Cambridge 0452 and 0985 · Sub-topic 3.3

Bank reconciliation

The 4 skills the syllabus asks for, the slips that cost marks, and how our teachers explain it.

What students must be able to do

Explain the purpose of a bank statement and of a bank reconciliation.
Update the cash book for bank charges, interest, errors, credit transfers, direct debits and standing orders.
Prepare a reconciliation including bank errors, uncredited deposits and unpresented cheques.
From 2027: understand the impact of digital transactions on the reconciliation process.

Official wording: Cambridge IGCSE Accounting 0452: syllabus for 2027-2029 (Version 1), page 13; Cambridge IGCSE Accounting 0452: syllabus for examination in 2026 (Version 2, December 2025), page 13. See all sources.

How our teachers teach it

Reconciliation is two steps that students often blur. First correct the cash book for items the bank knows about and the business did not. Then reconcile the corrected cash book balance to the bank statement. Our teachers keep these as two separate tables with a clear heading each, which makes the working easy for an examiner to follow and keeps follow-through marks available.

If any of these slips sound familiar, we can help. A teacher can mark your child's answers on bank reconciliation line by line and show where the marks go. Book a trial class.

How the wording changed for 2027

The 2027-2029 syllabus removes dividends from the cash-book updating list that appears in 2026. It adds the impact of digital business transactions on the reconciliation process.

Where it is examined

Bank reconciliation can appear in either paper, as a short question or as part of a longer task. Cambridge bases both papers on the whole syllabus. See the guides to Paper 1 and Paper 2 for the format.

Sources: Cambridge IGCSE Accounting 0452: syllabus for 2027-2029 (Version 1), pages 9, 22. See all sources.

Practise it

Bank reconciliation: questions

Which balance do we start from?

Questions state the starting point in the requirement. We teach students to underline it first, then work through the list item by item, marking each as a cash book adjustment or a reconciling item.

Does the 0985 (9 to 1) syllabus cover bank reconciliation too?

Yes. For examinations in 2027, 2028 and 2029 the 0985 subject content is word-for-word the same as 0452, so this sub-topic is identical on both. Only the reporting scale differs.

Which syllabus numbering should I use?

It is numbered 3.3 in both syllabuses: page 13 of the 2027 to 2029 syllabus and page 13 of the 2026 syllabus.

Get help with bank reconciliation

The trial class works through Cambridge IGCSE Accounting questions with a teacher, so you see how the paper is approached. One-to-one and online, from RM75/hr.

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