Cambridge O Level

Accounting 7707

Bookkeeping, verification, accounting procedures, financial statements and interpretation. The 2027–2029 syllabus adds ethics and technology & sustainability.

Exam year

Syllabus version: 2027–2029 syllabusChecked against the Cambridge syllabusExam year 2027 is covered by the 2027–2029 syllabus.

Subject review complete (21 Oct 2026). All 40 Accounting questions were re-solved and checked against the syllabus and Cambridge mark-scheme conventions, and their auto-marking was tested with correct and incorrect answers: 20 approved as written, 20 corrected.

Paper 1 Multiple Choice30%
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper70%

Original questions40

Topics covered7/7

Papers2

Mock papers2

What is assessed

2 components. Question formats: multiple choice, structured, short answer, extended response.

Paper 1 Multiple Choice

1 h 30 min40 marksWeighting 30%

40 compulsory four-option multiple-choice questions on all the subject content, including questions that need calculations.

What the paper looks like

Four-option multiple choice covering every topic: 35 questions in 1 hour 15 minutes for 2026, 40 questions in 1 hour 30 minutes from 2027. Roughly a third need short calculations (ledger balances, corrected profit, depreciation, ratios, missing figures); others test terms, double entry pairs in debit/credit tables, error types and concepts. Distractors use reversed entries and common slips. Calculator allowed; no data inserts.

Multiple choiceCalculator permitted

Checked against the Cambridge syllabus

Paper 2 Structured Written Paper

1 h 45 min100 marksWeighting 70%

Five compulsory 20-mark questions based on stimulus material: calculations, ledger accounts, books of prime entry, financial statements, corrections and short evaluative advice.

What the paper looks like

Five compulsory 20-mark questions (100 marks, 1 hour 45 minutes), each built on a short business scenario with data. Typical parts: journals and ledger accounts to complete in printed layouts (2–7 marks), financial statements or workings (6–12 marks), short definitions and identifications (1–2 marks), calculations of ratios or corrected figures, and one evaluative Advise/Discuss part of about 5 marks needing arguments for and against plus a recommendation. Own-figure marks are given for correct method using earlier wrong figures. Calculator allowed; show workings.

StructuredShort answerExtended responseCalculator permitted

Checked against the Cambridge syllabus

Assessment overview

From the 2027–2029 syllabus. Checked against the Cambridge syllabus

All candidates

Paper 1Paper 2

Untiered: all candidates take Paper 1 and Paper 2 and are eligible for grades A* to E.

Assessment objective	O Level weighting
AO1 Knowledge and understanding	66%
AO2 Analysis	24%
AO3 Evaluation	10%

Changes in this syllabus version

Paper 1 increases from 35 to 40 multiple-choice questions and from 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes; Paper 2 is unchanged.
New content: 7.2 Ethical considerations (integrity, objectivity, professional competence and due care, confidentiality, professional behaviour) and 7.3 Technology and sustainability (digital records and safe, sustainable data storage).
Topic 7 is renamed Accounting concepts and modern practice; the older accounting policies objectives are no longer listed.
Content reordered and reworded for clarity, with introductions to each topic and more references to digital records (ledgers, documents, books of prime entry, bank reconciliation, control accounts).
Accounting ratios updated: candidates must use only the formulas listed in the syllabus; inventory turnover in days is added, gross margin is renamed gross profit margin and ROCE uses profit for the year before interest.
Assessment objectives reworded (same skills); qualification weightings now AO1 66%, AO2 24%, AO3 10%. The command word list has been shortened and the international terminology list removed.

Command words used in Accounting papers (25)

Advise: recommend a course of action for the situation given
Analyse: break information down to show its parts and how they relate
Assess: reach an informed judgement (2026 syllabus list only)
Calculate: work out an answer from the figures or facts given
Comment: give a reasoned, informed opinion (2026 syllabus list only)
Compare: point out similarities and/or differences
Consider: review the information given and respond to it (2026 syllabus list only)
Contrast: point out differences (2026 syllabus list only)
Define: give the exact meaning of a term
Demonstrate: show how, or give an example
Describe: set out the main features or characteristics
Develop: take given information further or build on it (2026 syllabus list only)
Discuss: write about an issue in depth, in an organised way
Evaluate: judge or calculate the quality, importance, amount or value
Examine: investigate closely and in detail (2026 syllabus list only)
Explain: give reasons or purposes, make relationships clear and support with evidence
Give: produce an answer from the source provided or from memory
Identify: name, select or recognise
Justify: support a case or decision with evidence or argument
Outline: set out the main points (2026 syllabus list only)
Predict: suggest what may happen, based on the information (2026 syllabus list only)
Prepare: present information in a suitable accounting format
State: express clearly and briefly
Suggest: apply knowledge to propose ideas where several valid answers exist
Summarise: pick out and present the main points without detail (2026 syllabus list only)

Examiner guidance from recent reports (14)

Sources and recording of data. A sales or purchases journal is a list (date, name, net amount) totalled and posted to the sales or purchases account; it has no debit and credit columns. Always enter invoices net of trade discount.

Sources and recording of data. Cash discount is only recorded when the debt is actually settled within the terms. Do not calculate discount on invoices that are still unpaid, and never record trade discount in the ledger.

Sources and recording of data. Use full narratives in ledgers and journals: write “Balance b/d”, not BBD, and name the other account in each entry. Journal entries need a short narrative explaining the transaction.

Verification of accounting records. For corrected profit or bank balance, show clearly whether each item is added or deducted, and leave out items that do not affect that figure (for example an error between two asset accounts does not change profit).

Verification of accounting records. Control accounts contain monthly totals from the books of prime entry, not individual invoices. Cash sales, trade discount and the allowance for irrecoverable debts never appear in a sales ledger control account.

Verification of accounting records. In a suspense account only the errors that made the trial balance disagree appear. Errors of commission, principle, omission, original entry, complete reversal and compensating errors have no suspense entry.

Accounting procedures. On disposal, transfer the accumulated depreciation to date on that asset only. With reducing balance, recalculate each year on the net book value, and follow the stated policy for the year of purchase and sale.

Accounting procedures. A decrease in the allowance for irrecoverable debts is income and an increase is an expense; only the change goes to the statement of profit or loss, while the full allowance is deducted from trade receivables.

Preparation of financial statements. Use correct headings and terms: Revenue, Cost of sales, Gross profit, Profit for the year. Show cost, accumulated depreciation and net book value for non-current assets and total current assets and current liabilities.

Preparation of financial statements. Dividends paid and transfers to the general reserve are deducted from retained earnings in the statement of changes in equity, not charged as expenses. Directors’ salaries and debenture interest are expenses.

Preparation of financial statements. For clubs, prepare the subscriptions and refreshment workings first; the accumulated fund is assets less liabilities at the start date, including subscriptions in arrears and in advance.

Analysis and interpretation. Use only the syllabus formulas. Give liquidity ratios as x.xx : 1, rate of inventory turnover in times (no % sign) and turnover periods in days, rounding to two decimal places unless told otherwise.

Analysis and interpretation. When asked about the consequences of a ratio change, give effects (for example more storage costs, cash tied up, risk of obsolescence) rather than causes. Advice questions need points for and against and a clear recommendation.

Accounting concepts and modern practice. Match the scenario to one concept or ethical principle precisely: refusing to disclose client information is confidentiality; declining work until trained is professional competence and due care; avoiding bias or gifts is objectivity.

Topic map

Practice types

Free sample questions

Which task is part of accounting rather than book-keeping?

Which task is part of accounting rather than book-keeping?

Entering credit sales invoices in the sales journal
Posting the cash book totals to the ledger
Using the financial statements to advise the owner on whether to open a second shop
Balancing the accounts of credit suppliers at the end of the month

Answer: C. Using the financial statements to advise the owner on whether to open a second shop

Book-keeping is the recording of transactions (journals, posting, balancing). Accounting uses the records: summarising them into financial statements, analysing and interpreting them, and communicating results to help decisions. Advising on expansion from the statements is accounting. Key C.

A trader’s business has assets of $58 000 and liabilities of $21 500. The following then take place. The…

A trader’s business has assets of $58 000 and liabilities of $21 500. The following then take place.

The owner takes $1200 cash from the business for private use.
Inventory costing $3000 is bought on credit.
A supplier is paid $2500 by bank transfer.

What is the owner’s equity after these transactions?

$32 300
$35 300
$36 500
$37 700

Answer: B. $35 300

Opening equity = 58 000 − 21 500 = 36 500. Drawings reduce assets and equity by 1200 → $35 300. Buying inventory on credit raises assets and liabilities equally; paying a supplier lowers both equally, so neither changes equity. A (32 300) wrongly deducts the credit purchase; C ignores the drawings; D adds them.

FAQs

Are these official 7707 past-paper questions?

No. They are original questions written to match the Accounting syllabus topics. Official past papers are available to schools through Cambridge.

Why choose an exam year?

Cambridge updates syllabuses periodically. Your exam year selects the matching configuration so topics and components follow the right version.

Is a calculator allowed?

In this configuration a scientific calculator is permitted for the listed papers. Check your syllabus for the exact rule.