The Level 4 Diploma for Professional Accounting Technicians (L4PAT) replaced the Q2022 Level 4 Diploma in Professional Accounting for new students on 1 September 2026. If you’re already registered on Q2022, you can finish it or transfer. This page sets out the rules AAT has published and helps you compare the two routes.
The new units are opening in phases, so check when each assessment is available before you plan your next exam.
No new registrations. Students already registered can carry on.
New Level 4 students now register on the new qualification.
FNAC and MNAC assessments are available.
ATIC, plus AUTU for students who have passed INAC but not AUDT.
AVBA is the one unit with no Q2022 equivalent.
The first PTAX assessments use Finance Act 2026.
Existing students must sit all their Q2022 assessments by this date.
The final date AAT will certificate the Q2022 Diploma.
The biggest change is that there are no optional units any more. Everyone now studies audit and tax, and a new business awareness unit has been added.
Three mandatory units plus two optional units from five.
Five mandatory units. AAT says all assessments are 100% computer marked.
Percentages show how much each unit counts towards your overall grade.
If you transfer, AAT carries your achieved percentage across for matching units. Where two Q2022 units combine into one new unit, you get the average of the two.
| If you’ve passed (Q2022) | What happens | New unit (L4PAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Drafting and Interpreting Financial Statements (DAIF) | Your percentage transfers directly | Financial Accounting (FNAC) |
| Applied Management Accounting (AMAC) | Your percentage transfers directly | Management Accounting (MNAC) |
| Internal Accounting Systems and Controls (INAC) and Audit and Assurance (AUDT) | The average of your two percentages transfers | Audit and Internal Controls (ATIC) |
| INAC only | Sit the audit top-up (AUTU) or the full ATIC assessment | Audit and Internal Controls (ATIC) |
| Business Tax (BNTA) and Personal Tax (PNTA) | The average of your two percentages transfers | Principles of Taxation (PTAX) |
| Cash and Financial Management (CSFT) or Credit and Debt Management (CRDM) | No transfer | No equivalent |
| No Q2022 equivalent | Nothing transfers into it, so plan to sit it | Advanced Business Awareness (AVBA) |
Tick the Q2022 Level 4 units you’ve already passed. You’ll see what’s left if you finish Q2022 and what’s left if you transfer.
This is a guide based on AAT’s published transfer table. It doesn’t include exemptions. Talk to your training provider or AAT before you decide, especially if you’re close to finishing.
Fewer exams isn’t the only thing to think about. Consider how long you need, which topics you’re strongest in and what your training provider is teaching.
No. If you’re registered on Q2022 Level 4 you can finish it, as long as you sit all your assessments by 31 July 2028. You can’t start Q2022 now, as it closed to new registrations on 31 August 2026.
Based on AAT’s transfer table, and leaving exemptions aside, transferring never leaves you with fewer assessments than finishing Q2022, because nothing transfers into Advanced Business Awareness. It can still make sense if you don’t think you’ll finish Q2022 by 31 July 2028, or if your training provider is now teaching the new units. The checker shows how the numbers work out for you.
AAT charges a £50 transfer fee until 31 July 2028. Each L4PAT assessment costs £69, and the audit top-up (AUTU) costs £40. Remote invigilation adds £41 per assessment, and venues can charge their own fees. Your training provider may have its own charges too.
For units that match, yes: your achieved percentage transfers. Where two Q2022 units combine into one new unit (INAC with AUDT, or BNTA with PNTA), the average of your two percentages transfers.
You can choose between the audit top-up (AUTU), which covers the audit topics, or the full Audit and Internal Controls (ATIC) assessment. Both are available from 12 October 2026.
AAT’s transfer table only shows Business Tax and Personal Tax transferring together, and it hasn’t published a tax top-up. If you’ve passed just one of them, plan on sitting Principles of Taxation, which is available from 25 January 2027, and check with AAT before you transfer.
AAT’s table only transfers AUDT together with INAC, and the top-up is only for students who have INAC. If you have AUDT on its own, plan on sitting the full ATIC assessment and check with AAT before you transfer.
These units have no equivalent in L4PAT, so they don’t transfer. That doesn’t mean the work was wasted: if you stay on Q2022, they still count as one of your two optional units.
AQ2016 results don’t transfer to L4PAT. Contact AAT about your options for finishing or restarting your studies.
AAT doesn’t transfer exemptions automatically, because some older exemptions may no longer meet its current requirements. If you’re eligible, AAT can add an exemption to L4PAT when you ask. If you’ve already paid for exemptions on Q2022, AAT says it can apply the equivalent L4PAT exemption free of charge.
AAT says L4PAT assessments are 100% computer marked, and its fees page lists remote invigilation for all five units and the audit top-up. At the time of writing, AAT is allowing up to 15 working days for results as a temporary quality-assurance measure. Usually, results come by the end of the next working day if you sit at a venue, or within 10 working days if you sit remotely. Check AAT’s results page for the latest times.
Each unit page has a topic overview, revision methods, free posters and any upcoming sessions for that unit.
Everything on this page was checked against AAT’s published information on 28 September 2026. AAT can change its arrangements, so always confirm with AAT or your training provider before you make a decision.