[+] The Qualification
The AIIT comprises four examination papers which must all be passed to achieve membership. They are set on a modular basis at three monthly intervals as follows:
- Paper I - Legal Business & Professional Ethics (sat in April/May each year)
- Paper II – VAT (sat in July/August each year)
- Paper III – Other Indirect Taxes (sat in October/November each year)
- Paper IV – Stamp Taxes, Direct Taxes & Interaction of all Taxes (sat in January/February each year)
Each examination is 3 hours and 15 minutes in length (3 hours writing time and 15 minutes reading time). Certain exemptions are available. You should check the Institute’s prospectus for more details. This can be found at www.theiit.org.uk
[+] Registration with the Institute
Prospective candidates must be registered as a student with the Institute. The deadlines depend on which paper the student intents to sit first as follows:
| Registration deadline |
Paper intended to sit first |
| 1 February |
Paper I |
| 1 May |
Paper II |
| 1 August |
Paper III |
| 1 November |
Paper IV |
[+] Exam entry with the Institute
Students will receive an invoice eight weeks before the date they had indicated to the Institute they would be sitting each examination paper and payment would be required a minimum of four weeks before the exam sitting.
[+] Permitted texts
You are allowed to take certain publications into the examination:
• Tolley’s Orange Tax Handbook or CCH Green Book
• Tolley’s Yellow Tax Handbooks or CCH Red Books
• Tolley’s Customs Duties Handbook and Tolley’s Excise Duties Handbook, or CCH Purple Books Custom & Excise Duties 3A & 3B
• Duties Handbook, or CCH Purple Books Custom & Excise Duties 3A & 3B
• HMSO Taxing Statutes
Publications brought into the examination must be original bound copies. They can be underlined, sidelined and highlighted.
Candidates may also make use of “index flags” (NB only index flags may be used – it is not permitted to flag pages by use of post it notes or similar) and to write on these what is being flagged – ie:
• The name of the Act
• Section header (as an alternative the tax involved, eg CCL)
• Schedule number, and
• In either Tolley’s or CCH legislations books the tax heading may be flagged
Candidates are not allowed to make any markings other than that detailed above, nor use adhesive labels, nor insert any material.
[+] Pass Mark
The pass mark for each paper is 50%
[+] Results
The results are released from the IIT as follows:
| Paper |
Results |
| Paper I |
June |
| Paper II |
September |
| Paper III |
December |
| Paper IV |
March |
[+] Merger of the IIT and CIOT
As you may well know, the Institute of Indirect Taxation (IIT) and the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) merged on 1 August 2012. This means existing IIT members, who were not already members of the CIOT, have now become CIOT members.
The IIT examinations will run parallel to the CTA examinations with the final IIT examination (for paper IV) taking place in January 2014. This allows students registered with the IIT prior to the merger to complete their current IIT examinations and become members of the CIOT.
For IIT students who do not manage to pass their required IIT papers before the final IIT examination of January 2014, there will be transitional arrangements. Details of these can be found on the CIOT website: http://www.tax.org.uk/students_qualifications/newctastudents/iitrouteinfo
Please note, the above only applies to existing students registered with the IIT prior to 1 August 2012, no new students may register with the IIT.
From May 2013 we will also see changes to the CTA Indirect Tax examination structure as a result of the merger with the IIT. Details can be found on the CIOT website: http://www.tax.org.uk/students_qualifications/newctastudents/iitrouteinfo
For more details visit the Institute’s website at www.theiit.org.uk or call them on 01883 730658
