Different countries have various designations for individuals qualified as public accountants.CPA is a title used for local public accountants. In the US, for an individual to be a CPA accountant, he or she ought to have passed a certified public accountant examination which is normally uniform in all states. This has to be accompanied by experience and then proper levels of education required to be a certified public accountant.
However, in the United States, individuals are prohibited from using the designation CPA if they are not certified in that particular state. Therefore the use of that particular designation is restricted the state it was obtained until an out of state CPA acquires a license in the new state. There are other designations used to refer to lower tier accountants such as LPA (licensed public accountants) PA (public accountants).
CPAs are capable of working both in the private as well as public sector. They may occupy various offices such as heads of financial departments, chief executive officers or even as chief financing officers based on their knowledge and practice in business. When delivering their services, adherence to applicable accounting principles is an important consideration.
Some accountants work as business consultants though in most countries, those accountants carrying out audits are required by the law and by professional standards to ensure a certain degree of independence from the entity they are having an attestation engagement. For this reason, most of those working as consultants are not auditors.
Though CPA examinations may be the same for all students in the country, in others like the US, state governments greatly influence the licensing and certification since they hold the final verdict on the various licensing requirements that are outlined in the laws enacted by the state.
The state set requirements can be generalized as being education, experience and a qualification in the uniform certified public accountants examination . Some of the requirements such as the minimum education levels are met as an individual seeks to meet the eligibility criteria for the examination. Requisite experience is normally the last hurdle an accountant has to overcome in order to be certified.
Accounting examinations have four main parts; audit and attestation( covers topics such as communicating audit findings, evaluating evidence, ethics, professional responsibilities, performing and audits)Regulation(tests candidates on business law, federal tax procedures, tax ethics business law and more) Business Environment and Concepts (deals with things like information systems, strategic planning and corporate governance.) and financial accounting and reporting. Though a number of aspects of this examination may vary depending on the country, the examination is principally based on these areas.
An ethics examination is mandatory before one is certified. It tests the individuals understanding of professional ethics and the laws and rules set to guide professional practice.
However, in the United States, individuals are prohibited from using the designation CPA if they are not certified in that particular state. Therefore the use of that particular designation is restricted the state it was obtained until an out of state CPA acquires a license in the new state. There are other designations used to refer to lower tier accountants such as LPA (licensed public accountants) PA (public accountants).
CPAs are capable of working both in the private as well as public sector. They may occupy various offices such as heads of financial departments, chief executive officers or even as chief financing officers based on their knowledge and practice in business. When delivering their services, adherence to applicable accounting principles is an important consideration.
Some accountants work as business consultants though in most countries, those accountants carrying out audits are required by the law and by professional standards to ensure a certain degree of independence from the entity they are having an attestation engagement. For this reason, most of those working as consultants are not auditors.
Though CPA examinations may be the same for all students in the country, in others like the US, state governments greatly influence the licensing and certification since they hold the final verdict on the various licensing requirements that are outlined in the laws enacted by the state.
The state set requirements can be generalized as being education, experience and a qualification in the uniform certified public accountants examination . Some of the requirements such as the minimum education levels are met as an individual seeks to meet the eligibility criteria for the examination. Requisite experience is normally the last hurdle an accountant has to overcome in order to be certified.
Accounting examinations have four main parts; audit and attestation( covers topics such as communicating audit findings, evaluating evidence, ethics, professional responsibilities, performing and audits)Regulation(tests candidates on business law, federal tax procedures, tax ethics business law and more) Business Environment and Concepts (deals with things like information systems, strategic planning and corporate governance.) and financial accounting and reporting. Though a number of aspects of this examination may vary depending on the country, the examination is principally based on these areas.
An ethics examination is mandatory before one is certified. It tests the individuals understanding of professional ethics and the laws and rules set to guide professional practice.
No comments:
Post a Comment