Exemptions
- The Taxation Institute of Hong Kong (the Institute) recognises different academic and professional qualifications which are of comparable standing to the Chartered Tax Adviser (CTA) Qualifying Examination (which is renamed from the Certified Tax Adviser (CTA) Qualifying Examination in 2021).
- The Institute started its accreditation exercise in 2018. Exemptions from the respective examination papers of the CTA Qualifying Examination may be granted, on the basis of successful completion of the relevant courses, to graduates of the accredited undergraduate or postgraduate programmes offered by the UGC-funded tertiary education institutions in Hong Kong.
- In any event, a candidate may in aggregate be granted exemption from a maximum of four papers, and no exemption may be granted from Paper 5 Advanced Taxation Practice.
- The Institute reserves the right on the final decision in granting exemptions from the CTA Qualifying Examination. Details of the exemptions are as follows:
| Professional Body | Required Membership | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Paper 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACCA | Members who have completed the ACCA Qualification exams | Exempted | Exempted | |
| Chartered Institute of Taxation | Members who have completed the ADIT exam, including the Hong Kong Tax module | Exempted | ||
| China Certified Tax Agents Association | Members who hold the China Certified Tax Agent qualification (中國註冊稅務師) | Exempted | Exempted | |
| Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants |
Members who hold the China Certified Public Accountant qualification (中國註冊會計師) | Exempted | Exempted | |
| CPA Australia | Members who have completed the CPA Programme | Exempted | ||
| Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants | Members who have completed the Qualification Programme or Practising Certificate Examinations (including the taxation module) | Exempted | Exempted | |
| The Hong Kong Chartered Governance Institute (Formerly known as “The Hong Kong Institute of Chartered Secretaries”) |
Members who have completed The Chartered Governance Qualifying Programme (including the Hong Kong Taxation subject) (Formerly known as the “International Qualifying Scheme”) | Exempted | Exempted |
Exemptions may also be granted to members of other professional bodies which are not on the list. Applicants will be requested to submit the relevant information for the Institute’s consideration.
Exemption may be granted, on the basis of successful completion of the relevant courses, to graduates of the following undergraduate programmes during the accreditation period. No exemption from Paper 3 International Tax and Paper 5 Advanced Taxation Practice may be granted.
| Programme | Accreditation Period | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Paper 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese University of Hong Kong | ||||
| BBA (Hons) in Professional Accountancy | 1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2025 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of ACCT3111 Financial Reporting I and ACCT3112 Financial Reporting II and FINA2010 Financial Management |
with completion of ACCT 3161 Taxation |
with completion of ACCT 4262 China Taxation |
||
| Hang Seng University of Hong Kong | ||||
| BBA (Hons) with Accounting Concentration [Retitled as BBA (Hons) in Professional Accountancy from 2019/20] | 1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2020 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACY3001 Intermediate Accounting 1 plus ACY3002 Intermediate Accounting 2 plus FIN2001 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACY3003 Hong Kong Taxation |
with completion of
ACY4010 PRC Taxation |
||
| BBA (Hons) in Corporate Governance and Compliance [Previous name: BBA (Hons) in Corporate Governance] | 1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2020 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACY3111 Corporate Accounting 1 plus ACY3112 Corporate Accounting 2 plus FIN2001 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACY3003 Hong Kong Taxation |
with completion of
ACY4010 PRC Taxation |
||
| BBA (Hons) in Professional Accountancy | 1 Jan 2023 –
31 Dec 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACY3001 Intermediate Accounting 1 plus ACY3002 Intermediate Accounting 2 plus ACY2001 Financial Accounting plus FIN2001 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACY3003 Hong Kong Taxation plus ACY4003 Advanced Taxation |
with completion of
ACY4010 PRC Taxation |
||
| BBA (Hons) in Corporate Governance and Compliance | 1 Jan 2023 –
31 Dec 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACY3111 Corporate Accounting 1 plus ACY3112 Corporate Accounting 2 plus ACY2001 Financial Accounting plus FIN2001 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACY3003 Hong Kong Taxation plus ACY4003 Advanced Taxation |
with completion of
ACY4010 PRC Taxation |
||
| Hong Kong Metropolitan University | ||||
| BBA (Hons) in Accounting
(part-time distance learning) |
1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2025 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
ACT B331 Company Accounting I plus ACT B332 Company Accounting II plus ACT B313 Management and Cost Accounting plus FIN B280 Introduction to Financial Management |
with completion of
ACT B414 Taxation I |
|||
| BBA (Hons) in Professional Accounting | 1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2025 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
ACT B331F Company Accounting I plus ACT B332F Company Accounting II plus ACT B313F Management and Cost Accounting plus FIN B280F Introduction to Financial Management |
with completion of
ACT B414F Taxation I |
|||
| BBA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance
(offered in Sep 2019, with first batch of students graduating in Jun 2021) |
1 Jan 2021 –
31 Dec 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
ACT B331F Company Accounting I plus ACT B332F Company Accounting II plus ACT B313F Management and Cost Accounting plus FIN B280F Introduction to Financial Management |
with completion of
ACT B414F Taxation I |
|||
| BBA (Hons) in Accounting and Taxation
(offered in Sep 2019, with first batch of students graduating in Jun 2021) |
1 Jun 2021 –
31 May 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACT B331F Company Accounting I plus ACT B332F Company Accounting II plus ACT B313F Management and Cost Accounting plus FIN B280F Introduction to Financial Management |
with completion of
ACT B414F Taxation I |
with completion of
ACT B419F PRC Tax |
||
| The Hong Kong Polytechnic University | ||||
| BBA (Hons) in Accountancy | 1 Jan 2019 –
31 Dec 2026 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
AF3110 Intermediate Accounting 1 plus AF3111 Intermediate Accounting 2 plus AF3313 Business Finance |
with completion of
AF3210 Hong Kong Tax Framework |
|||
| BBA (Hons) in Accounting and Finance | 1 Jan 2019 –
31 Dec 2026 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
AF3110 Intermediate Accounting 1 plus AF3111 Intermediate Accounting 2 plus AF3313 Business Finance |
with completion of
AF3210 Hong Kong Tax Framework |
|||
| Lingnan University | ||||
| BBA (Hons) – Accounting and Corporate Governance Major (Professional Accounting Concentration) [Previous name: BBA (Hons) – Accounting Stream] |
1 Jan 2019 –
31 Dec 2026 |
Exempted | Exempted | |
| with completion of
ACT2200 Intermediate Accounting I plus ACT2201 Intermediate Accounting II plus BUS2201 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACT3203 Taxation I (previous course name: Taxation I) |
|||
| Beijing Normal University & Hong Kong Baptist University United International College | ||||
| BBA in Accounting | 1 Jan 2022 – 31 Dec 2024 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACCT2003 Principles of Accounting I plus ACCT2013 Principles of Accounting II plus ACCT3033 Intermediate Accounting I plus ACCT3043 Intermediate Accounting II plus FIN2003 Financial Management |
with completion of
ACCT3023 Hong Kong Taxation |
with completion of
ACCT3083 Chinese Taxation Law |
||
| Programme | Accreditation Period | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Paper 3 | Paper 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese University of Hong Kong | |||||
| Master of Accountancy | 1 Jan 2018 –
31 Dec 2025 |
Exempted | Exempted | Exempted | Exempted |
| with completion of
ACCT5110 Financial Accounting & External Reporting plus FINA5010 Financial Management (previous course name: ACCT5180 Financial Management for Professional Accountants) |
with completion of
ACCT5160 Taxation & Tax Planning |
with completion of
ACCT6161 International Tax Planning & Management |
with completion of
ACCT6160 Taxation in China |
||
| Master of Laws in Chinese Business Law | 1 Jan 2020 –
31 Dec 2022 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of
LAWS6313 International Taxation |
|||||
| Master of Laws in Common Law | 1 Jan 2020 –
31 Dec 2022 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of
LAWS6313 International Taxation |
|||||
| Master of Laws in Energy and Environmental Law | 1 Jan 2020 –
31 Dec 2022 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of
LAWS6313 International Taxation |
|||||
| Master of Laws in International Economic Law | 1 Jan 2020 –
31 Dec 2022 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of
LAWS6313 International Taxation |
|||||
| Juris Doctor | 1 Jan 2020 –
31 Dec 2022 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of
LAWS6313 International Taxation |
|||||
| Lingnan University | |||||
| Master of Accountancy | 1 Jan 2021 –
31 Dec 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | ||
| with completion of Intermediate Accounting (pre-entry) plus ACT503 Cost and Management Accounting plus ACT504 Financial Accounting and Reporting plus ACT506 Managerial Finance |
with completion of ACT505 Hong Kong Taxation and Tax Planning |
||||
| Hong Kong Metropolitan University | |||||
| Master of Corporate Governance | 1 Jan 2022 – 31 Dec 2024 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of ACT B811F Financial Accounting and Taxation plus FIN B814F Corporate Finance and Risk Management |
|||||
| Master of Corporate Governance (part-time distance learning) | 1 Jan 2022 – 31 Dec 2024 |
Exempted | |||
| with completion of ACT B811 Financial Accounting and Taxation plus FIN B814 Corporate Finance and Risk Management |
|||||
| Master of Accountancy | 1 Jan 2023 – 31 Dec 2027 |
Exempted | Exempted | ||
| with completion of ACT B861F Financial Accounting for Corporations plus FIN B862F Treasury and Financial Management |
with completion of ACT864F Taxation Framework |
||||
| Condition / Programme | Paper 1 | Paper 2 | Paper 3 | Paper 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates who hold an accounting or a business related degree awarded by a recognised tertiary institution, with completion of accounting and finance modules of comparable standard in their study. | Exempted | |||
| Candidates who have completed a Conversion Programme accredited by the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants under their Qualification Programme; or a similar programme organised by other professional accountancy bodies of comparable standing. | Exempted | |||
| HKU School of Professional and Continuing Education | ||||
| Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting | Exempted | Exempted | ||
| School of Continuing and Professional Education, City University of Hong Kong | ||||
| Professional Diploma in Tax Advisory (previous programme name: Continuing Education Diploma in Tax Advisory) | Exempted | Exempted | ||
| Jinan University | ||||
| Master of Finance in Taxation | Exempted | Exempted | Exempted | |
| The Hong Kong Polytechnic University | ||||
| Master of Corporate Governance | Exempted | Exempted | ||
| Master of / Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Accounting | Exempted | Exempted | ||