Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) Past Papers & Mark Schemes
Preparing for the Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) exam? Mastering double-entry bookkeeping, financial statements, and ratio analysis takes consistent practice with real exam questions — and official past papers are the best way to get there. In this guide, you'll find a complete collection of IGCSE Accounting 0452 past papers, mark schemes, and examiner advice. Click here for examiner tips.
2026 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting
2026 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) | Downloads | |
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — February/March 2026 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — February/March 2026 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — May/June 2026 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — May/June 2026 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — May/June 2026 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — May/June 2026 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — May/June 2026 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — May/June 2026 |
2025 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting
2025 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) | Downloads | |
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — February/March 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — February/March 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — May/June 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — October/November 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — October/November 2025 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — October/November 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — October/November 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — October/November 2025 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — October/November 2025 |
2024 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting
2024 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) | Downloads | |
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — February/March 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — February/March 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — May/June 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — October/November 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — October/November 2024 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — October/November 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — October/November 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — October/November 2024 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — October/November 2024 |
2023 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting
2023 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) | Downloads | |
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — February/March 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — February/March 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — May/June 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — October/November 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — October/November 2023 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — October/November 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — October/November 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — October/November 2023 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — October/November 2023 |
2022 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting
2022 Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452) | Downloads | |
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — February/March 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — February/March 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — May/June 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/11) — October/November 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/12) — October/November 2022 | ||
Paper 1 Multiple Choice (0452/13) — October/November 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/21) — October/November 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/22) — October/November 2022 | ||
Paper 2 Structured Written Paper (0452/23) — October/November 2022 |
Examiner Advice
1. Use full, proper accounting terms — never abbreviations or names
Examiners won't accept shortcuts like "GP," "NP," "COS," or "bbd" — always write out "Gross Profit," "Profit for the year," "Cost of sales," and "Balance b/d" in full. The same goes for the details column in ledger accounts: write the actual name of the account involved (like "Bank" or "Purchases"), never a person's name such as "Barry." In financial statements, be precise too — it's "dividend paid," not just "dividend," and "income and expenditure," not "income statement."
2. Get your double entry the right way round, and keep ledgers clean
A common and costly mistake is putting debit entries on the credit side or vice versa — always double-check which side an entry belongs on before you write it in. Also keep ledger accounts free of information that doesn't belong there: non-current asset accounts should only ever show cost price, never net book value, and control accounts should be posted with monthly totals from your books of prime entry, not individual daily transactions.
3. Apply your answer to the scenario, not to a memorised script
For the 5-mark discussion questions, don't fall back on generic points like "costs will increase" without explaining why, and don't bring up irrelevant options — if the scenario says the premises are already rented, don't discuss buying a building. Give two clear advantages and two clear disadvantages that are directly tied to the business in front of you, and always end with a definite recommendation — "I recommend that..." — rather than a vague, hedged statement.
4. When correcting errors, work out exactly what the error affects
If you're correcting a complete reversal error, remember you need to double the original amount in your journal entry — one part cancels the mistake, the other records it correctly. Before adjusting profit or the bank balance, think through the logic of the error: only revenue and expense items affect profit, and only actual money movements affect the bank balance. And in a suspense account, always label the opening imbalance as "Trial balance difference," not "Balance b/d."
5. Know your accounting principles precisely — they're easy to mix up
Don't confuse Realisation with Historic Cost, or Prudence with Money Measurement. Remember that under the Realisation Principle, revenue is recognised when goods or services are delivered or invoiced — not when the cash is actually received. And under the Business Entity Principle, an owner's drawings must always be kept separate from business expenses, never mixed in together.
6. Show your workings and use the exact ratio formulas
Always use net sales (after returns), not gross sales, when calculating margins, and remember non-current liabilities like debentures belong in your ROCE calculation. Round every final answer to two decimal places and attach the correct unit — %, days, or :1 — as required. Most importantly, always show your full step-by-step workings, since partial marks are only awarded when the examiner can see how you got there, even if your final answer is wrong.
FAQ: Cambridge IGCSE Accounting (0452)
What's the difference between Paper 1 and Paper 2?
Paper 1 (Multiple Choice) is a 1 hour 15 minute exam made up of 35 multiple-choice questions that test your grasp of core concepts, calculations, and definitions — this makes up 30% of your final grade. Paper 2 (Structured Written Paper) is longer, at 1 hour 45 minutes, and consists of five structured questions requiring full account preparation, financial statements, and written evaluation. This paper carries the bulk of your mark, worth 70% overall.
Are there any syllabus changes for 2027?
The syllabus (0452) does get updated periodically, so it's worth checking you're studying the most recent version published by Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE) before you start revising. Pay particular attention to formatting requirements for financial statements, along with updated terminology — for instance, "non-current assets" has replaced "fixed assets" — and make sure you're using the specific international accounting terms the syllabus expects.
Can I use a calculator in the exam?
Yes — non-programmable scientific calculators are allowed in both papers. Just make sure yours doesn't have graphic or algebraic capabilities, symbol manipulation, or retrieval functions, and spend some time before exam day getting genuinely fast and comfortable doing multi-step calculations on it.
How are marks awarded for workings in Paper 2?
This is one area where showing your work really pays off. Examiners award Method Marks and Own Figure Marks, which means that even if an early mistake throws off your final profit figure or balance sheet total, you can still pick up partial — or even full — marks on the later steps, as long as your workings clearly show how you got there. Always write out your calculations fully and neatly alongside your accounts.
What's the difference between capital expenditure and revenue expenditure?
Capital expenditure is spending on acquiring, maintaining, or improving long-term assets — think purchasing machinery or extending a building — and it shows up on the Statement of Financial Position. Revenue expenditure, on the other hand, covers the everyday costs of running the business, like electricity, wages, or machinery repairs, and gets charged directly to the Income Statement.
How do I clear the suspense account in Paper 2 questions?
A suspense account gets created temporarily whenever a trial balance doesn't agree. To clear it, you need to track down the errors causing the imbalance, work out the correcting double entries in the journal, and post those adjustments into the suspense account. Once every unbalanced error has been corrected, the suspense account balance should drop to zero on its own.
Which financial ratios do I need to know?
There are three groups worth mastering. Profitability ratios include gross margin, profit margin, and return on capital employed (ROCE). Liquidity ratios cover the current ratio and the liquid (acid test) ratio. And efficiency ratios include trade receivables turnover, trade payables turnover, and the rate of inventory turnover.
How should I approach evaluation and commentary questions in Paper 2?
Questions like "advise whether the business should accept a new partner" are marked on how balanced and well-reasoned your answer is, not just whether you land on the "right" conclusion. Start by laying out the advantages, backed up by financial data or ratio results, then follow with the disadvantages or financial risks. Don't stop at the numbers, though — bring in non-financial factors too, like workload, staff morale, or loss of control. Finish with a clear, decisive recommendation that ties everything together.
How many past papers should I practise before the 2027 exam?
Try to work through at least 5 to 7 years' worth of past papers, covering both the June and November series along with any specimen papers available. Practising under timed conditions matters, but so does going back afterward and carefully reviewing the official mark schemes and examiner reports — that's where you'll really learn how marks are awarded and which mistakes to avoid repeating.
