MEMBERSHIP REGISTRATION

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Registration of a person as a professional accountant is governed by sections 24(1) and (1A) of the Professional Accountants Ordinance.

To apply for membership, an applicant should:

	have completed the Institute's Professional Examinations; OR have acquired the full membership status of an overseas accountancy body currently recognised by the Institute's Council through completion of its professional examinations AND have sat and passed the Institute's Aptitude Test on local law and practice;
	AND
	have acquired the specified practical experience (3 years for approved degree holders, 4 years for approved accountancy diploma holders and 5 years for holders of other academic qualifications).

Important Notice

New HKICPA Aptitude Test

The Council may grant exemptions from the examination requirement to a person who is a current member with full voting rights of an accountancy body accepted by the Council and has passed the professional examinations of that body.

IT IS IMPORTANT to note that with effect from 1 July 2003, current members of the following bodies seeking membership with the Institute are required to sit and pass an Aptitude Test, to ensure that they are conversant with local law and practice.

		American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (Qualifications awarded by the state board/Institute of accountancy in the United States are not accepted for membership admission purposes.)
		Association of International Accountants
		Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants
		Chartered Institute of Management Accountants
		Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy
		Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia
		Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales
		Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland
		Institute of Chartered Accountants of New Zealand (Only Chartered Accountants of the Institute who have completed the Institute's professional examinations are eligible for exemption from our examination requirement for membership purpose. Members from other Colleges are not accepted for the purpose.)
		Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland
		Institute of Chartered Accountants of Zimbabwe
		South African Institute of Chartered Accountants

Current members of the following bodies with which the Institute has entered into Mutual Recognition Agreements will not be required to attempt the Aptitude Test for the time being:

		Association of Chartered Certified Accountants
		CPA Australia
		(formerly the Australian Institute of Certified Practising Accountants)

New practical experience requirement

A new competency-based framework for practical experience to define more accurately the type of skills that individuals should acquire during the period of practical experience before becoming a member of the Institute has been adopted, on a voluntary basis, on 1 September 2002. Mandatory implementation will occur on 1 January 2005. The new framework will bring closer the relationship between prospective members, their supervisors, employers and the Institute under a supervised training environment. Please refer to the Prospective Members' Training Guidelines, Authorised Employers and Authorised Supervisors sections for more details.

[The above is only a brief summary of the qualifying requirements for membership. For registration or more details, please download an application Form R-3, Fee Schedule and application Submission Deadline or get them through our telephone hotline: (852) 2528 9000.]