Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales

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The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales ( ICAEW ) is a UK- based accounting association that awards the ACA title. The association, founded by Royal Charter in 1880 , has more than 150,000 members. Members are allowed to use the ACA suffix. Similar to the Wirtschaftsprüferkammer in Germany, the ICAEW is permitted to grant auditing rights in Great Britain.

The main office is in the Chartered Accountants' Hall in London. There are offices in Beijing, Brussels, Dubai, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Singapore and Vietnam.

Qualifications

The ICAEW offers the following qualifications:

Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA)

To obtain the ACA, the following requirements must be met, which are achieved within a training contract with a company, such as the " Big Four ":

  1. 15 exams (Certificate, Professional and Advanced Level in the areas of accountancy, finance and business)
  2. 450 days of relevant work experience,
  3. Proof of professional development, as well
  4. Professionalism and integrity.

The exams to be taken are:

Certificate level

  • Accounting
  • Assurance
  • Management information
  • Business, Technology and Finance
  • Principles of Taxation
  • Law

Professional level

  • Financial accounting and reporting
  • Audit and Assurance
  • Business planning
  • Tax compliance
  • Business Strategy and Technology
  • Financial management

Advanced level

  • Corporate reporting
  • Strategic Business Management
  • Case study

The training lasts between 3 and 5 years.

Other qualifications

In addition to the ACA, the ICAEW also offers the qualifications “ICAEW Certificate in Finance, Accounting and Business (ICAEW CFAB)” and “ICAEW Business and Finance Professional (BFP)”.

membership

For membership in the ICAEW it is necessary to hold the ACA qualification. Further training ("Continuing Professional Development, CPD") must be ensured independently and confirmed annually to the ICAEW. After 10 years a member can become a “Fellow” and then use the suffix FCA.

The regular membership fee is £ 375 per year (as of 2019).

Recognition in Germany

The ACA qualification is not sufficient for statutory annual audits in Germany to issue an auditor's report. For this purpose, a supplementary examination would be required in order to then obtain the title of auditor.

Nevertheless, the qualification is recognized in Germany. On the one hand, assisting auditing employees at ACAs in the review of international group reports, similar to the CPA , the US equivalent of the ACA, and in other areas, such as company valuations and generally in the financial sector of commercial enterprises.

Trivia

  • Some of the founders of the Big Four accounting firms were presidents of ICAEW such as Arthur Cooper, Frederick Whinney, William Welch Deloitte and Sir William Peat.
  • On the boards of directors of publicly traded companies ( FTSE 100 ) in the UK, 78 of the 100 companies have ICAEW Chartered Accountants on their boards.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d An overview of ICAEW. Retrieved January 3, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Practicing certificates. Retrieved January 3, 2019 .
  3. ↑ Training as a graduate. Retrieved January 3, 2019 .
  4. ^ About the ACA. Retrieved January 4, 2019 .
  5. ^ Become a fellow (FCA). Retrieved January 4, 2019 .
  6. ^ Fees and subscriptions. Retrieved January 4, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Aptitude Test - Chamber of Auditors. Retrieved January 4, 2019 .
  8. ↑ The business card of an auditor - added value at a glance | Rödl & Partner. Accessed January 4, 2019 (German).