Uniting the Accounting Profession
in New Brunswick
MARCH/APRIL 2013
Steering Committee
• Darrell Stewart, FCGA, President, Certified
General Accountants Association of New
Brunswick (CGA-NB)
• Pierre Doiron, FCGA, 1st Vice-President, CGA-NB
• Kim Embleton, CGA, 2nd Vice-President, CGA-NB
• Trudy Dryden, FCGA, Executive Director, CGA-NB
Agenda
• Overview of why the CGA-NB Board feels
unification of the accounting profession in NB
is in the best interests of members /public.
• Overview of what is occurring across Canada
• Details from the NB Unification Proposal
• Questions
Why Consider Unification in NB?
• CGAs, CAs and CMAs are increasingly moving
into the same practice areas but have
different qualifications and regulations
• Public confusion as to the differences between
the 3 designations
• Three governance structures in NB
…continued…
• Profession does not currently “speak with one
voice”
• Canadian accounting landscape changed when
Quebec accountants merged to become CPAs
• Need to ensure availability of member
services and education in French
• Need to ensure mobility of all professional
accountants across all provinces
Status of Unification Across Canada
• All accountants in Quebec are already CPAs.
(CPA = Chartered Professional Accountant)
• As of January 1, 2013, nationally the CAs and
CMAs have established CPA Canada
www.cpacanada.ca (40% of Canadian
accountants are already members)
• On January 15th, CPA Quebec and ICAO
formally joined CPA Canada as organizational
members (70,000 individual members)
Mergers in Transition stage or in
Consultative stage:
– BC (CAs, CMAs and CGAs)
– Alberta (CMAs, CGAs and CAs)
– Saskatchewan (CAs, CMAs and CGAs)
– Manitoba (CAs and CMAs)
– Ontario (CAs)
– Quebec (the CAs, CMAs and CGAs) - completed
– NS (CAs and CMAs)
– PEI (CAs and CMAs)
– NL (the CAs, CMAs and CGAs)
– Accurate as of March 14
CGA Canada’s Concerns
• Recent letter to CGA-NB members stated:
“As your provincial board considers this matter,
we encourage you to ask questions about how
this could impact you, your professional status
and your future career opportunities. Please
ensure that your respective board
organizations have considered the risks and
have mitigated them in your favour.”
We trust that after this session all your questions
will have been addressed satisfactorily.
NB Unification Proposal
• Made in NB Agreement
• Negotiated between CGA-NB, CMANB and
NBICA. All three boards/councils support it.
• CPA = Chartered Professional Accountant
• CGA –NB members will have the chance to
vote (online) from April 12-25, 2013
CPA – Proposed Details
• Vision of the CPA Designation: To be the preeminent, internationally recognized,
Canadian accounting designation and
business credential that best protects and
serves the public interest.
• Evolution to a single designation (continued
use of existing “legacy” designations is
allowed)
• New NB accountants will be CPAs starting in
2015
Underlying Principles:
• Legacy designations = CGA, CMA and CA
• No preference will be given to one legacy
designation over another
• No promotion of the legacy designations will
occur
• It is prohibited to suggest that one legacy
designation is better than another
• Existing rights of legacy members will be
honoured going forward
Governance
During the Transition Phase a 12 member CPA
NB Board is proposed:
• 3 members of the public – one chosen by
each legacy designation
• 3 CGA members
• 3 CA members
• 3 CMA members
• Legacy Boards/Councils and offices will
continue to exist but be winding down.
Student Education Principles
– As rigorous as legacy programs
– Meet, exceed all IFAC standards
– Meet, exceed requirements for current and
future MRAs
– Meet the needs of industry, government
and public practice
– New competency map
– Additional program for those who do not
wish to pursue full CPA
New CPA Education Program
• Combines the best of all three education
programs
• Bilingual – the French component will start 2015
• The first CPA PREP Program will be delivered in
NB beginning in the fall, 2013
• First CPA Exam will be offered in 2015.
• CGA-NB will assist current CGA students to
transition (or finish their CGA prior to 2015).
Use of “CPA” by Legacy Individuals
For 10 years legacy CGAs may use any of these:
• CPA, CGA
• Chartered Professional Accountant, CGA
• Chartered Professional Accountant, Certified
General Accountant
• Certified General Accountant or CGA
After 10 years, CPA can be used alone or you can
use just your legacy designation if you prefer.
(same rules apply to CAs and CMAs respectively)
Use of CPA designation by Firms
For 3 years firms may use the designation styles
listed previously for individuals or they may
use just CPA or Chartered Professional
Accountants. After 3 years firms use
Chartered Professional Accountant or CPA
only.
BUT once CPA legislation passes, any new firms
must sign all Assurance Reports as Chartered
Professional Accountant or CPA ONLY.
Professional Development (CPD)
• It will be prohibited to offer CPD courses for
only those holding one specific legacy
designation
• CPD standards will be the same for all CPAs
• CPA will strive for the highest standards for its
candidates and members
Administration and Support
• One CPA Member and Student Support
Services
• Provincial CPA dues will include your dues for
CPA Canada
• One CPA Regional (Atlantic) Education Delivery
Voting on the Unification Proposal
• On-Line voting will be open from April 12 (9
am) – April 25 (5 pm) – conducted by
Revolution Strategy
• CGA Members will receive an email on April
11th with a link to the voting site
• Members will be advised on the vote results
on or about April 30th
Position of CMAs and CAs in NB
• CA and CMA Council Members fully support
Unification
• Steering Committee comprised of the 3 bodies
has worked well together
• Each NB accounting body will be asking their
members to vote – question will be the same
Questions?