Earning CPE credits. AICPA CPE | ACCA CPD | ICAI CPE | CPE courses

Earning CPE credits is essential to being a certified public accountant (CPA/ Chartered Accountant (CA), and many organizations offer them. In this blog post, we'll discuss how to earn credits from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in India (ICAI).

We'll also describe the CPE requirements from these organizations and how to earn CPE credits with certification courses. So read on to learn more about how you can stay current in your profession and maintain your certification.

What is continuing professional education in CPA/CA?

Continuing professional education (CPE) is synonymous with professional development. It can be defined as any learning activity undertaken to maintain, improve or broaden the knowledge and skills of practising accountants. The AICPA’s Professional Ethics Executive Committee has developed a definition of CPE that applies to activities that foster the professional competence of individual CPAs.

“Any accounting and non-accounting educational activity through which a CPA maintains, improves or broadens his or her knowledge and skills to provide quality services to clients and employers, meet their professional responsibilities, or fulfil the requirements for licensure or certification.”

AICPA CPE credits requirements

The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) overviews the requirements for CPE hours. In general, CPE hours are required to maintain licensure and must be completed on an ongoing basis. Specific requirements can vary by state, so it's essential to check with your local board of accountancy for the most up-to-date information. The AICPA also offers a variety of resources to help CPAs stay up-to-date on their continuing education needs.

In general to maintain your CPA license, you must complete 120 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) every three years. The AICPA offers a wide range of options for accounting professional to obtain the required CPE credits, including online and self-study courses, live seminars, and webinars.

ACCA CPD Requirements

The ACCA requires that its members complete a minimum of 40 hours of continuing professional development (CPD) each year.  Of these 40 hours, 21 must be verifiable and 19 must be interactive

This is designed to ensure that professionals remain up-to-date with the latest changes in their field, and help them maintain their expertise. In order to qualify for ACCA membership, candidates must demonstrate that they have completed this amount of CPD in the past year.

ICAI CPE Requirements

The Continuing Professional Education (CPE) requirements for the Institute of  Chartered Accountants in India (ICAI)  for CA's are as follows:

CPE Credit hours

Members holding Certificate of Practice: 120 hours over three years with a minimum of 20 in structure learning every year

Other members: 60 hours over three years with a minimum of 15 hours yearly.

Organized learning activities such as workshops, seminars, symposia, online courses etc., qualify for CPE credit. Self-study or reading books do not qualify for credits. 

How to get CPE credit?

One of the methods to earn CPE credits is by way of certifications. We list down some popular online CPE courses which can not only enhance your skill and give you a certification but also give you the valuable CPE/CPD  credits.

Certifications enhance your resume and make you more searchable with recruiters and employers.

All of these courses will give you a certification from AICPA and can be completed within 2-4 months.

These CPE certificate course are from AICPA and will get you CPE & NASBA credits. Students get a certificate of completion and the CPE credit upon passing the assessments with these courses.

International Accounting Standards Certifications

• IFRS certification - 28 credits
• US GAAP fundamentals - 16 credits
• Not for Profit Certification - 40 credits

Audit and Assurance certifications

• COSO Internal Control Certificate program -16 credits
• COSO Enterprise Risk Management certificate program - 13 credits
• Forensic accounting certification - 21 credits

Fintech certifications

• Blockchain Fundamentals for Finance - 12 credits
• Robotic Process Automation (RPA) for finance 16 credits

Data analytics certifications (total 61 CPE credits)

• Data Analytics Core Concepts - 8 credits
• Application of Data Analysis Essentials - 14 credits
• Data Analytics Modeling - 14 credits
• Forecasting and Predictive Analytics - 15 credits
• Data Visualization - 10 credits

TaxationU.S. International Tax Certificate - 50.5 credits

 Apart from these certification courses, AICPA has plenty of self study courses which can also get you the CPE credits.

Closing comments

To stay certified and current in your profession, it's important to earn CPE credits. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA), and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in India (ICAI) all offer different ways for you to do this.

We've described some certifications that can give you the CPE credit and enhance your resume. You can avail these AICPA certifications from us at India pricing. We offer a 45% to 50% discount on most AICPA certifications and courses. Contact our teams or WhatsApp us at +919643308079 to learn more.