Bookkeeping qualifications built for the real world
The ICB qualification pathway is the most practical route into bookkeeping, whether you're aiming for your first job, progressing in the one you have, or starting your own practice. Study your way, sit exams online, and earn a professional title employers recognise.
The ICB Qualification Pathway
Practical, vocational and digital from day one
ICB qualifications teach you to do the job, not just pass the exam. Every level maps to a real occupational role, from assistant bookkeeper to senior finance professional, and every exam is taken online, on demand, at home or at work.
Because bookkeeping today is done in software, ICB assesses it in software. Our Level 2 pathway includes the A3 exam, a dedicated digital bookkeeping assessment taken using commercial accounting software of your choice, and our payroll qualifications assess digital payroll in the same hands-on way. As far as we know, ICB is the only professional body whose bookkeeping qualifications include a dedicated digital bookkeeping exam.
Uniquely digital
The A3 Data Entry to Trial Balance exam is completed using commercial accounting software of your choice, so you qualify with proven digital bookkeeping skills in the tools you'll actually use. Our payroll qualifications do the same for digital payroll.
30years setting the standard for bookkeepers
100%of exams taken online, on demand
365days a year you can sit an ICB exam
5qualification levels by 2027, Level 2 to Level 5
Who trains with ICB
One pathway, three starting points
Wherever you're starting from, there's a practical route through the ICB qualification pathway.
Looking for a job
Train towards a qualification employers actually ask for. ICB's Level 2 Certificate in Bookkeeping qualifies you for assistant bookkeeper, entry-level bookkeeper and accounting firm junior roles, with digital skills assessed as standard.
Already employed
Turn your experience into professional status. If you're already doing the work, you may be able to get exam-ready using ICB study hubs and textbooks without investing in a full course, or qualify through an apprenticeship and earn while you learn.
Starting your own practice
ICB membership is your route to a Practice Licence and the anti-money laundering (AML) supervision that is legally required before you can offer bookkeeping, accounts or payroll services to the public, plus the Certified Bookkeeper title clients trust.
Step by step
The qualification pathway: from first exam to Fellow
Each level of the ICB pathway leads to a membership grade and a set of designatory letters that tell employers and clients exactly what you can do.
2
Level 2 Certificate in Bookkeeping
Leads to: Associate (AICB)
Master double-entry bookkeeping to trial balance, on paper and in software, through the A1, A2 and A3 exams. The ideal qualification for an assistant bookkeeper, entry-level bookkeeper or accounting firm junior. No prior knowledge needed.
3
Level 3 Certificate in Bookkeeping and Accounts
Leads to: Member (MICB), Certified Bookkeeper
Go beyond the trial balance to run the full end-to-end internal accounting function, including financial reporting: trial balance, profit and loss and balance sheet, for every business type: limited companies, LLPs, partnerships and sole traders.
4
Level 4 Diploma in Advanced Bookkeeping and Accounting
Leads to: Fellow (FICB)
For senior bookkeepers preparing internal management accounts, or external accounts and tax returns for companies and the self-employed. From 2027 the Diploma extends to charities, the public sector and agriculture, and includes a compulsory Ethics and AML unit.
5
Level 5: launching 2027
The finance professional of the future
Our new Level 5 adds the professional skills modern finance careers demand: Business Insight, Tech Oversight, Strategic Foresight and Essential Law.
Digital payroll
ICB Payroll Qualifications
Alongside the bookkeeping pathway, ICB offers dedicated payroll qualifications, assessed hands-on in payroll software.
Level 2 Certificate in Payroll Administration
The entry point to a payroll career. Build core knowledge of payroll administration, payslips, legislation and compliance, statutory payments and real-time information (RTI) reporting.
Level 3 Diploma in Payroll Management
Step up to managing payroll across complex scenarios. Leads to ICB Payroll Agent membership and the PM.Dip designation, with a route to a Practice Licence if you want to offer payroll services to clients.
Skills for the job. Status that proves it. Support for the whole of your career. The Institute of Certified Bookkeepers
Earn while you learn
Bookkeeping and payroll apprenticeships
You don't have to choose between earning and qualifying. ICB is an Ofqual-regulated end-point assessor for accounting and payroll apprenticeships, so you can build your career on the job.
ICB acts as end-point assessor for Level 2 and Level 3 accounting apprenticeships and Level 3 and Level 5 payroll apprenticeships. Apprentices gain real workplace experience, a salary, and a recognised professional qualification, with a clear route into ICB membership at the end.
Explore apprenticeships
Three ways to get exam-ready
Study the way that suits your life and budget
ICB doesn't deliver courses. Instead, we verify who does, and we give independent learners everything they need to prepare on their own terms.
1
Accredited Training Providers
Learn with a verified, ICB-accredited provider, online, at your own pace or in the classroom. Every provider on our list is monitored for quality, so you can choose with confidence.
2
Study hubs and textbooks
Already working in bookkeeping or have relevant experience? You may be able to get exam-ready using ICB study hubs, official textbooks and mock exams, without the cost of a full course.
3
Apprenticeships
Qualify on the job with a salary from day one. ICB provides end-point assessment for accounting and payroll apprenticeships from Level 2 to Level 5.
Find an accredited course
Future skills
The ICB AI Academy
AI is changing how bookkeepers work, and ICB is making sure our members lead that change rather than follow it.
The ICB AI Academy runs qualifications in parallel with the main pathway, starting at Level 1 today and extending to Level 7 over time. Learn to use AI safely, ethically and professionally in bookkeeping and payroll, and show clients and employers you're ready for what's next.
See current qualifications
Start your bookkeeping career today
Register as an ICB student and you can sit your first exam whenever you're ready: online, on demand, any day of the year.
Register as a student
