The Ultimate Guide to ACCA CPD Declaration 2024
As a first-time ACCA member, I spent quite some time compiling and understanding the copious amount of information available on recording Continuing Professional Development (CPD). Although a fairly straightforward process, I really wish all this information was available in one place. Here goes my attempt at doing exactly that.
Eligibility and Requirements
Should you submit a declaration?
Yes, if you are a member. Exceptions apply if:
- you are on the retired register;
- you are a new member in the first year of membership; or
- you have been granted a waiver
When is the submission deadline?
1st January of the following year
How many CPD units do you need?
You can choose one of the below depending on your situation:
- Unit route: 40 units (1 unit is equivalent to 1 hour) of which 21 should be verifiable and 19 can be non-verifiable. ACCA allows you to carry forward up to 21 verifiable units to the next year. However, the option to carry-forward is not available in the first year.
- ACCA Approved Employer Route: Click here to find out if you work for an ACCA approved employer. If yes, you can submit the CPD declaration confirming the chosen route
- IFAC body route: Click here to check the full list of IFAC member organizations and associates
CPD Evidence and Resources
Where can you find CPD resources?
How long should you retain evidence?
ACCA recommends 3 years
What evidence are you required to maintain?
This depends on your chosen route:
| Route | Required evidence |
| Unit | Verifiable evidence showing: 1. why you chose the activity; 2. what you’ve learned from it; and 3. how you have/will apply the learning You can use the ACCA CPD recording tool available on the ACCA website or use your own method |
| ACCA Approved Employer | Proof of: 1. employment; and 2. participation in your employer’s development and appraisal process ACCA may confirm the CPD activity with your employer |
| IFAC | Evidence of: 1. Membership of the other accountancy body; 2. Participation in their CPD programme; and 3. Copy of the outcome letter if they’ve reviewed your CPD record. ACCA may ask you for a copy of the letter or other records you are maintaining for the other professional body. |
How do you submit CPD?
- by logging into myACCA; or
- on paper, by printing, completing and returning the CPD declaration form available here on the ACCA website
Does ACCA have examples of CPD activities?
Yes, click here and check under ‘CPD record examples’ for a range of examples
Tips on recording your CPD
Plan
- Start early: Along with your new year resolutions, career goals and objectives, plan your CPD activities for the year. I achieved this in 2020 by making sure that I regularly participated in the webinars hosted by the local ACCA body. Thanks to the pandemic, I was working from home earlier this year. As a result, it was slightly easier for me to attend online webinars. This took care of a chunk of my ‘verifiable’ units since I would be issued with a certificate at the end of the webinar
- Identify qualifying job-related activities: I was pleasantly surprised to find out that training and induction activities I attended as part of my new job would also qualify as CPD units. Ensure that you go through the activity examples mentioned on the ACCA website by clicking here
Act
- Maintain a personal tracker: While ACCA offers an online CPD recording tool, I found it useful to maintain my own excel worksheet. The tracker captures details such as date, organization (ACCA/LinkedIn learning/Employer-sponsored, etc.), units, and short descriptive answers to the three questions mentioned earlier in this post. This served as a live dashboard showing my progress towards achieving the required units along with any relevant supporting documents
- Capitalize on your network connections: I frequently discuss my CPD progress (amongst other things) with my colleagues/friends who are on a similar journey. I have found this to be quite useful since we share information and stay accountable (no slacking! 🙂 )
- Look at it as an investment: At the end of the day, the objective of the exercise is to ensure that you stay relevant in a dynamic environment. If you start viewing this as investing in yourself, you will find it to be a less daunting checklist kind of exercise.
