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2026 SACE Accounting exam: What to learn from last year's mistakes
Exam: Thursday 5 November 2026, 1.30 pm. South Australia local time.
I've gone through last year's examiner advice. Q1 was the strongest question and Q5 was the weakest. The report doesn't give the numerical averages. The big lesson was that a calculation only helps your advice if you explain what it means for this business.
1. Q1: Depreciation needs the correct period
Where students went wrong
Using the wrong timeframe and leaving elements out of cost of goods sold.
What they should have done
Check the dates before applying a depreciation rate. Write the annual amount and any required fraction of the year separately. For cost of goods sold, reconcile opening inventory, net purchases and closing inventory rather than guessing from one figure.
For a separate practice example, annual straight-line depreciation of $2,400 becomes $600 for three months, if the question requires three months' depreciation. That is an illustration, not a figure from the 2025 paper.
2. Q2 and Q3: Cash belongs in the month it moves
Where students went wrong
Including non-cash items and placing receipts or payments in the wrong months.
What they should have done
Build a receipt schedule from the collection terms. A credit sale and its cash receipt need not occur together. Keep depreciation out of the cash budget: it allocates an asset's cost but isn't a new cash payment.
Before adding a number, ask two questions: does cash move, and when? Then use the budget's actual surplus or shortage to explain any financing recommendation.
3. Q4: Stock cards use cost, and ratios need the right inputs
Where students went wrong
Using selling prices on the inventory card and omitting averages from debtor turnover calculations.
What they should have done
Track the cost layers under FIFO and treat returns consistently with the transaction information. For turnover, show the average receivables calculation before substituting into the ratio. If days are requested, finish the conversion and label it.
A ratio isn't the conclusion. Explain whether the collection period fits the business's credit terms and what that means for cash availability.
4. Q5: Turn Q4's evidence into advice
Where students went wrong
Generic recommendations, little use of earlier calculations, and insufficient attention to the stakeholder's main concern.
What they should have done
Use the earlier results to support a recommendation, explain a relevant qualitative consideration, and prioritise the issues using the question's marks and stakeholder needs. Answer in the requested format.
Try this paragraph structure: recommendation → specific evidence → business consequence → limitation. Replace every placeholder with the business's actual information. If your advice could be pasted into any company's report unchanged, it probably needs more application.
Source: 2025 Accounting examiner advice. Check the current official exam materials and 2026 timetable; the past paper is practice, not a prediction.
Sorry guys, shameless plug, I gotta do this. I'm the founder of ATARMAXXING, so take a look at the SACE Accounting practice exams with worked answers if you want more practice. You can preview the Accounting pack before buying. Practise the written advice as well as the calculations.
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