Members and students are advised of changes to CPA Ireland’s Bye Law 13, Practice and Audit Regulations from 1st July 2020.
Bye Law 13 sets out the requirements for CPA members who wish to obtain a practising certificate or become a statutory auditor.
Some of the key changes are in the area of the eligibility criteria for audit qualification. If you are considering making an application for audit qualification to enable you to act as a statutory auditor in the future, you should be aware of some significant changes in this regard and plan your training and education accordingly.
Audit Qualification
CPA members who wish to become statutory auditors must apply to CPA Ireland for a practising certificate with audit qualification. Bye Law 13 and Part 27 of the Companies Act 2014 set out the criteria for audit qualification.
The revised Bye Law amends the training requirements which apply to all new applicants from 1st July 2020. Details of these changes are set out below;
Training Requirements
The key change to the training requirement for statutory audit is to the extent of training required in the area of statutory audit. Under the revised Bye Law, a candidate is required to complete a minimum of three years training working under the direct supervision of a Statutory Auditor in accordance with Schedule 19 of the Companies Act 2014, at least two of which must be post admission to membership of CPA. A substantial part of such practical training shall be in statutory audit work and at least forty weeks of such practical training shall be completed post admission to membership in statutory audit, supervised by a statutory auditor or an audit firm.
Other requirements remain the same and are as follows;
- Completion of the Practice and Audit Orientation Online Certificate
- Completion of eight hours of structured CPD in the subject area of auditing in the twelve months prior to application to become a statutory auditor
Educational Requirements
Applicants for audit qualification must also meet the educational requirements of
Schedule 19 of the Companies Act 2014. Additional guidance has issued from the Irish Auditing and Accounting Supervisory Authority in this regard.
In order to meet these requirements an applicant for audit qualification must have completed the CPA Ireland examinations (or equivalent examinations of another Recognised Accountancy Body (RAB)).
The following subjects at P2 level (or equivalent final examinations of another Recognised Accountancy Body)
must be completed by a candidate for audit qualification (the subjects marked * are elective subjects for admission to membership of CPA but are mandatory for an applicant for audit qualification);
- P2 Advanced Corporate Reporting
- P2 Audit Practice & Assurance Services*
- P2 Advanced Taxation*
Exemptions from subjects examined at final examination level that are required for qualification as an auditor will not be granted, except where an applicant has passed the equivalent and final examinations of another RAB.
In circumstances where exemptions from certain CPA examinations (pre P2 level only) were granted as a student of CPA, the awarding of such exemptions will only be acceptable for audit qualification purposes when the following criteria are satisfied.
- The time period since the awarding of the previous qualification should not be greater than five years from the date of the award of the previous qualification to the date of the application for the exemption upon registration as a CPA student.
- The syllabus studied and examined (including consideration of the proficiency level, depth of coverage and number of learning hours) for the previous qualification should substantially match the topics which CPA Ireland (or another RAB) includes in its own syllabus for that subject, sufficient to satisfy CPA Ireland that the applicant should have attained the required learning outcomes for that subject.
- The awarding of the previous qualification should not have been based on the granting of substantial exemptions. A subject passed by compensation should not be considered eligible for exemption in respect of a Schedule 19 subject.
- The level of the previous qualification must be equivalent to university level in Ireland.
A previous qualification may be regarded as equivalent to university level in Ireland if it is, or forms part of, an award which is accredited at:
- level 7 or above on the National Framework of Qualifications in Ireland;
- level 6 or above on the Framework for Higher Education Qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland; or
- level 9 or above on the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework.
If you are considering making an application for audit qualification, please ensure that you take these changes into consideration. Further changes also apply to the required structure of a statutory audit firm, details of which can be found on the CPA website.
For further details please visit cpaireland.ie or contact Emer Kelly, Professional Standards Department at ekelly@cpaireland.ie .