CTA

Overview

The Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) qualification is run by the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) in the UK. It tests whether a candidate can give high-quality, practical tax advice. The CIOT sets the syllabus and the exams but does not teach the course; students study through a tuition provider or on their own.

The CTA has two parts: three computer-based exams (CBEs) on law, ethics and accounting, then tax exams. The tax exams are Awareness, Advanced Technical and Application and Professional Skills. The CIOT holds the tax exams twice a year, in May and November, in test centres.

Who can apply

You register as a CTA student with the CIOT before you can sit tax exams. You must be registered at least four months before your first tax exam.

• For the May session, register by 31 December of the previous year.

• For the November session, register by 30 June.

• The CIOT accepts new student registrations only from about 70 listed countries and territories, which include India, Ireland, Nigeria, Pakistan, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Kenya. Check the full list on the registration page.

• Students already registered for the ATT qualification can transfer the unexpired part of their first three years of registration to the CIOT without charge.

• Chartered accountancy students on the ACA CTA or CA CTA Joint Programmes register on a Direct Tax or Indirect Tax route.

Levels or stages

Computer-based exams

There are three CBEs: Law, Professional Responsibilities and Ethics, and Principles of Accounting.

• You book each one through the CIOT and can sit at a test centre or remotely proctored.

• You can book your first CBE 14 days after your student registration is confirmed.

• You see your result on screen straight after the exam.

• The sample Law and Ethics papers have 50 questions each, and the sample Accounting papers have 40.

• All three CBEs must usually be passed, or exemptions granted, before you can enter your final tax exam. That means passing by the end of February for the May session, or by the end of August for the November session.

• The CIOT sells the study manuals for these exams. For 2026 they cost £70.

Awareness

Awareness is a single exam of 3 hours 15 minutes. It covers core areas of tax that you do not deal with daily and that are not part of your Advanced Technical choices.

• Five modules are offered: VAT including stamp taxes; Inheritance Tax, Trusts and Estates; Corporation Tax; Taxation of Individuals; and Taxation of Unincorporated Businesses.

• You choose three modules, which must differ from your Advanced Technical choices. You answer every question on each chosen module, and all modules must be sat together.

• Each module has 12 short questions worth 5 marks each.

• To pass you need at least 90 of the 180 marks (50%), and at least 21 marks (35%) in each module. If you miss the 35% floor in any module, you must re-sit the whole exam.

Advanced Technical

Each Advanced Technical paper is a separate, stand-alone exam of 3 hours 30 minutes. You answer all the questions, and each question is worth 10, 15 or 20 marks.

The papers sat in the 2026 and 2027 sessions are:

• Taxation of Individuals

• Taxation of Owner-Managed Businesses

• Taxation of Larger Companies and Groups

• Inheritance Tax, Trusts and Estates

• Domestic Indirect Taxation

• Cross Border and Environmental Taxes, which is mostly VAT and customs duty (roughly 70% to 85%), with environmental taxes making up roughly 15% to 30%

• Human Capital Taxes

Application and Professional Skills

Application and Professional Skills (APS) is a case-study exam of 3 hours 30 minutes. You choose one of five options: VAT and Other Indirect Taxes; Taxation of Larger Companies and Groups; Taxation of Owner-Managed Businesses; Inheritance Tax, Trusts and Estates; or Taxation of Individuals.

• Pre-seen background information is published two weeks before the exam. You can discuss it with anyone.

• Markers look for competence in three skills: how the whole answer is structured, identifying and applying the right tax points, and giving relevant advice with supported conclusions.

• No exemptions are available for APS.

• You must pass Awareness, or hold an exemption from it, before sitting APS. You can also sit both in the same session.

Joint Programme paper: Tax Knowledge and Skills

Candidates on the ACA CTA and CA CTA Joint Programmes sit a Tax Knowledge and Skills paper on either the Direct Tax or Indirect Tax route. It is available from November 2026, is set at Level 6, lasts 3 hours 30 minutes and is sat in test centres in May and November. Candidates may bring up to 20 A4 pages of their own research, based on pre-seen information, into the exam.

The revised qualification from 2028

The CIOT has published a revised CTA Qualification Handbook for 2028, with syllabus grids and an exemptions eligibility table, on its qualification review page. Changes apply to new candidates enrolling from autumn 2027, and the first exam sittings will be in May 2028. The CIOT says it will publish transitional rules later in 2026 for people already studying or starting during 2026 and early 2027. Read the review page before you plan a start date.

Exam pattern

The CBEs are computer-based and are booked separately, at a test centre or remotely.

Tax exams are closed book. You use an online legislation library, available from Croner-i or Tolley's Digital Library as a student-only subscription, plus a printed copy of the Tax Tables.

Marking and results

The Awareness pass marks are given above. The CIOT pages reviewed do not state the Advanced Technical pass mark for the 2026 and 2027 sessions.

CBE results appear on screen immediately. Tax exam results are emailed per paper by midday on the pass list date: 20 January 2027 for the November 2026 session, July 2027 for the May 2027 session and January 2028 for the November 2027 session. You cannot enter exams while you are awaiting results from the previous session.

Important dates

• November 2026 session: Advanced Technical papers on 27 and 28 October 2026, APS on 29 October at 10am and Awareness on 29 October at 2.30pm. Entry opened on 20 July 2026 and closed on 31 August 2026, followed by a short late-entry period in early September 2026.

• May 2027 session: Advanced Technical papers on 4 and 5 May 2027, APS on 6 May at 10am and Awareness on 6 May at 2.30pm.

• November 2027 session: Advanced Technical papers on 26 and 27 October 2027, APS on 28 October at 10am and Awareness on 28 October at 2.30pm.

Start times are the standard times. Candidates with extra time should check their candidate information email.

Fees

For 2026, the CIOT lists these fees. They are reviewed each year, and changes take effect from 1 January.

Registration is payable in addition to exam entry fees. Re-registration costs the same as the original registration.

How to apply

1. Register as a CTA student on the CIOT portal, paying the registration fee or choosing employer invoicing.

2. Pass the three CBEs or apply for exemptions.

3. Enter each tax exam session through your portal account, choosing a first-choice test centre. Places are given on a first-come, first-served basis, and the Owner-Managed Businesses and Taxation of Individuals papers fill fastest.

4. Apply for any exemptions before the closing date of your final tax exam entry.

You can only enter for the next exam session, and your student registration must still be valid on the exam dates.

Preparation tips

• Buy the student online legislation subscription as soon as you start studying, so you are used to it before the exam.

• Practise on the CIOT's sample CBEs and past papers, and try the RM exam software practice test, ideally on a Windows device.

• For APS, read the pre-seen information carefully in the two weeks before the exam and work through the CIOT's sample papers and marking guidance.

• In Awareness, study all three chosen modules to a similar level, because one weak module can fail the whole paper.

FAQs