STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
email your feedback
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
7
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
9
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
11
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
13
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
15
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
17
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Read full text >> Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
Read full text >>
Read full text >> 19
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
21
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
23
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
25
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
27
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
29
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
31
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
33
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
35
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
37
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
39
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
41
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
43
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
45
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
47
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
49
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
51
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
53
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
55
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
57
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
59
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
31
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
63
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
65
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
67
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
69
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
71
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
73
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
75
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
77
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
79
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
81
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Read full text >>
Read full text >> Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
83
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
85
STUDENT ACCOUNTANT
ACCA’S MAGAZINE FOR TRAINEES
Student Accountant | OCTOBER 2012
email your feedback
SA Strikers at Lonmin’s Marikana mine in South Africa cut their basic wage demand to below 11,000 rand (US$1,300) a month to try to end deadly clashes
INDIA
US
CHINA
US
McDonald’s will open a meat-free restaurant in India next year, near the Golden Temple in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar
Ernst & Young became an official partner to the 2012 Ryder Cup team and the 2014 Ryder Cup. José María Olazábal of Spain is the current European team captain
A woman displays paper-cut figures of Chinese communist leaders, including outgoing president Hu Jintao. China’s ruling Communist Party recently announced a reshuffle to a key post ahead of a oncea-decade leadership transition later this year
Reporters quiz a lawyer for Apple outside court following its successful court case against Samsung Electronics. Apple was awarded US$1.05bn for infringement of patents
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
US Sailboat Caribe is dropped into a car park by Hurricane Isaac, which killed seven people in the US << Back to page
SINGAPORE UK
US
HONG KONG
Schoolchildren scream as they see a truck carrying two giant pandas into Singapore Zoo. Jia Jia and Kai Kai arrived from China on a 10-year loan
Ugandan runner Stephen Kiprotich won the Olympic men’s marathon, bringing his country its first gold medal in 40 years
Incumbent US presidential candidate Barack Obama shakes hands with supporters while campaigning in Florida
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
Volunteers from Ecovision clean up Big Wave Bay Beach after millions of plastic pellets were washed ashore from a ship during Hong Kong’s worst typhoon in 13 years
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
CFOs FOR HARMONISATION
JOB OPPORTUNITIES RISE
The move towards global tax harmonisation is achievable and desirable, according to a survey of CFOs conducted by advisory firm Taxand. Some 67% of European multinationals support global tax harmonisation, while 71% believe it could happen within 10 years. However, CFOs think it is wrong to look to tax policy to resolve the financial crisis, with 76% rejecting that as a solution. Almost eight out of 10 CFOs surveyed reported being subject to increasingly tough tax audits as tax authorities seek to raise more revenues.
Job advertisements are on the rise across Asia, according to the Robert Walters Asia Job Index for Q2 2012. Research by the recruitment agency tracks professional positions vacant across the leading job boards and national newspapers in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, China, South Korea and Japan. It found levels of job advertisements increased by 11.8% across the region in Q2, representing year-on-year regional growth of 7.5%. Advertisement levels for accountancy and finance professionals were up in Singapore, Hong Kong, China and Korea, reflecting the ongoing demand for higher standards of regulatory reporting in the region, the firm said.
WHISTLEBLOWER AWARDED The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has agreed to pay nearly US$50,000 to a whistleblower whose actions put a stop to a multi-million-dollar fraud. The payment is the first in a new SEC programme, where awards can be made of up to 30% of the proceeds collected in a related SEC enforcement action. ‘The whistleblower programme is already becoming a success,’ said SEC chairman Mary L Schapiro. ‘We’re seeing high-quality tips that are saving our investigators substantial time and resources.’
EY FACES DISCLOSURE ACTION Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is attempting to force Ernst & Young to reveal its accounting records on a former China-based client. EY carried out initial public offering (IPO) audit work for Standard Water in 2009 and resigned in 2010 without issuing an accountant’s report. The firm says that if it complies it could be in violation of state secrecy laws. EY said: ‘We understand our obligations to the SFC and endeavour to fully comply, while also meeting our compliance obligations with mainland China’s laws and regulations. Ernst & Young supports close working relationships between Hong Kong and mainland China audit regulators on matters of public interest.’ << Back to page
UK AUDIT EXEMPTION BOOSTED From this month, more than 100,000 small firms will be exempted from the statutory audit requirement, under regulatory changes announced by UK business secretary Vince Cable. Another 83,000 subsidiary companies will be spared an audit where their parent company guarantees liabilities, while 67,000 dormant subsidiary companies will not have to prepare and file accounts if they have similar guarantees. ‘Reporting requirements have become increasingly demanding and costly over the years,’ Cable said. ‘We listened to business, who made a strong case for reform.’ The move brings the audit exemption criteria for UK small companies into line with accounting exemptions. << Back to page
Standard Chartered investigations continue
Apple takes a bite out of Samsung
It was alleged the bank agreed to ‘strip’ information ‘concerning the originators and beneficiaries of over 60,000 wire transfer transactions from the electronic system the banks utilise to conduct wire transfers’. As a result, the bank ‘endeavoured to conceal from regulators, criminal authorities and Iran’s judgment creditors the participation of Iran and its agencies’.
the sale price of its products for the standards-essential patents alone. Apple said this would be the equivalent of approximately $14.40 per unit, based on the average selling price of an iPhone.
Standard Chartered decided to settle for $340m, the day before it was to defend its right to operate in the state – the biggest ever amount paid to a
single regulator as part of a money laundering accord. In June, ING Bank NV agreed to pay $619m to settle similar allegations. That sum was shared between the federal government and the Manhattan District Attorney. As part of the settlement, New York said Standard Chartered had agreed to install an independent on-site monitor for at least two years who will report directly to regulators. Examiners from the DFS will also be placed at the bank. << Back to page
It is unusual for patent disputes to produce clean victories, but in this case the outcome was emphatic. Apple won on almost every count it claimed, leaving Samsung defeated and having to pay $1bn court costs and damages. While the financial aspect won’t worry Samsung too much, the damage to its reputation could be substantial. Apple can portray its rival as a looter of intellectual property and a company without original ideas of its own. The US-based company will be hopeful the decision has put self‑doubt into the minds of every industrial designer and
software engineer competing in the smartphone and tablet business. Apple’s biggest rival here is Google, whose Android software Samsung used to build its phones. Famously, Apple’s late CEO Steve Jobs declared Android a ‘stolen product’ and vowed to ‘destroy’ it by going to ‘thermonuclear war on this’ – but Apple can only go after the handset makers that implement Android rather than the creators themselves. It remains to be seen whether Google, whose Motorola subsidiary has filed a fresh series of patent infringement claims against Apple – claims that could halt sales of the iPhone and iPad, if upheld – can manage to drive the war to a settlement. Meanwhile, Apple is likely to be on the hunt for an alternative components supplier. << Back to page
ASIA CATCHES EURO SICKNESS Economic Outlook, which offers a near-term outlook for China, India, Singapore and Thailand. Singapore’s economy contracted by 1.1% over the same period due chiefly to a 6% fall in manufacturing output. Deloitte believes Singapore’s growth for the entire year is expected to decline and prospects for its economy hinge precariously on the turn of events in the global economy. ‘If Europe’s debt crisis escalates, Singapore may experience a severe credit crunch and growth projections may be lowered considerably,’ the firm predicts. India is expected to suffer a slump in growth this year, with the Asian Development Bank projecting the country’s annual GDP to moderate to 6.5%
in 2012, down from an initial estimate of 7%. The government reported the slowest pace of growth in the first three months of the year for nine years – up 5.3%, but well below the 8% level of recent years. The country’s fiscal deficit, a weakening rupee and feeble growth in the agricultural sector are contributing to the country’s economic slowdown. Thailand has seen its GDP growth bounce back to positive territory this year, but downside risks persist. Deloitte says: ‘Thailand’s reliance on export-led growth makes its economy vulnerable to a deteriorating global macroeconomic environment.’
Aside from suffering weak exports, top economies in the region are also seeing retail sales drop. In Hong Kong, revenue between January and May was 13.5% up year-on-year, a slowdown from the 24.9% annual growth posted 12 months earlier. Many analysts believe the country has already moved into recession. Domestic issues have also weighed heavily on Asian economies. Japan is still recovering from last year’s earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent nuclear disaster. The country has also suffered deflation for over a decade and increasing numbers of companies are relocating overseas. << Back to page
PO 11:
Interpret financial transactions and financial statements Professionally qualified accountants must be able to do more than simply post transactions correctly and prepare accurate financial statements – intelligent analysis and interpretation of these, with a view to reaching, presenting and explaining a valid conclusion, is just as necessary. Whether you are dealing with company-wide financial information or data and records from specific divisions, sites or accounting periods, it is likely that you will also be required to identify and investigate unusual or alarming indicators, make deductions based on how different aspects of financial reports interrelate, and suggest reasons for certain financial results or trends reflected in the figures. End users of financial statements – whether internal or external – need to be confident they can make sound, informed decisions based on the information with which they are presented. To effectively demonstrate your competency, you might:
• calculate and interpret ratios for meaningful comparison of year-on-
year figures or benchmarking against relevant departments of industry competitors – for instance, to evaluate profitability, efficiency or investor yield
• analyse and draw conclusions from inventory levels, revenue figures and balance sheets
• identify trends and use your knowledge of the business and industry
sector to raise issues management may want to address (eg common features of under-performing or significantly over-performing profit centres)
• meet with external clients or internal stakeholders to present and discuss your findings. The next step is to answer the challenge questions for this objective:
• Outline your contribution to interpreting financial transactions or financial
statements. State your individual responsibility within the context of the team or overall process – who uses the information you prepare, and for what purpose? What were you asked to do – and how might you have exceeded the demands made on you in a positive way?
• How has this interpretation helped your department or organisation? Provide
examples of decisions or recommendations that have arisen from your findings, made by you, your colleagues or management. Consider the impact of those decisions or recommendations – such as saving costs, improving cash flow, generating extra revenue or securing investment
• What business decisions have or could be made based on this interpretation?
These could include new capital purchases, piloting new products or services, opening new sites/branches (or even closure of sites or lines of business) or calculation of commission payments to sales and business development staff. Also relevant would be instructions to keep a watching brief on specific trends where you may have identified potential threats or opportunities but which need observation over a longer period before any decisions might be taken.
PO 11 is linked to Paper F3, Financial Accounting, Paper F7, Financial Reporting, and Paper P2, Corporate Reporting.
<< Back to page
PO 12:
prepare financial information for management It is not just project accountants who deal with projects. Because professional accountants find their skills and knowledge called on to help achieve wider organisational goals, it is likely that you will be involved in a variety of one-off assignments, either on your own or as part of a team (which could be crossfunctional or cross-disciplinary). This applies whether information is historic or forward-looking; in addition, supporting advice or documentation must be succinct, decisive and free of unnecessary jargon. To perform effectively, trainees will need to be able to collect and collate specific data as instructed by management, or work from a less defined brief and decide for themselves what data will be relevant, while identifying the most relevant statistical or modelling techniques to prepare the information. Where doubts over completeness, accuracy or validity of data exist, they will have to investigate accordingly, identifying and rigorously checking the sources of relevant information. The information they subsequently prepare may be used to identify businesscritical financial drivers, assess individual or team performances or highlight areas of concern. Trainees must therefore be able to present their reports in formats management can trust, understand and engage in – especially those who may be less familiar with financial information or terminology. To effectively demonstrate their competency, trainees might:
• prepare regular management accounts, demonstrating their grasp of how these can assist with decision making
• analyse performance against key performance indicators (KPIs) or produce a cost-benefit analysis
• analyse data to alert management of potential business risks requiring
• prepare specific reports that allow management to identify how ongoing
business activities or one-off projects are helping to meet organisational goals.
The next step is for trainees to answer the challenge questions for this objective:
• Trainees should explain their role in preparing financial information for
management – they should explain what data they are expected to collect; how often; for what specific purposes; who or what do they rely on for sourcing relevant information – list any checks that are required (or which, using their own initiative, they’ve instigated themselves) to perform before using or forwarding data
• Trainees should identify some examples where they have had to investigate the information to ensure its validity and why this had to be done
– these might include figures that markedly go against expected trends, or which highlight a potential financial wrongdoing – say how they explained the outcome of their investigation to management (eg justifying such exceptions or confirming misdeed or misconduct)
• Trainees should explain how in their role they have personally improved the
quality of information they provide for management use – they should consider times when they may have challenged the norm, such as refining report formats, expanding or reducing the scope of data in a report, or introducing new comparisons between related reports – and how management has been better equipped to make decisions as a result.
PO 12 is linked to Paper F2, Management Accounting, Paper F5, Performance Management, and Paper P5, Advanced Performance Management.
mitigation
<< Back to page
PO 13:
Contribute to budget planning and production Budgeting is a critical process for any organisation, large and small, and in almost every department, whether spending or revenue-generating. And accountants play an important role in planning and producing budgets. Alongside making reasoned, often complex calculations and informed forecasts to help ensure organisations and departments can effectively plan, budgeting responsibilities may be just as likely to involve communication, negotiation and even conflict resolution. Effective budget planning starts with supplying sufficient and correct information for creating detailed and accurate budgets and cashflow forecasts, as well as understanding the wider impact of those forecasts. Once budgets have been agreed, they will need to be communicated with stakeholders, from colleagues tracking sales revenues to department heads who authorise expenditure. And when the accounting period is under way, the budgets will need to be kept under review, where necessary updating or adjusting in the context of changes to the organisation or the markets in which it operates. You will need to call on your knowledge and understanding of performance measurement and management accounting skills to identify, describe, calculate and forecast business costs and revenues and their behaviour, and to plan, monitor, and control the use of business and financial resources. Examples of relevant activities for demonstrating your competence might include:
• contributing to budget meetings, from preparation work, such as analysis of relevant figures from previous periods, to follow-up actions, such as chasing data from other teams or delivering new budgetary messages to colleagues
• devising plans for budget preparation, from analysis of existing information,
through taking stock of current circumstances, to collecting data on a timely basis
• preparing forecasts, balancing the optimism of sales managers with rational, evidence-based calculations, and allowing for sensitivity to sudden or unexpectedly dramatic changes.
The next step is to answer the challenge questions for this objective:
• Describe how you have been involved in budget planning and production. • How do your budgeting responsibilities follow on from others? What happens with the work you produce?
• Who must you communicate with, and what information must you convey? What data must you use, where do you get this from?
• Explain, having developed the budget, how you have made sure that it has been implemented correctly.
• Think about instructions or guidelines that need to be provided to end users, and how they will seek clarifications or further help.
• What steps have you or your team taken to ensure that budgets are monitored appropriately?
• What would be the impact on your department or organisation if the budgets you supplied were not properly prepared?
• Consider not just the effects of over-expenditure by spending departments, but also the impact on financial performance, should adherence to incorrect sales budgets result in falling revenues being masked or cash positions being artificially inflated.
• How might confidence in you and your team be impacted if budgets are ill-
prepared? For instance, if department heads observe budgetary constraints – only to discover they were working under false pretences – how would that affect their willingness to cooperate in future, especially if an indirect result was a fall in sales and/or individual sales commissions?
PO 13 is linked to Paper F2, Management Accounting, Paper F5, Performance Management, and Paper P5, Advanced Performance Management.
<< Back to page
GLOBAL PRIZEWINNERS
P1 AKOSUA FREMPONG-KORE ‘Cover all your bases and learn everything. In the exam, read and understand the question thoroughly and write really fast!’
P1
<< Back to page
F4 ANAM SAMI ‘Try to get familiar with the exam structure as early F4 as possible. Once you are familiar with the syllabus, try working out past questions under exam conditions.’
P2 SAM WILLOUGHBY ‘Always have a decent breakfast on the day!’
P2
<< Back to page
<< Back to page P3 CRAIG IVEY
F5 OLEKSANDR Iatsyshyn ‘If you find the subject interesting, the exam will be easier for you.’
‘Complete as many mock questions as P3 possible under full exam conditions and by reading technical articles.’
F5
<< Back to page
<< Back to page F6 SINEAD BUCKLEY ‘Practise as many questions as possible before the exam and time yourself doing them.’
<< Back to page
F7 ERIC PHUA ‘Having an ultimate focus is a very F7 powerful thing. Conquer your thoughts and allow nothing to distract your attention or sway your concentration.’
<< Back to page
F8 NATALIE ESSEX F6
‘Practise as many questions from past papers as possible before the actual exam. I think this enables you to get a feel for the exam and understand the time pressure you will face.’
P5 HEIDI MONAHAN ‘Work continuously and complete all the questions in the exam kits – cramming is not an option!’
P5
<< Back to page
P6 ANDREW SAWICKI ‘Identify any weaknesses in your knowledge at an early stage so that you can focus your study to improve your understanding in these areas.’
<< Back to page
‘Question practice is the key to success.’
F9 Saba Fatima
<< Back to page
<< Back to page
P7 LOUISA MACKAY
<< Back to page
‘Aim for the maximum possible marks rather than simply achieving a pass.’
P4 JASMINE SIN ‘Planning an exam P4 preparation timetable is important in ensuring that you study all syllabus areas. Before I head off to an exam, I flip through my notes (reading bold or highlighted main points) to refresh my understanding.’
P7
<< Back to page F9
FEES Annual subscription – 2012 Please note that, as a student, you are required to pay an annual subscription for each year you are registered with ACCA. The following fees and subscriptions apply: ACCA Qualification students • Initial registration £77 *£77 • Re-registration • Annual subscription £77 *plus unpaid fee(s) Foundation students students Foundationslevel in Accountancy • Initial registration £77 £77 • Subscription
<< Back to page
RECENT PROCEEDINGS
ACCA STUDENTS GO ONLINE
Thirteen students were removed from the register and 17 were ordered to pay more than £13,500 in costs after 27 professional misconduct allegations were proven before the disciplinary committee
ACCA rolls out web-based system for exam results and other student services
Between 3 May and 5 July 2012, 17 students faced 27 allegations in front of the disciplinary committee. Of these, 23 allegations were found proven, leading to 13 students being removed from the register and the ordering of combined costs of £13,573. The highest individual cost was £1,450 for two proven allegations of submitting false exam results to an employer and failure to cooperate with the investigating officer during the course of the investigation. The most frequent offences were the use of, or intention to use, unauthorised materials in an exam, and the possession of unauthorised material in an exam. The disciplinary committee deals with any disciplinary matters referred to it by an independent assessor, following an investigation by ACCA of an allegation against a student, member or firm. This measure helps to uphold the high professional standards and ethics of ACCA. Nicole Ziman, ACCA director – professional conduct, says these hearings highlight the importance of ethics and professionalism, and that those who do not meet ACCA’s standards will face consequences: ‘Any members and students who do not comply with the ethical and professional standards ACCA expects of them are devaluing the qualification and letting down not just themselves, their clients and employers, but the membership as a whole. ‘They risk being excluded from ACCA and publicly named and shamed as part of ACCA’s disciplinary process.’ << Back to page
To increase processing speed and reliability, ACCA is launching a fully online service for registration, exam entry, exam dockets, exam results and certificates. On 1 August 2012, these services became available exclusively online – and are no longer issued as paper documents – in China, South Africa, Russia, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Malta, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. These countries have now joined Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Ireland and the Ukraine, all of which converted to paperless status last year. Most students are currently interacting with ACCA online and this initiative reflects student demand for, and positive feedback on, our online services. ACCA has also introduced a service that lets students print out their results via the ACCA student portal, myACCA. Students in all countries can print an official notification of their results via myACCA. Paper copies of exam results will not be issued to students in the above listed locations. << Back to page