The Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) and the Certified Management Accountants of Canada (CMA Canada) have merged on a national level to form the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada).
The merger, which was finalised in January, will see CPA Canada led by a 16-member Board under the co-chairs Shelley Brown and Cassandra Dorrington.
Kevin Dancey, formally of CICA, has been appointed president and chief executive while Joy Thomas, formally of CMA Canada, is
executive vice-president.
One of CPA Canada’s first priorities is the development of a CPA certification programme to be in place for delivery in parts of the country by Q3 with the first CPA exams offered in fall 2015.
The Canadian CPA will be an accounting and business credential with the aim to become an internationally recognised and respected designation.
In 2012 all three of Canada’s accounting bodies, including the Certified General Accountants of Canada, presented their membership with a framework to merge and the plan is still to unite all three under one accounting designation in the future.
Initially members of the merged organisations will keep their current designations, such as CA or CMA, but put them after the CPA designation. After 10 years it is expected members could choose to use the CPA designation on its own without the legacy designation attached.
Related links
Certified General Accountants of Canada
