A chartered accountant (CA) is an international accounting designation granted to accounting professionals.
Find below is How To Become A Chartered Accountant In South Africa
Becoming a Chartered Accountant CA(SA) is your gateway to a challenging and exciting career, global mobility, flexibility, and good earning potential in the business field of your choice.
Exit School With The Correct Subjects And Levels
The minimum requirements for university admission are a Level 5 pass in Mathematics, together with a National Senior Certificate with matriculation exemption. You need to take pure Mathematics (not Mathematical Literacy) as a subject. A good grounding in English is essential, as it will help you to understand the concepts you will study. Having Accounting as a school subject could help you in your studies towards your degree, but at most universities, this is not compulsory.
Get The Right University Qualification
Ensure that the university you are applying to offers qualifications/programs that are accredited by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA). A full list of these programs is available here. Obtain a SAICA accredited qualification at a SAICA-accredited university. Obtain a Certificate in the Theory of Accounting (CTA) or equivalent qualification. This is a post-graduate course – your fourth year at university. This course focuses on Accounting, Auditing, Taxation, and Financial Management. The course takes a minimum of one year and must also be completed at a SAICA-accredited university.
Part-Time Study
If you hold a matric certificate with pure maths and will be studying on a part-time basis towards a SAICA accredited qualification, you could immediately enter into a training contract with a registered training office. The duration of the contract will be five years and you will be expected to study for (and pass) the qualification. Obtain a Certificate in the Theory of Accounting (CTA) or equivalent qualification. This is a post-graduate course – your fourth year at university. This course focuses on Accounting, Auditing, Taxation, and Financial Management. The course takes a minimum of one year and must also be completed at a SAICA-accredited university.
Full-Time Study
Another option is to complete your SAICA accredited undergraduate qualification on a full-time basis and enter into a three-year training contract with a registered training office, you will need to be studying towards CTA or equivalent. If you obtain CTA or equivalent, you can enter into a three-year training contract with a registered training office.
Get The Right Training
The second part of your path towards becoming a CA (SA) entails completing a leadership program. This is known as a training contract, and one which a trainee accountant enters into with a registered training office.
Pass SAICA’s Professional Examinations
The final two steps on your pathway to becoming a CA(SA) involve passing two qualifying examinations, namely the Initial Test of Competence (ITC) and the Assessment of Professional Competence (APC). Both of these exams are set and administered by SAICA.
The Initial Test Of Competence (ITC)
To qualify for entry to the ITC, you must have passed the CTA or equivalent CA (SA) exam. This generally means that candidates enter for the ITC during the first year of their training contracts if they studied full time or the fourth year if they have been studying part-time. A CTA is valid for three years. This means candidates will be eligible to sit for the ITC exam for a period of three consecutive years, starting the year after obtaining a CTA or equivalent qualification. There are two examination opportunities per year for the ITC, namely in January and June of each year. This means candidates have a maximum of six attempts at the ITC.
The Assessment Of Professional Competence (APC)
To qualify for entry to the APC, a candidate must have –1. passed the ITC; and2. completed a minimum of 20 months of a registered training contract with an accredited training office, by the beginning of the month in which the assessment is written; and3. successfully completed a professional program with a registered provider. The professional program remains valid for a period of three consecutive years, which means that the APC must be passed within those three years; otherwise, you will have to complete a professional program again.
Registering As A CA(SA)
After completing your learnership and the Qualifying Exams, only one step remains: Registering as a member with SAICA. You will then be allowed to use the CA(SA) designation and be recognized as having fulfilled all the conditions to be acknowledged as a chartered accountant.
How long does it take to become a chartered accountant in South Africa?
Depending on the degree course you choose, it will take you four to five years to complete your degree at a university.
You will then need to do three years of internship training (articles) with an accredited accounting firm.
What are the requirements to qualify as a CA SA?
The journey towards a CA (SA) professional qualification includes three major steps. These are: (1) obtaining the necessary university qualifications, (2) completing a leadership program, and (3) completing two final professional examinations administered by SAICA.