7. Does CPABC have any resources for members who are contemplating
retirement?
CPABC’s professional development team offers a number of courses to help members plan for
retirement, in terms of both financial and psychological/emotional readiness. Visit the PD
website at http://pd.bccpa.ca for details.
In addition, CPABC welcomes retired members to share their expertise in the profession through
volunteer service as committee members, CPA mentors, chapter board members, and more. Information about the different opportunities available is provided on our website at bccpa.ca
under Members>Connect>Volunteering with CPABC.
8. I’ve retired from full-time employment and have been asked to serve
on several boards. One directorship is pro bono and the others are paid.
Are there any risks or requirements I should be aware of?
When volunteering on boards, members must still adhere to Rule 206.2 of the Code of
Professional Conduct, which states:
A registrant who, as a member of an entity’s audit committee or board of directors, is required to
participate in the review or approval, by such committee or board, of the entity’s financial statements prepared in accordance with an appropriate financial reporting framework, shall carry out
that responsibility with the care and diligence of a competent Chartered Professional Accountant,
enhanced by the skills and knowledge derived from the registrant’s own career.
In addition, retired members who serve on the board or governing body of a public company
or reporting issuer—as described by the Code of Professional Conduct—are not eligible for a
CPD exemption.
9. I’m retiring soon and will
meet the criteria for both a dues
waiver and a CPD exemption in
the coming year. I’m planning to
become more active with various
service groups in my community—
is there anything I need to worry
about in terms of dues and CPD?
CPABC encourages members to give back to
the community, and involvement with service
organizations generally will not affect a dues
waiver and CPD exemption, as long as
members continue to meet the qualifying
criteria for both exemptions (see #1 and #5).
Additionally, as long as your activities with
service groups do not include public accounting or other regulated services (see #3), then
you will not need to be licensed and insured.
Bear in mind that the requirement for public
practice licensing is not contingent on you
charging a fee for your services. For example,
if you provide free accounting, tax, or payroll
services to local charities, you will still need to
be licensed and insured (the only exception
being if you provide free tax services under
the auspices of the CPABC Volunteer Tax
Services Program).
Much to consider
For many CPAs, retirement is now less about
slowing down and more about finding the
next phase of their careers, whether that means
taking on part-time consulting work or a number of directorships, and that trend is expected
to continue as more and more baby boomers
“retire” in the next 10-20 years. There’s a lot
to consider when it comes to retirement, but
the advisory services team can help. Contact
us at [email protected].
TRUSTED LEGAL ADVISORS FOR PROFESSIONALS
For information on our Professional Services Practice, contact:
Patrick Cleary at [email protected]
Ryan Howe at [email protected]
Michael Nadeau at [email protected]
2700 - 700 West Georgia St. | Vancouver, B.C. | Canada V7Y 1B8 | 604.484.1700 | ahbl.ca
28 CPABC in Focus • May/June 2016