This is the first of a series of three blogs about CPD requirements worldwide. This one focuses on the similarities, the second blog on the differences is here! The third blog, on specific professional bodies, is here!
In the fast-evolving world of accountancy, continuous learning keeps us on top of regulations and helps us stay ahead of skills gaps. To help us do this, each accountancy body has a CPD (Continuous Professional Development) scheme. These schemes are mandated by their membership in IFAC, the global organisation for the accountancy profession, and by the Financial Reporting Council. The FRC delegates its regulatory responsibilities to four Recognised Supervisory Bodies (RSBs): ACCA, CAI, ICAEW, and ICAS.
CPD requirements for chartered accountants around the world vary significantly from one professional body to another not just in terms of the number of hours that need to be completed each year or the deadline for completing the hours but also in terms of the type of CPD that is acceptable. However, there are some key common themes and similarities that are worth highlighting.
Continuous improvement
As a starting point, most professional bodies have an emphasis on lifelong learning wanting accountants to maintain, enhance, and develop their technical and professional skills on an ongoing basis to ensure there is continuous improvement within the profession.
Most professional bodies globally have structured CPD programmes that give accountants the opportunity to complete their CPD on a broad range of topics via a variety of learning activities whether that be online learning, face to face seminars, workshops, listening to podcasts, or self-study for example.
Verifying CPD
Tracking and recording CPD is important to professional bodies as a way of ensuring continuous improvement and credibility in the profession. Most bodies require accountants to maintain records of CPD completion in the form of certificates, records of attendance, or personal development logs. Many professional bodies audit or review CPD records to ensure compliance, so accountants are generally expected to keep evidence of their completed CPD.
Some examples:
- Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ) regularly audits a sample of members to verify CPD compliance. Members must provide evidence of their CPD activities such as attendance certificates and learning logs.
- Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) audits a sample of members each year. If you are selected for monitoring by ICAEW’s Quality Assurance Department you must provide evidence that you have met your CPD requirements.
- Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) audits a percentage of members annually to ensure adherence to CPD requirements. Members must keep records of their CPD activities to submit as evidence.
- South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) conducts regular CPD audits to ensure compliance. Members are required to maintain appropriate records if they are selected for the audit.
- Chartered Professional Accountants Canada completes periodic audits to check on the CPD activities of their members.
So you can see a common theme here that professional bodies around the world take a stringent approach to ensuring members are completing their CPD. This is fairly standard and plays a big part in maintaining the respect and credibility of the profession. Regular CPD activity results in updated knowledge, adaptability and as a result enhances professionalism and improves public trust and reliability. It fosters a culture of excellence within the accountancy world.
Ethical compliance
And thirdly there has always been a focus on the importance of integrity within the profession and over the years professional bodies have developed specific training within the area of ethics to promote and encourage ethical behaviour.
For example, CPA Canada mandates four hours of ethics training every three years and CA ANZ requires nine hours over the same period. ICAEW does not mandate CPD topics but the exception to this is ethics and members must complete at least one hour of ethics-related training each CPD year. SAICA doesn’t set a specific number of hours but ethics is a compulsory CPD requirement where members have to reflect on their ethical competence in relation to the learning outcomes of the ethical competencies (personal, business, and professional).
Ethical competence is rarely out of the news these days and professional bodies are clearly responding to this trend by mandating CPD in this area to maintain public trust and confidence, maintain the integrity of the profession. This worldwide requirement for accountants to keep up to date and compliant in ethics is resulting in harmonisation of accounting practices across different countries. This consistency is important in a global economy where stakeholders operate across borders and rely on standardised practices.
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