- A CTA is required, during a year, to attend recognised activities (such as seminars and workshops etc.) in person to obtain a total of 15 CPD hours, of which at least 8 CPD hours should be on tax-related topics. Seminars which are not tax related must be in respect of topics on accounting, finance, marketing, business, law or professional development.
- A year is meant to be from 1 December of a calendar year to 30 November of the next calendar year.
- Whether a seminar is accepted as a recognised activity will be at the sole discretion of the Council of the Institute. The Council accepts, as a recognised activity, an accredited or recognised seminar organised by the Institute and accredited bodies. The accredited bodies include Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (“HKICPA”), Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries (“HKICS”), the Hong Kong Branch of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (“ACCA”), Hong Kong Bar Association, Law Society of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Branch of CPA (Australia), The Society of Chinese Accountants and Auditors (“SCAA”), the Hong Kong Branch of Association of International Accountants (“AIA”) and such other professional bodies accredited by the Institute from time to time. In-house training is also acceptable provided that the CTA is able to provide objective verification by an independent source. For more details, please refer to the Institute’s website: www.tihk.org.hk/v2/cta/cpd_requirement_faq.
- Reading journals, newspapers or other materials will not be accepted as attending recognised activities to obtain CPD hours, and no CPD hour will be recognised by taking such activities for the purpose of renewal of a CTA certificate.
- CPD hours obtained by attending activities in a year will not be acceptable for the purpose of renewal of a CTA certificate in future years. In simple words, there is no carry forward of CPD hours.
- A CTA should keep records of completion of the recognised activities which were organised by accredited bodies as those records may be required to be produced by the CTA for the purpose of verification of the recognised activities attended and CPD hours obtained. The period of retention of these records by the CTA should be three (3) years from the date of the recognised activities.Regulations
- Any CTA who fails to submit the declaration form, or fails to obtain the required number of CPD hours in person by attending recognised activities in a year, or fails to produce upon request by the Institute records for verification purpose prior to, or for the purpose of, renewal of a CTA certificate, will not be issued a new CTA certificate. Any CTA certificate issued upon receipt of and/or resulting from misleading, incorrect or false information will be cancelled upon resolution of the Disciplinary Bodies of the Institute; and any fee paid in respect of such CTA certificate will not be refunded. Any CTA, who without reasonable excuse has submitted misleading, incorrect or false information for the purpose of renewal of a CTA certificate, will be subject to disciplinary action(s) upon resolution of the Disciplinary Bodies of the Institute.
- A CTA is requested to submit the CPD declaration form online or in hard copy on or before February in next calendar year, exact date will be announced in due course.
- Starting from 1 January 2020, all CTAs who are in public practice are required to be covered by Professional Indemnity Insurance (PII), unless they are exempt because their liabilities have already been covered by PII obtained in their other professional capacity such as accountant, solicitor or barrister etc. Employees should be covered by that of their firm. The minimum coverage of insurance should be one million Hong Kong dollars (HK$1,000,000). CTAs who have yet to be covered by PII should take care of this matter during the transition period (Year 2019). Non-practising CTAs shall not have this PII requirement.
1. If I decide to attend a seminar organised by another professional body, shall I apply for pre-approval by the Institute?
Ans:
The Institute does not have a pre-approval mechanism. The Council accepts, as a recognised activity, an accredited or recognised seminar organised by the Institute and accredited bodies. Please refer to Regulation 3 of the CPD Regulations for the list of accredited bodies.
2. If I attend a seminar organised by a professional organisation (such as SCAA), will it be recognised as a CPD seminar?
Ans:
Yes. According to Regulation 3 of the CPD Regulations, a seminar will be accepted as a recognised seminar if it is an accredited or a recognised seminar organised by accredited bodies (please refer to Regulation 3 for the list of accredited bodies). Therefore, a seminar organised by a professional organisation (such as SCAA) will be accepted by the Institute.
3. Will an electronic seminar be recognised?
Ans:
A relevant electronic seminar is recognised if the seminar is organised or recognised by the Institute and accredited bodies. Please refer to Regulation 3 of the CPD Regulations for the list of accredited bodies.
4. I take up the post as a workshop facilitator/speaker of a seminar, can I claim CPD hours?
Ans:
Yes, facilitators, speakers, or moderators of recognised CPD seminars will earn the same number of CPD hours as those members attending the seminars.
5. My firm/company will organise an in-house training course or seminar for the staff members. Can it be recognised as a CPD seminar?
Ans:
In-house training course or seminar is also acceptable provided that it is a relevant CPD activity and you are able to provide objective verification by an independent source.
6. I am studying in a university for a Master’s Degree/MBA programme. Can this be counted as recognised CPD hours?
Ans:
Yes, if the degree course or programme is a relevant academic course or programme recognised by the Institute or any other accredited body for CPD hour purposes.
7. I obtained 20 recognised CPD hours for the year 2019-20 during 1 December 2019 to 30 November 2020. Can I carry forward 5 CPD hours to 2020-21?
Ans:
No, the 5 CPD hours obtained in 2019-20 cannot be carried forward to 2020-21. Recognised CPD hours obtained in a year will not be accepted for the purpose of renewal of a CTA certificate in future years.
8. I obtained 5 recognised CPD hours for the year 2019-20 during 1 December 2019 to 30 November 2020. I obtained another 10 recognised CPD hours during 1 December 2020 to 31 May 2021 and therefore had fulfilled the CPD requirements for 2019-20. Can the 10 recognised CPD hours obtained during the extended period from 1 December 2020 to 31 May 2021 be counted as recognised CPD hours for 2020-21?
Ans:
No, recognised CPD hours accepted in any one year (2019-20 in this case) will not be accepted again for the purpose of renewal of a CTA certificate in another year (2020-21 in this case).
9. Is there any annual audit exercise on a CTA’s annual CPD declaration? Who will be selected for this audit exercise?
Ans:
The Institute is committed to ensuring that the highest professional and ethical standards are continually adhered to, safe guarding both the Institute’s reputation and yours. Every year the Continuing Professional Development Committee of the Institute conducts a CPD audit exercise on a certain percentage of the CTAs’ annual CPD declarations. A random sample is generated by computer. CTAs selected for audit are required to submit to the Institute their CPD records of the relevant reporting year with documentation to support attendance or completion of the CPD activities as stated in their CPD records.
10. Am I required, in submitting the CPD declaration form, to submit evidence of seminar attendance as mentioned in Regulation 7, and how long do I need to keep these records?
Ans:
No, you are only required to provide evidence of seminar attendance if you are selected for the CPD audit. You are required to maintain records and documentary evidence of your recognised CPD hours for three years from the date of the recognised activities.
12. What is the consequence if I cannot fulfill the CPD requirements?
Ans:
If a CTA cannot obtain the required recognised CPD hours during the year (which runs from 1 December of a calendar year to 30 November of the next calendar year), he will be granted a further period to 31 May of the next calendar year to obtain the required hours. Failure to fulfill the CPD requirements constitutes a breach of the CPD Regulations which will be transferred to the Investigation Group of the Institute’s Disciplinary Bodies for consideration, and the CTA may be removed from the CTA Register. Please also see Regulation 7 of the CPD Regulations.