Surveillance

Statistics

CPE Compliance Audit 2023

View Now

Continuing Professional Education (CPE) learning activities are designed to upskill professional accountants to perform competently within their professional environment.

Participation in CPE learning activities is therefore vital in maintaining high standards and public confidence in the profession.

In order to maintain professional competency and to ensure the exercise of due care at all times, a professional accountant is required to participate in CPE learning activities that are relevant to his or her current and future work and professional responsibilities. CPE requirements are applicable to all professional regardless of sector or size of business in which they operate.

As a member body of the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), the Institute is responsible for the continuing professional education of professional accountants as set out in the requirements of the International Education Standard (IES) 7 “Continuing Professional Development (Revised)” issued by IFAC.

IES 7 prescribes the continuing professional development requirement of professional accountants to maintain professional competency, which contributes to the profession’s abjective of providing high-quality services to ‘meet the needs of the public (including clients and employers) and thereby strengthens public trust in the profession.

Functions

Paragraph 16 of IES 7 prescribes that member bodies shall establish a systematic process to:

  1. monitor whether professional accountants meet the IFAC member body’s CPD requirements, and
  2. provide appropriate sanctions for failure to meet those requirements.

CPE audit is conducted by the Institute on a sample of professional accountants who are selected at random from the Institute’s records. During each CPE audit, the randomly selected professional accountants may be required to produce evidence of their compliance with the CPE requirements; as such, all professional accountants are required to maintain records of their compliance with the CPE requirements. Professional accountants are required to tender the appropriate evidence of such compliance if called upon to do so. Please refer to Section B110 of the Institute’s By-Laws.

The Institute views compliance with CPE requirements seriously and will take disciplinary action against those members who wilfully fail to comply or respond to the Institute’s inquiries on compliance.

Section B110 of the Institute’s By-Laws states that all professional accountants are required to complete at least 120 CPE credit hours of relevant CPE learning for every rolling 3 calendar year period, of which at least 60 CPE credit hours should be structured and verifiable, and at least twenty (20) CPE credit hours of such structured and verifiable CPE learning should be obtained each calendar year.

For the purpose of renewal as an approved company auditor, a minimum of 10 out of 20 structured CPE hours to be completed by the member each year must be related to International Standards on Quality Control (ISQC 1), approved auditing standards, approved accounting standards and/or professional ethics.

Compliance with CPE requirements has been made a mandatory requirement for the renewal of Practising Certificate (PC) effective financial year 2018/2019. For the 2018/2019 PC renewal, PC holders must demonstrate compliance with the 2017 CPE requirements. For subsequent years PC renewal, PC holders have to ensure that the preceding year’s CPE credit hours are met.

Members must obtain CPE hours from CPE learning activities that are relevant to their current and future work and professional responsibilities. The structured and unstructured learning activities stated in APPENDIX V of the Institute’s By-Laws are as follows:

  1. Accredited structured learning activities/programmes

    1. CPE courses and conferences organised by the Institute or by the Institute jointly with other professional bodies or by other organisations endorsed by the Institute.
    2. CPE courses and conferences organised by the recognised bodies as listed in Part II of the First Schedule to the Act.
    3. Courses and conferences organised by other accredited organisations.
    4. Participation in formal groups and formal self-study programmes designed specifically for members.
    5. Studies undertaken for the purpose of preparing for a relevant post-qualification course.
    6. Studies undertaken after qualification with a view to preparing the member for a postgraduate degree (for example Masters, PhD, professional qualifications).
    7. Suitable courses run by a university or appropriate institution.
    8. Relevant courses run by a firm in public practice, an industrial company or other business organisation.
    9. Correspondence courses, audiotape or videotape packages, courses of programmed texts or other individual study programmes that are relevant or related to the accountancy profession, which require participation by the member.
    10. Writing of technical articles, papers or books for publication.
    11. Working as a lecturer, instructor or discussion leader on a structured course will entitle the member to obtain a maximum of 50% of the minimum CPE credit hours (repeat presentations of the course will entitle the member to not more than 30% of the minimum CPE credit hours for this purpose).
    12. Service as a member of a committee of the Institute and its branches will entitle the member to obtain a maximum of 2 CPE credit hours for each meeting attended by the member in respect of the committee or the branch of the Institute as the case may be.
    13. Attendance at Annual General Meetings, Extraordinary General Meetings and Members’ Dialogues of the Institute will entitle the member to obtain a maximum of 2 CPE credit hours for each occasion.
    14. Service as a member of a committee of any one of the recognised bodies as listed in Part II of the First Schedule to the Act and other related bodies, will entitle the member to obtain a maximum of 2 CPE credit hours for each meeting.
    15. Participation in the Institute’s activities in the development of standards/guidelines relating to the profession. (A member shall not be entitled to accumulate more than 10 CPE credit hours for participation in the same activity in any one cycle).
    16. Members of the Institute who are mentors in the CARE Programme for a duration of one (1) year will be entitled to 4 CPE structured hours regardless of the number of mentees that he has.
    17. Participation as a speaker in conference and seminars, whereby 1 hour training entitles the member to 1 CPE credit hour.

For the purpose of renewal as an approved company auditor, a minimum of 10 out of 20 structured CPE hours to be completed by the member each year must be related to International Standards on Quality Control (ISQC 1), approved auditing standards, approved accounting standards and/or professional ethics.

In fulfilling the specific CPE requirement for purposes of renewal, the above accredited structured activities must be related to ISQC 1, approved auditing standards, approved accounting standards and/or professional ethics with the exception of item (m) and (p), which are not technical related and hence cannot be used to fulfill the specific CPE requirement for renewal of audit approval.

  1. Unstructured learning activities/programmes
    1. Reading technical, professional, financial or business literature.
    2. Use of audio tapes, videotapes, correspondence courses etc. that are related or relevant to the accountancy profession (where no participation is required).
    3. Participation in meetings, briefing sessions or discussion groups not organised by the Institute or by any of the recognised bodies as listed in Part II of the First Schedule to the Act and other related bodies, but which have relevance to the accountancy profession.

Members are required to update the event date, course title, organiser and duration of event via online by ‘checking “Add External CPE Hours” without the need to submit supporting documents (for example, certificate of attendance). The Institute, however, reserves the right to request for evidence to verify any such information provided by members. Members are also required to make a declaration of their CPE Compliance online, log on to ‘My Account‘.

Upon fulfilling the requirements for structured learning, members are required to click ‘CPE Declaration’ to declare their compliance and to perform the above, log on to ‘My Account‘.

Your update of the CPE events and the CPE Compliance online declaration must be performed by 31 December of each calendar year.

Members can seek an exemption from CPE requirements if they fulfil the criteria for CPE Exemption. The Institute retains the sole discretion to grant an exemption or the extent of any exemption.

Please refer to Section B110.9 to B110.12 of the Institute’s By-Laws for CPE Exemption.

Criteria for CPE exemption:

A member must be a Chartered Accountant and fulfil one of the criteria below:

  1. Senior members.
    1. Aged 60 years and above; and
    2. Retired from full-time employment and / or practice.
  2. Homemaker
    1. A homemaker; and
    2. Not in full-time employment and / or practice.
  3. Undertake care duties for a close family member over a long period of time (exceeding 12 months) and not in full-time employment and / or practice.
  4. Unemployment over a long period of time (exceeding 12 months).

Procedures for the application of CPE exemption by MIA member:

  1. Application for CPE Exemption can be submitted by members at My Account by selecting ‘Submit Applications’.
  2. Upon assessment, CPE exemption will be granted to members who fulfil the required criteria and have submitted the relevant supporting documents.