On December 7, 1925, Act No. 3264 was enacted authorizing the Board of Accountancy to issue certificate of Public Accountants (PA) to those who have not qualified as CPAs under Act No. 3264. The certification gave the CPAs and the PAs the same privileges and prerogatives in the practice of the profession.

To distinguish the two, a group of eleven (11) Certified Public Accountants, all illustrious pioneers of the accounting profession, founded the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), which opened membership only to CPAs.

The objectives of the Institute are:

1. to promote and maintain high professional and ethical standards among accountants;
2. advance the Science of Accountancy; develop and improve accountancy education;
3. encourage cordial relations among accountants;
4. and protect the Certificate of Certified Public Accountant granted by the Republic of the Philippines.

In 1937, the Institute’s official journal, “The Philippine Accountant’s Journal,” was first published.

Soon after the end of the Second World War, the Institute was incorporated and renamed “The Philippine Institute of Accountants.” It was able to get back its former members and attract a new fold of qualified CPAs. From then on, its membership snowballed tremendously through the years.

The Institute greatly contributed to elevating and upgrading the accountancy profession and education and vigorously pushed for enactment of several legislative measures that ensured the high standards of the profession.

On October 2, 1973, the PICPA was accredited by the PRC as the bona fide professional organization of CPAs, giving it the responsibility of initiating the integration of all CPAs in the country. On January 6, 1989, PRC Commissioner Julio B. Francia declared the completion of the integration of CPAs.

The PICPA is an active participant in the world’s major accounting bodies such as the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC), Confederation of Asian and Pacific Accountants (CAPA), and the ASEAN Federation of Accountants (AFA).

• Conviction by a court of competent jurisdiction of any criminal offense involving moral turpitude;
• Immoral or dishonorable conduct;
• Insanity;
• Fraud in the acquisition of the certificate of registration;
• Gross negligence or incompetence in the practice of his profession;
• Addiction to alcoholic beverages or to any habit-forming drugs rendering him incompetent to practice his profession;
• False or extravagant or unethical advertisement wherein other things than his name, profession, limitation of practice, office and home address are mentioned;
• Issuing an accountant’s certificate covering the examination of the client’s accounts without observing the necessary auditing standards;
• Aiding or acting as a dummy of an unqualified or unregistered person to practice accountancy;
• Violation of any provision of this Decree and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder;
• Conduct discreditable to the accounting profession.

Administrative Investigation. Within five days after the filing of written charges under oaths, respondent Certified Public Accountant shall be furnished a copy thereof requiring him to answer the same. The administrative investigation shall be conducted by the Board of Accountancy or any of its members as may be designated by the Chairman, or may be conducted by a legal or hearing officer of the Professional Regulation Commission: Provided, however, That the decision shall be promulgated by a majority of the members of the Board.

The rules and regulations promulgated by the Professional Regulation Commission pursuant to its rule-making power shall govern the procedure and conduct of administrative investigation before the Board.

Criminal Offenses. Any person who shall by himself or in cooperation with another defeat, deceive, or obstruct any person in the matter of his right of examination by the Board of Accountancy, or who shall falsely rate, grade, estimate, or report upon the examination or standing of any person examined by the Board of Accountancy, or shall aid in so doing, or shall make any false representation relative thereto or concerning the person or persons examined or who shall use or furnish any special or secret information for the purpose of improving or injuring the prospects or chances of any person so examined or to be examined or receiving a certificate, shall for each offense be punished with a fine not exceeding five thousand pesos, or by imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years or both.

Any person who shall knowingly make any material false statement in his application for examination, or who shall connive at any false statement made in any certificate which may accompany his application, or who shall make any material false statement in any certificate to accompany the application for examination of any person, or who shall impersonate any other person or permit or aid in any manner other persons to impersonate him in connection with any examination or application for examination, or who shall falsely make or forge any certificate in connection with his application, or who shall commit or attempt to commit any fraud, or violate in any manner the provisions of this Decree or any regulations promulgated under the provisions hereof, or aid in so doing, shall be subject to the same penalty as in the preceding paragraph provided. Any person who represents himself to the public as having received a certificate as provided in this Decree, or shall assume to practice as title Certified Public Accountant or use the abbreviated “C.P.A.” or any similar words or letters to indicate that the person using the same is a Certified Public Accountant, without having received such certified public accountant certificate or having received such certificate, has been thereafter deprived of the use of the same by temporary suspension or revocation shall be punished with a fine in a sum not exceeding five thousand pesos or by imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years, or both, at the discretion of the Court, for each such offense, and each day that such person shall so practice or hold himself out as a certified public accountant shall be deemed a separate offense.

• a citizen of the Philippines;
• of good moral character;
• is a holder of the degree of Bachelor of Science in Accountancy conferred by a school, college, academy or institute duly recognized and/or accredited by the CHED or other authorized government offices; and
• has not been convicted of any criminal offense involving moral turpitude.

Educational Qualification / Training / Experience:

• B.S. in Accountancy or its equivalent
• BSC, BBA, BSBA graduates as of Dec. 1994 with certificate of units earned.

Scope of Examination. The examinations shall be in writing and shall cover the following subjects with the corresponding weight in units unless otherwise modified by the Board upon approval of the Professional Regulation Commission.

Subjects Theory of Accounts Business Law and Taxation Management Services Auditing Theory Auditing Problems Practical Accounting Problems I Practical Accounting Problems II TOTAL

Weight in Units 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 14

Minimum Hours 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 21

The contents and coverage of these subjects shall be in accordance with the outline or syllabus prepared and issued by the Board of Accountancy containing the following:

Theory of Accounts – Accounting terminology, accounting principles and procedures, classification of accounts, valuation of assets and liabilities, income determination, developments in the science of accountancy, etc.

Business Law and Taxation – One-half on the subject of business law covering obligation and contracts, partnerships and corporations, negotiable instruments and other phases of the legal framework of business, and the other half on taxation dealing on income tax, business taxes, transfer taxes, and other taxes affecting accounting practice.

Management Services Ð Principles and procedures, methods, and techniques involved in management consulting services that may be rendered by Certified Public Accountants in areas such as managerial accounting, planning and control operations, design and appraisal of accounting systems, and financial -management related services.

Auditing Theory – Auditing concepts, auditing standards, internal control, auditing procedures and techniques, and the short-form audit report.

Auditing Problems – Problems on the application of auditing standards, techniques and procedures, preparation of working papers, completion of the audit, and preparation of audit report.

Practical Accounting I – Problems concerning financial statements and accounting for assets, liabilities and stockholder’s equity.

Practical Accounting II – Problems pertaining to partnership, joint ventures, fire insurance on the insured’s books, consignments, installment sales, agencies and branches, business combinations, cost accounting, financial analysis, and government accounting.

Examination Rating. – A candidate for the examination obtaining a general weighted average of seventy-five percent and above shall be entitled to registration as certified public accountant and as such shall receive a certificate of registration from the Board of Accountancy; Provided, That in no case should the rating on any subject be less than sixty-five percent. In the event a candidate obtains the rating of seventy-five percent and above in at least four (4) subjects having a combined weight of eight (8) units as provided for in this Act, he shall receive a conditional credit for the subjects passed; Provided, However, That such candidates shall take an examination in the remaining subjects within two years from the preceding examination; Provided further, That if the candidate fails to obtain at least a general weighted average of seventy-five percent and a rating of at least sixty-five percent in each of the subjects reexamined, he shall be considered as failed in the entire examination.

Failing candidates to take refresher course. Any candidate who fails in two complete Certified Public Accountant board examinations shall be disqualified from taking another set of examination unless he submits evidence to the satisfaction of the Board of Accountancy that he has enrolled in and completed at least twenty-four units of subjects given in Certified Public Accountant Examinations.

For purposes of this Law, the examinations in which the candidate was conditioned together with the removal examination on the subject in which he failed shall be counted as one complete examination.

Limitations on the Practice of Public Accountany. Single practitioners and partnerships for the practice of public accountancy shall be registered certified public accountants in the Philippines: Provided, That from the effectivity of this Act, a certificate of accreditation shall be issued to certified public accountants in public practice only upon showing, in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the Board and approved by the Commission, that such registrant has acquired a minimum of three (3) years meaningful experience in any of the areas of public practice including taxation: Provided, further, That this requirement shall not apply to those already granted a certificate of accreditation prior to the effectivity of this Act. The Securities and Exchange Commission shall not register any corporation organized for the practice of public accountancy.

From 43 registered accountants in 1923, the number of CPAs has grown to over 100,689 by 1999. Many of these professionals have distinguished themselves not only in the field of accountancy itself but in many other areas of human endeavor. To the roster of Philippine CPAs belong such luminaries, past and present, as Jaime Hernandez and Paciano Dizon, the first and second Filipino Auditor Generals of the Commission on Audit; Manuel Villar, Speaker of the House of Representatives; Washington SyCip, past president of the International Federation of Accountants, the only Asian who has held the position and Founder and Chairman of SGV & Co., the leading accountancy firm in the country; Jose W. Diokno, former Senator of the Philippines and Secretary of Justice; Wenceslao Lagumbay and Alberto Romulo, former senators; and Andres Soriano, founder of one of the country’s leading conglomerates. Many others have been cabinet members, heads of government agencies, chairmen and members of corporations and institutions, heads and professors in the academe, and entrepreneurs.

Local accounting firms and partnerships have likewise entered the mainstream of international practice, establishing tie-ups with the Big Five of the accounting world, namely, ArthurAndersen,PriceWaterhouseCoopers,Ernst&Young,KPMG,andDeloitteTohmatsu International. The biggest of the local firms, SGV & Co., was the first to offer services outside the country and initiated the establishment of The SGV Group composed of leading national accounting firms in East and Southeast Asia.

The increasing complexity of professional regulation and the developments in the practice of the profession have occasioned the expansion of the Board of Accountancy – from three members (president and two members) under Act No. 3105 in 1923, through six (chairman and five members) under Republic Act No. 5166 ('The Accountancy Act of 1967') in 1967, to seven (chairman and six members) under Presidential Decree No. 692 (The Revised Accountancy Law) in 1975. Under the stewardship of the PRC, the Board of Accountancy discharges its mandate of supervising, controlling and regulating the practice of accountancy with authority and distinction. But over and above its regular functions of standardizing and regulating accounting education, conducting examinations for registering CPAs, and maintaining the rules of the practice, the Board has taken the lead in raising the standards of the profession to a very high level of excellence, as evidenced by the following developments:

 

1. Full computerization of the CPA licensure examinations. The accounting profession was the first among the professions to achieve this, paving the way for the current record two-day release of examination results.

    

2. Upgrading of the quality of accounting education. With the PRC, the Board made representations with the DECS for the adoption of standards for the organization and operation of professional accounting programs leading to the prescription of a common baccalaureate degree – Bachelor of Science in Accountancy. The Board periodically reviews school curricula and syllabi to maintain their relevance, particularly in the area of information technology. It also initiated the continued monitoring of schools’ performance in the CPA examinations and the recommendation of corrective measures, as necessary.

    

3. Regulation of CPA firms and partnerships. To assure compliance of their staff and partners with standards and regulations of the practice, the Board moved for the registration of firms or partnerships of CPAs with both the PRC and the Board of Accountancy.

    

4. Requirement of CPAs in civil service. The Board made representations with the Civil Service Commission to require that only CPAs be appointed as accountants and auditors or to hold allied positions in government.

In 1975, with the accreditation by the PRC of the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) as the bona fide professional organization representing CPAs in the country, the Board has coordinated with PICPA to further strengthen the profession. With PICPA, it has worked for the passage of The Accountancy Act of 1967; the issuance of the Code of Professional Ethics in 1978; the issuance of guidelines in 1987 for the mandatory continuing professional education (CPE) program for CPAs; the integration of the accounting profession completed in 1987; the biennial oathtaking of new CPAs; standards setting for the profession through membership in the Accounting Standards Council and the Auditing Standards Practices Council; and the declaration of the Accountancy Week.

As the global professional environment unfolds, with the onset of the 21st century, accountancy continues its trailblazing efforts. It is the first among the Philippine professions to be included under the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) policy of liberalization of services. This means that Philippine accountants will be freely competing with in the global playing field against accountants from other parts of the world and will be able to hold their own. This is due, in no small measure, to the long and distinguished careers of the country’s accountants, to the linkages that local firms have forged with the world’s biggest accounting firms, and to the integrity with which the Board of Accountancy and the Professional Regulation Commission are now administering a profession that has acquired a global perspective.

1. is a citizen of the Philippines;
2. is of good moral character;
3. is a duly registered Certified Public Accountant in the Philippines;
4. has been in the practice of accountancy for at least ten years; and
5. is not directly or indirectly connected with any school, college, or university granting degrees that may qualify graduates with such degrees for admission to the Certified Public Accountant examinations, or with Certified Public Accountant’s Review School or Institute, nor shall have any pecuniary interest in such school, college, university or Certified Public Accountant’s Review School or Institute.

Members of the Board:

1. Chairperson : Eugene T. Mateo
2. VIce-Chair : John S. Bala
3. Member : Froilan G. Ampil
4. Member : Elenita B. Cabrera
5. Member : Lucila C. Tarriela
6. Member : Rufo R. Mendoza