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ICABC: Bylaws & Rules Revisions
Regulatory Matters >> Standards >> CA Act, Bylaws & Rules (BC) >> Bylaws & Rules Revisions
Bylaws & Rules Revisions
On March 24, 2004, the Government brought into force the provisions of Bill 78 - the Accountants (Chartered) Amendment Act, 2003. That bill, which was passed by the Legislature last fall, makes significant changes to the Accountants (Chartered) Act that will help modernize the governance and regulation of the profession in BC.
Section 8 of the amended Act permits Council to approve changes to the Institute's bylaws and rules of professional conduct for immediate effect and then present the changes to the membership for confirmation. Accordingly, the ICABC Member's Handbook is updated regularly to include:
Amendments to bylaws and rules of professional conduct approved by Council during a year and confirmed by the membership at the Annual General Meeting; and
Amendments to bylaw regulations and council interpretations to the rules of professional conduct approved by Council during a year.
The following is a summary of the most recent changes:
Approved by Council on 19 September 2014
Approved by Council on 27 November 2013 to take effect 15 December 2014 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 27 November 2013 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 19 September 2013 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by membership at Special General Meeting on 19 September 2013
Approved by Council on 3 April 2013 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 6 February 2013 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 15 February 2012 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 28 March 2012 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 15 February 2012 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 30 March 2011 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 2 December 2010 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 20 October 2010 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council effective 13 October 2010 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 31 March 2010 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 27 May 2009 and confirmed by membership at AGM - withdrawn effective 23 July 2009
Approved by Council on 1 April 2009 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 4 February 2009 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on 3 December 2008
Approved by Council on 17 September 2008 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on April 2, 2008 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on February 6, 2008 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on November 28, 2007
Approved by Council on June 14, 2007
Approved by Council on April 4, 2007 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Approved by Council on November 22, 2006
Approved by Council on March 29, 2006 and confirmed by Membership at AGM
Approved by Council on September 14, 2005 and confirmed by Membership at AGM
Approved by Council on February 9, 2005 and confirmed by Membership at AGM
Approved by Council on December 1, 2004 and confirmed by Membership at AGM
Approved by Council on September 23, 2004 and confirmed by Membership at AGM
Approved by Membership at AGM on June 23, 2004
Approved by Council on May 27, 2004
The following is a summary of changes made under the previous legislative provisions:
Approved by Membership at SGM on November 25, 2003
Approved by Council on November 25, 2003
Approved by Council on June 25, 2003
Approved by Membership at AGM on June 25, 2003
Approved by Council on February 13, 2003
Approved by Council on December 11, 2002
Approved by Council on October 23, 2002
Approved by Membership at AGM on June 12, 2002 and by Council during year ended June 30, 2002
Part 10 of the bylaws and related bylaw regulations, and Bylaw Regulation 240 amended to change CPD reporting from a fixed to a rolling cycle, introduce a fee for late reporters, and exempt students from CPD reporting in the first year of admission as a member.
Bylaw Regulation 241 amended to change the due date for annual membership fees.
Part 5 of the bylaw regulations amended to change the number of elected members of Council.
Rule 204 and related council interpretations amended to reflect the revised harmonised rules on independence. Examples of important changes include:
Listed entities – extension of certain independence requirements to audits of listed entities that are not reporting issuers in Canada but are listed elsewhere.
Network firms – extension of certain independence requirements to network firms of the audit firm.
Partner rotation – extension of rotation requirement for audits of reporting issuer and listed entity financial statements, to include “key audit partners”, including any partner on the engagement team who makes important decisions or judgments on significant matters with respect to the engagement. (This is subject to a transitional provision to allow a key audit partner who was not subject to rotation under the prior rules to continue to participate in the audit of a client’s financial statements for two fiscal years after December 15, 2014.)
Taxation services – prohibitions against providing tax planning or other tax advice to audit or review clients in certain situations.
Relative size of fees – requirement to disclose to the audit committee of a reporting issuer or listed entity audit client when a licensed firm’s total revenue from the client represents more than 15% of the firm’s total revenue.
Read this article in the June 2014 issue of CPABC In Focus for more details.
Download these two PDFs for the revised Rule 204 and related council interpretations with additions underlined and deletions shown as strikeouts:
ICABC Rules of Professional Conduct: Rule 204 Independence
ICABC Rules of Professional Conduct: Rule 204 Independence - Council Interpretations
Bylaw Regulations Part 3 and 4 amended to allow CGA and CMA firms to become Approved Training Offices and train CA students in the public accounting pathway.
Bylaw 372 added to regulate how the designation “Chartered Professional Accountant, Fellow of the Chartered Accountants” or the initials “CPA,FCA” may be used by members in good standing in BC.
Bylaw 371 amended to regulate how the designation “Chartered Professional Accountant, Chartered Accountant” or the initials “CPA,CA” may be used by members in good standing in BC.
Bylaw 730 amended to require at least two members of the Professional Conduct Enquiry Committee (PCEC) who are not members of the Institute (the public representatives) to support any motion by the PCEC not to publish a Determination and Recommendation.
Bylaw 1035 amended to broaden the ability of the Institute to share information about a member’s compliance with CPD requirements with other provincial institutes.
Approved by Council on 6 February 2013 and confimed by membership at AGM
Part 3 of the Bylaws amended to permit a member who is also a member in another province or territory in Canada where the use of the CPA, CA designation is authorized to use the initials “CPA, CA” in BC.
Approved by Council Approved by Council on 15 February 2012 and confirmed by membership at AGM
Part 7 of the Bylaws and Bylaw 811 amended to enhance the transparency of the discipline process by implementing best practice in respect of the disclosure of disciplinary matters.
Bylaws 100, 271, 761, and 1035 amended to provide the Institute with the ability to disclose certain matters to other governing bodies or provincial institutes to allow for compliance with certain nationally negotiated international agreements and to facilitate efficient processes.
Rule 104 amended and related council interpretations added to clarify the requirement of members to co-operate with the Institute’s regulatory processes, and Rule 105 added to prohibit intimidation of witness or staff involved in the regulatory process.
Rule 303 and related council interpretations and the council interpretations to Rule 218 amended to harmonise guidance on cooperation with successor accountants and on retention of documentation and working papers.
Various rules and related council interpretations amended to make any reference to the CICA Handbook as generic as possible to more easily accommodate future changes to the Handbook. Council interpretations to Rule 204 amended to reflect the recent changes to Canadian Auditing Standards whereby the requirement for an annual communication on independence matters with audit committees (or similar oversight bodies) will now apply to listed entities only – previously it was required for all audit engagements.
Part 10 of the bylaws and related regulations amended to allow administrative sanctions to be applied against members who are non-compliant with minimum Continuing Professional Development requirements.
Rule 409, Practice of Public Accounting in Corporate Form, amended to clarify that members may practice in partnership with non-members who are themselves practicing in corporate form, where the non-member’s corporation is recognized and approved for such practice by the non-member’s regulatory body.
Rule 204.4 (20) and related council interpretations amended to permit the lead engagement partner or the engagement quality control reviewer on an audit engagement of a reporting issuer to continue in that role for up to seven years in total. Previously this had been permitted for up to five years.
Rule 202 amended to add a new section specifying that professional services shall be performed with an objective state of mind.
Rule 204.8 amended by replacing the reference to “a related function” with “a related business or practice” to harmonise our rules to other provincial institutes and ensure consistency with rest of the rules.
Rule 209 introduced to establish a general prohibition against borrowing or obtaining a loan guarantee from a client.
Part 10 of the bylaws - Amended to clarify the consequences of a member’s non-compliance with the obligation to provide an annual continuing professional development compliance report to the Institute. The Institute decided not to file the amendments with the government in their current form, and they, therefore, are not in effect. On 16 September 2009, Council approved consequential changes to the bylaw regulations to restore concordance with the bylaws.
Parts 2, 6, 7 and 8 of the bylaws – Amended to enhance the sharing of information with other provincial institutes of Chartered Accountants and to implement provisions of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Institute and the Canadian Public Accountability Board. These amendments to take effect upon the date the agreement was signed – 22 May 2009.
Foreword – Amended to make the wording more consistent with the fundamental principles expressed in the Code of Ethics of the International Federation of Accountants.
Rule 204.8 and related Council Interpretations – Amended to clarify disclosure of impaired independence generally not required when members prepare journal entries during a compilation engagement.
Rule 217 and related Council Interpretations – Amended to remove the requirement of “professional good taste” while maintaining requirement that advertising not bring the profession into disrepute.
Bylaw 750 – Deleted so that Professional Conduct Enquiry Committee minutes may be distributed to Council.
Bylaw Regulation 1011/1 – Amended to remove requirement for at least one Council member to serve on the Professional Development Review Committee.
Bylaw Regulation 225/2 – Amended to remove having Executive Committee members as ex-officio members on any committees.
Bylaw 600, 700, 704, and 705 – Amended to reflect the change in committee composition for the Practice Review and Licensing Committee and the Professional Conduct Enquiry Committee.
Bylaw 332 - Amended to simplify the resignation process by removing the requirement for resigning members who have lost their membership certificate to provide a formally sworn affidavit explaining why the certificate is unavailable. Instead, resigning members may now provide a declaration in a form established by Council.
Parts 6, 7 and 8 of Bylaws - Amended to include public representation in the binding opinion process and public representation on every panel of the Discipline Tribunal.
To take effect January 1, 2008
Part 10 of bylaw regulations - amended to reflect new continuing professional development requirements. Effective January 1, 2008, the minimum annual requirement moves from 14 hours to 20, 10 of which must be verifiable. For the three-year cycle, the hours increase to 120 from 70, of which only 60 must be verifiable.
Parts 2 and 6 of bylaw regulations - amended to clarify, expand, and update requirements for firm licensing and incorporation.
To take effect September 1, 2007
At the June 14, 2007 AGM, members endorsed Council's commitment to expand the CA experience guidelines. The changes to the bylaws and bylaw regulations are principally aimed at allowing students to satisfy their experience requirement while working in a broader environment-either in industry or the public sector, or outside assurance/audit in public practice.
Part 2 of Bylaw Regulations - Amended to provide for voting on matters by Council and/or Committees between scheduled meetings.
Part 5 of Bylaw Regulations - Amended to simplify the Council election process whilst maintaining the requirement for alternating two-year terms, a minimum number of Council members to be elected from districts (Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island, the Interior, and the North), and the requirement to specify the minimum number of Council members to be elected each year.
Part 7 of Bylaws – Amended to update the binding opinion process, and add the new option of referring the matter back to the Professional Conduct Enquiry Committee to consider new information.
Bylaw 100 – Amended definition of reporting issuer, effective on January 1, 2006.
Rule 204.4 and related Council Interpretations – Amended to extend the definition of listed entities to reporting issuers, including mutual funds, effective on January 1, 2006.
The revised bylaws and rules will be made available after January 1, 2006.
Bylaws 100, 430, 613-4, and 620-3 - Amended to allow eligible licensed firms to practice public accounting as limited liability partnerships.
Bylaws 100, 645-6, 650, 672-3, 680-2, 710, 761, and 870 - Amended to implement protocol to facilitate cooperation and communication between the Institute and the Canadian Public Accountability Board regarding CPAB registered firms.
Bylaw Regulation 250, 614, and 623 - Amended to allow eligible licensed firms to practice public accounting as limited liability partnerships.
Council Interpretations 204 and 401 - Amended to allow eligible licensed firms to practice public accounting as limited liability partnerships.
Bylaw 694 - Amended to allow Council to prescribe a fee for members or licensed firms requesting a binding opinion on practice review and licensing matters.
Bylaw Regulation 250 - Amended to increase the minimum levels of professional liability insurance coverage for every authorised practising office associated with a licensed firm effective April 1, 2005.
Bylaw 600 - Amended to increase the number of public representatives on the Practice Review and Licensing Committee from one to two.
Bylaw 231 - Amended to reduce the quorum for general meetings of the Institute to 25 members present in person.
Bylaw Regulation 320/2 - Amended to enable members who are FCAs of other provincial institutes to use that designation in BC.
On March 24, 2004, Council approved a change to the transitional provision for Rule 204.4(21) on the subject of audit committee pre-approval on non-audit services. This change, which was required due to a timing difference between the current transitional provision and the application dates of Security Regulators' Multilateral Instrument 52-110, is also effective immediately, and will be presented to the membership for confirmation at the Annual General Meeting on June 23, 2004.
Rule 204 - Amended to expand on the requirement for members who provide assurance services to be free of any influence, interest, or relationship that may impair their professional judgement or objectivity on any engagement. The rules provide for a systematic, principles-based framework for analyzing a member's independence for each ongoing or prospective engagement using new terms such as "threats to independence" and "safeguards to reduce or eliminate threats." In addition, the rules now provide for specific prohibitions against certain activities, some for all clients and some for large publicly listed companies only. As well, members must document their findings and conclusions about the threats they face and the safeguards they implement for each assurance client.
Rule 206 - Amended to expand the scope of this rule to include members who are senior financial officers, directors, or members of audit committees. Members responsible for the preparation of financial statements are expected to ensure that they do not apply any extreme interpretations of GAAP when preparing their general purpose financial statements. Members who serve on audit committees or boards of directors must exercise the care and diligence of a competent CA - enhanced by their own career experience - in carrying out their responsibilities.
Parts 3 and 4 of Bylaw Regulations - Amended to establish the time limits on student application to membership, and to eliminate all references to the School of Chartered Accountancy and its related structures and courses.
Bylaw 100 - Amended to defer inclusion of "forensic accounting, financial investigation and financial litigation support" in the bylaws definition of the practice of public accounting until a later date to be determined by Council.
Bylaw Regulation 410/7 - Amended to facilitate students meeting the mandatory PD requirements.
Changes to the Foreword to the Rules of Professional Conduct following the adoption of amendments to the Fee Quotation, and General Advertising and Endorsement rules at the AGM on June 25, 2003.
Bylaw 700 - Amended to increase the number of public representatives on the twelve-member Professional Conduct Enquiry Committee (PCEC) from two to three.
Bylaws 731 to 732 - Amended to change the voting protocols on PCEC with respect to the public representatives. It is now required that at least two public representatives agree where:
after the appropriate investigation of a complaint, the committee determines that no grounds exist for the complaint and it should be dismissed and the file closed; or
after determining that grounds exist to support a breach of our rules or bylaws, the committee recommends that the member accept one or more confidential sanctions (known as a Determination & Recommendation), instead of the more onerous and serious public sanction of referring the complaint to the Discipline Tribunal for a hearing.
Rules 214, 217, and 301 - Amended to include minor revisions to the Fee Quotation rule, elimination of the Solicitation rule, and revisions to the General Advertising and Endorsement rules.
Bylaw Regulation 240/2 - Amended to change the effective date for the levying of late penalty charges.
Council Interpretation to Rule 201.1 dealing with criticism of a professional colleague - Amended that it is recommended and not required, but prudent, for members to first communicate any proposed criticism to the professional colleague or other public accountant in all cases.
Part 5 of Bylaw Regulations related to Voting Procedures - Amended to allow for voting by electronic means.
Part 5 of the Bylaws and related Bylaw Regulations - Provides for changes to the terms of service for Council members. Council members may only serve for six consecutive years, unless elected President or Vice-President.
Bylaws 1001 and 1003 and related Bylaw Regulations - Expands the requirement for continuing professional development to include all members, not just members in public practice.
Rules 204.3, 207, 208, 209, and 210 and related Council Interpretations- Amended rules relating to confidentiality and conflict of interest pursuant to the recommendations of the CICA Conflict of Interest Task Force issued in September 2001. The purpose of the proposed rules is to strengthen the profession's standards with respect to protecting clients' confidential information when a member or firm provides services to two or more clients whose businesses may be in competition with each other or whose interests may otherwise conflict. These proposed rule changes do not address auditor independence.
Rule 404.1 - Minor amendment relating to use of the descriptive style.
Bylaw Regulation 301/7 - Posting notices of application for readmission or admission by affiliation eliminated. The Membership Committee will post a list of membership changes monthly in the Members Only section of the Institute's website for information purposes.
Bylaw 100 - The effective date of the inclusion of "forensic accounting, financial investigation or financial litigation support service" in the definition of the "Practice of Public Accounting" has been deferred until July 1, 2003.