Mandatory continuing education
Given the rapid pace and scope of changes to their profession, chartered accountants (CAs) must continually maintain, update, improve and enhance their knowledge and skills in areas in which they work.
In addition, since January 1, 2006, the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), a governing body for all chartered accountants, requires all professional accountants to devote a minimum of 120 hours per three-year period to continuing education. Consequently, the Ordre and the provincial institutes of chartered accountants have aligned their regulations with these requirements. In keeping with its mission to protect the public, the Ordre replaced its continuous learning policy with the Regulation respecting mandatory continuing education for Quebec chartered accountants, which requires each member to devote a minimum of 120 hours per three-year period to continuing education, with a minimum of 25 hours per year.
You can find various relevant statistics on mandatory continuing education by reading the section on the subject in our most recent annual report.
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Mandatory continuing education - Public accountancy
On June 4, 2009, the Office des professions adopted the Regulation respecting mandatory continuing education for Quebec chartered accountants who practice public accountancy. This new regulation applies for the three-year reference period extending from September 1, 2009 to August 31, 2012.
Under the new rules, chartered accountants who practice public accountancy are required to devote at least 60 hours per three-year reference period to structured continuing education activities in specific areas, namely financial reporting and updates of generally accepted audit and review standards, with a minimum of 15 hours per reference year. These requirements are part of the general requirements of the Regulation respecting mandatory continuing education for Quebec chartered accountants already in place, under which at least 120 hours per three-year period must be devoted to continuing education, with a minimum of 75 hours of structured activities.
| Notice |
| Additional content on mandatory continuing education - public accountancy is only available to the members of the Ordre des comptables agréés du Québec. Please click here to have access. |
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Continuing education report
Chartered accountants are invited to access their “File” to report their continuing education hours throughout the current year, but you must know that the deadline to complete the report is September 30 of each year.
Application for exemption
Applications for exemption, in particular for health reasons or because of parental leave, should be submitted by completing the "Application for exemption." CAs should only apply for an exemption if they can prove they are unable to participate in continuing education activities due to overwhelming circumstances.
Questions?
If you don’t find the answers to your questions in the FAQ, for members only, you may contact us by e-mail at declaration@ocaq.qc.ca.
