also be tied to the scenario, so if the question mentions a bank loan, your procedures need to mention the loan.

The other common slip is listing indicators of going concern problems when the question asked for procedures. Know which one you are being asked for before you write a word.

Wrong answer vs right answer

Scenario: a client has a $2m bank loan repayable in four months and revenue is down 15% on last year.

Wrong: "Discuss going concern with management and check whether the company can repay the loan." No document, no period, no comparison. Zero marks, maybe half a mark for effort.

Right: "Obtain the cash flow forecast for the 12 months from the year end and compare the sales and receipts assumptions with actual results since the year end. Review the loan agreement for repayment date and covenants, and recalculate covenant compliance using the latest management accounts. Inspect correspondence with the bank for evidence of renewal or refinancing." Three procedures, three marks.

What to do

1. Write procedures in the formula "document + action + what you want to see". Forecast, minutes, loan agreement, bank correspondence, post year-end management accounts. If you cannot name the document, the procedure is too vague.

2. Always anchor to the scenario figure. Use the loan, the lost customer, the 15% fall. Generic lists get generic (low) marks.

3. Cover the standard set before you stop. Forecast and assumptions, post year-end events, board minutes, covenant and loan terms, lender or director support letters, and written representations. Six prompts cover most going concern requirements.

The numbers that matter

The AA pass mark is 50%, and procedures questions are where borderline candidates are won or lost. A candidate who turns every vague "check" into a named document and a comparison can move several marks per question without learning anything new.

Name the document. State the comparison. Move on.