A career in public accounting can be both rewarding and challenging, offering CPAs opportunities for growth in many areas.
Professional Accounting Firms
If you are a CPA who is providing or offering to provide any of the following services, you must do so through a registered Professional Accounting Firm (PAF).
(i) an assurance engagement;
(ii) a compilation engagement;
(iii) a specified auditing procedures engagement;
(iv) accounting services;
(v) forensic accounting, financial investigation or financial litigation support services;
(vi) advice about or interpretation of taxation matters;
(vii) preparation of a tax return or other statutory information filing, if the return or filing is prepared in conjunction with any service referred to in points (i) to (vi) noted above.
More information about PAF registration can be found at the link below.
Professional Corporations
All CPA Professional Accounting Firms that wish to operate in a corporate manner, must do so through a Professional Corporation (PC). These services cannot be carried on under any other corporate form (such as a limited company).
Registering a Professional Corporation (PC) does not constitute registering a Professional Accounting Firm. As indicated in the above section, to engage in any area of practice that falls under the CPA Act’s definition of professional accounting practice or public accounting practice requires registration of a Professional Accounting Firm.
More information about registering a PC can be found at the link below.
Professional Service Provider
If you are a CPA who is providing or offering to provide only the following services, you must do so through a registered professional service provider (PSP) or through a registered professional accounting firm (PAF).
(i) business valuations;
(ii) insolvency.
Any CPA Alberta member who provides any of the following services on behalf of a corporation whose primary business is not accounting (for example: a bank, a trust company, a financial planning firm or a wealth management firm) must register a PSP:
(i) accounting services;
(ii) forensic accounting, financial investigation or financial litigation support services;
(iii) advice about or interpretation of taxation matters;
(iv) preparation of a tax return or other statutory information filing, if the return or filing is prepared in conjunction with any service referred to in subclauses (i) to (iii)
More information about PSP registration can be found at the link below.