Continuing Professional Development

To stay relevant and remain competitive, it is essential for tax professionals to continually upgrade themselves. To encourage this, accredited tax professionals (i.e. SCTP’s members) enjoy priority access to SCTP’s events at highly affordable rates and can take advantage of the special arrangements made to access a wide range of courses by different organisations. Simply check out our events calendar to find out more.

Since 2012, Accredited Tax Advisors, Accredited Tax Practitioners and Accredited Tax Practitioners (Provisional) are required to undertake 30 hours of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) each year.

To provide greater flexibility to accredited tax professionals, the CPD requirement may be accumulated over a three-year rolling period, as long as the total requirement of 90 hours of CPE is met for any three consecutive years.

CPE for Tax Professionals Accredited with One Specialisation
10 hours of structured learning of which at least 7 hours must be in the area of specialisation (Income Tax or GST) being accredited for and 20 hours of unstructured learning of which at least 10 hours must be in the area of specialisation (Income Tax or GST) being accredited for.

CPE for Tax Professionals Accredited with Two Specialisations
At least 7 hours each in Income Tax and GST, and 5 hours in any other areas. For unstructured learning, at least 6 hours should be on any areas of taxation and 5 hours on any other areas.

Accreditation Type	Structured Learning Requirements	Unstructured Learning Requirements
Income Tax	At least 7 hours on Income Tax 3 hours on any other areas	At least 10 hours on Income Tax 10 hours on any other areas
GST	At least 7 hours on GST 3 hours on any other areas	At least 10 hours on GST 10 hours on any other areas
Income Tax & GST	At least 7 hours on Income Tax At least 7 hours on GST 5 hours on any other areas	At least 6 hours in any area of tax 5 hours on any other areas

Please click here for the submission form.

Questions and Answers

How is the CPD framework applied?

The CPE hours required of accredited tax professionals are illustrated as follows:

Example

Year 201x (E.g. Year 2018) – Tax professional is accredited.

Year 201(x+1) (E.g. Year 2019) – Accredited tax professional starts tracking his CPE hours annually (January – December).

Year 201(x+4) (E.g. Year 2022) onwards – Accredited tax professional will be required to provide documentation of his CPD hours upon request.

What constitutes Structured Learning?

Structured learning activities include:

Relevant courses conducted by recognised professional bodies/ organisations such as:

A. In Singapore

Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA)
*Please register using this registration form to enjoy members' rate for ISCA courses.
Tax Academy of Singapore (TA)

B. Tax Organisations

C. Accounting Organisations

Relevant studies undertaken for the purpose of preparing for a post-qualification course
Relevant studies undertaken after qualification with a view to preparing the candidate for a postgraduate degree
Relevant courses conducted by relevant educational establishments
Relevant courses conducted by recognised CPA firms, business organisations and trade associations
Participation as a speaker, or attendee in relevant conferences, briefing sessions or discussion groups
Relevant correspondence courses, audio tape or video tape packages, courses of programmed texts or other individual study programmes which require participation by the member
Writing of technical articles, papers or books relating to taxation
Working as a lecturer, instructor or discussion leader on a relevant structured course (repeat presentations of the course should not be considered for this purpose)
Conducting of updates, reviews and research for relevant technical manuals/handbooks
Service as a member of a relevant technical committee of a professional body or individual firm (to the extent that technical material is prepared or reviewed by the member)
Service as a member of the examining board of a recognised professional body (to the extent that technical material relating to taxation is prepared or reviewed by the member)
Relevant e-learning activities
Relevant courses in ‘any other areas’ include accounting, finance, areas in practice management relevant to the tax professional’s job scope, or other areas of taxation that is not the specialisation accredited for

Other than the above which are mainly accounting bodies, are there other organisations that organise tax courses in Singapore?

To aid accredited tax professionals in mapping out their training plans, the following is a consolidated list of some of the organisations which organise programmes related to tax:

Deloitte & Touche LLP - Enjoy clients' rate
Ernst & Young LLP - Enjoy clients' rate
KPMG in Singapore - Enjoy clients' rate
Marketing Institute of Singapore - Enjoy 10% off for all courses
PricewaterhouseCoopers Services LLP - Enjoy clients' rate
Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners (Singapore Branch) - Enjoy discounted rate for all events
TAKX Solutions Pte Ltd - Enjoy 10% off for all courses
Wolters Kluwer - Enjoy subscribers' rate

Please be informed that the list is by no means exhaustive. SCTP has no purview of the content or organisation and the list does not, in any way, reflect SCTP's endorsement of any course provider.

Are overseas courses counted?

Courses and programmes that are relevant to the tax professional’s job scope will be considered. For further information, please refer to Question 2 on what constitutes structured learning activities.

What constitutes Unstructured Learning?

Unstructured learning activities include:

Reading of relevant technical, professional, financial or business literature
Use of audio tapes, video tapes, correspondence courses, etc (where no participation is required)
Participation at meetings, briefing sessions or discussion groups where no technical material relating to taxation is prepared by the member
Service as a member of a technical committee of a professional accounting body or individual firm (where no technical material relating to taxation is prepared for review by the member)
Relevant activities in 'any other areas' include accounting, finance, areas in practice management relevant to the tax professional’s job scope, or other areas of taxation that is not the specialisation accredited for

What does "any other areas" refer to?

“Any other areas” encompass other areas of tax one is not accredited for (eg property tax, stamp duties, etc), accounting, finance, law, ethics, marketing, business, practice management or professional development areas relevant to one’s job scope.

Are there any bite-sized tax-related articles I may read on the go?

Yes, there sure is. Click here for the list of articles. This list will be progressively expanded. Do check back from time to time.

The articles are for reference only. Please do note that the views expressed may also not reflect the views of SCTP and the list should not be interpreted as an endorsement by SCTP. If there are any queries in relation to the content, please contact the author/ organisation directly. Any advice included in the articles should not be taken as a substitute for professional judgement. Neither SCTP nor its staff accepts any responsibility for any interpretation consequent to a reference to any of the articles above.

How do I claim CPE hours for webinars that do not provide documentation (e.g. certificate of completion)?

SCTP will only accept webinars that accord CPE hours for the accumulation of structured hours. Where no documentation is provided, consuming these webinars may be counted as unstructured hours.

For SCTP’s complimentary webinars* and COVID-19 related webinars, simply view the entire webinar and submit a commentary (minimum 100 words) on any tax issue/ topic covered in the webinar to enquiry@sctp.org.sg. It must be a (tax) technical write-up. The CPE hour(s) will be accorded upon verification of the contents. Below are suggestions on some areas you may wish to comment on:

Pick at least one tax issue/ opinion discussed and elaborate with your own technical viewpoint(s);
Share your practical experience on what has been discussed in the recording; or
Contribute your technical viewpoint on any other related aspects that may not have been covered.

*SCTP will accord CPE hour(s) for webinars organised by SCTP and not SCTP-supported webinars. However, SCTP will continue to recognise tax-related courses organised by third parties. Do remember to keep supporting documents such as confirmation emails from organisers. Please refer to questions 2 & 3.

I am accompanying my spouse and relocating overseas. I may not be working in a tax-related capacity. Will I need to rescind my accreditation?

If you are relocating overseas and will be in a tax-related position, structured learning CPE hours in tax may be accumulated by attending tax-related courses in your host country or engaging in any activity that constitutes as structured learning as stated in Question 2 above.

If you are relocating and will not be working in a tax-related capacity or upgrading your tax knowledge, simply email SCTP (E: enquiry@sctp.org.sg) informing us of the reason(s) for your relocation, the duration you expect to be away for, and your estimated date of return to Singapore. Accreditation status and accompanying CPE requirements will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Where waivers are subsequently granted, you will be required to attain 15 CPE hours of tax-related structured learning within the first two years upon your return. This is in addition to the stipulated CPE requirements.

10.

How do I enjoy members’ rate for ISCA courses?

Please register for ISCA courses using this registration form to enjoy members' rate.

11.

I am a member of ISCA and SCTP. Can I use the CPE hours acquired for both memberships?

As long as the course meets the criteria stipulated in the SCTP CPD framework, the CPE hours acquired will be recognised.

12.

Will SCTP be able to track my CPE hours for me?

The monitoring of the CPE hours is the responsibility of each accredited tax professional as each has the flexibility of attending programmes offered by various training providers.

To minimise any hassle, accredited tax professionals are advised to download the CPE form and keep it updated.

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