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 play various functions. They may work as chief operations officers, chief executive officers or even as heads of financial departments subject to their business practice and knowledge. In the delivery of their services, they ensure adherence to generally accepted accounting principles which are applicable. Their primary roles entail financial audit services or what is commonly referred to as assurance services.
Accountants may opt to be business consultants. However this line of work limits the scope of jobs an individual can do since professional standards and the law provide that those people carrying out business audits must maintain a certain level of independence from those an attestation is being carried on. Therefore most accountants who are consultants are bound not to provide auditing services.
Certified public accountants, whether employed in public or private institutions, operate in virtually all fields of finance. They may include areas such as financial analysis, cooperate finance, financial planning, tax preparation and planning, assurance and attestation services, management consulting, forensic accounting (analyzes matters like tax evasion, embezzlement, securities fraud and money laundering), financial reporting, venture capital, estate planning, regulatory reporting, environmental accounting (deals with matters of environmental disputes, monitoring green initiatives, noting compliance audits) information technology( combines aspects of accounting and IT. It deals with activities like checking systems to ascertain accuracy, security and compliance with set regulations)The examination CPAs sit for is the same in many parts of the world although other requirements for one to be certified may vary from country to country. In United States, besides a pass in examinations, different states have the prerogative to set requirements an applicant has to meet before one can be certified as an accountant. These are normally captured in the law or regulations provided by accounting bodies in those particular states.
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.
Examinations for those seeking to be CPAs are divided into four; Regulation(examines candidates on tax ethics business law, federal procedures and state procedures, general business law and much more) Financial accounting and reporting, Business environment and concepts(entails matters of corporate governance, information systems a and strategic planning) and finally audit and attestation(covers topics like evaluating evidence, professional responsibilities, communicating audit findings, ethics and performing audits). Though aspects of the examination may be different in different countries, these remain the primary areas of examination.
Before one is licensed as an accountant with CPA, he or she has sit a special examination based on ethics. It lays emphasis on professional ethics and laws governing 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 play various functions. They may work as chief operations officers, chief executive officers or even as heads of financial departments subject to their business practice and knowledge. In the delivery of their services, they ensure adherence to generally accepted accounting principles which are applicable. Their primary roles entail financial audit services or what is commonly referred to as assurance services.
Accountants may opt to be business consultants. However this line of work limits the scope of jobs an individual can do since professional standards and the law provide that those people carrying out business audits must maintain a certain level of independence from those an attestation is being carried on. Therefore most accountants who are consultants are bound not to provide auditing services.
Certified public accountants, whether employed in public or private institutions, operate in virtually all fields of finance. They may include areas such as financial analysis, cooperate finance, financial planning, tax preparation and planning, assurance and attestation services, management consulting, forensic accounting (analyzes matters like tax evasion, embezzlement, securities fraud and money laundering), financial reporting, venture capital, estate planning, regulatory reporting, environmental accounting (deals with matters of environmental disputes, monitoring green initiatives, noting compliance audits) information technology( combines aspects of accounting and IT. It deals with activities like checking systems to ascertain accuracy, security and compliance with set regulations)The examination CPAs sit for is the same in many parts of the world although other requirements for one to be certified may vary from country to country. In United States, besides a pass in examinations, different states have the prerogative to set requirements an applicant has to meet before one can be certified as an accountant. These are normally captured in the law or regulations provided by accounting bodies in those particular states.
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.
Examinations for those seeking to be CPAs are divided into four; Regulation(examines candidates on tax ethics business law, federal procedures and state procedures, general business law and much more) Financial accounting and reporting, Business environment and concepts(entails matters of corporate governance, information systems a and strategic planning) and finally audit and attestation(covers topics like evaluating evidence, professional responsibilities, communicating audit findings, ethics and performing audits). Though aspects of the examination may be different in different countries, these remain the primary areas of examination.
Before one is licensed as an accountant with CPA, he or she has sit a special examination based on ethics. It lays emphasis on professional ethics and laws governing professional practice.
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