BFP FAQs

BFP is an internationally recognised professional qualification from ICAEW which help professionals demonstrate their knowledge, skills and experience in business and finance, as well as their commitment to ongoing development and to high ethical and technical standards.

It stands for ICAEW Business and/or Finance Professional. This designation and title have been trademarked in the UK and Europe.

Anyone who would like to demonstrate that they have fundamental business knowledge, ethical understanding and are committed to ongoing personal and professional development.

Anyone who would like to gain work experience in a finance and business role.

Suitable for anyone working in Finance, HR, IT, legal…

BFP is available to anyone who:

• Holds or is eligible to hold the ICAEW CFAB qualification. CPL is available up to five of the six modules (except for Accounting). AAT qualified individual or university student/ graduate who have passed the ACA Financial Accounting and Reporting module can use CPL for the Accounting module
• Gets a mark of 70% or above in the Ethics Learning Programme online assessment (ELP) (unlimited attempts)
• Has undertaken 12 months of work experience in a business and/or finance role within the past 3 years. Recognition of up to 12 months of prior work experience will be allowed, provided it has been gained within the previous 3 years. Unlike ACA this does not need to be a formal training contract. Work experience has to be signed off, using the prescribed form, by a qualified member of IFAC member body, or a person approved by ICAEW, who works for the same employer as the applicant.
• Is deemed fit and proper by ICAEW

The ICAEW CFAB exams, ELP and work experience do not have to be done concurrently and can be done in any order.

ICAEW CFAB is a series of exams and a certificate demonstrating a level of attainment at a certain point in time. BFP is a professional qualification whereby they pay an annual subscription to keep the designation and access to the services, they are also bound by ICAEW regulations, CPD requirements and disciplinary bye-laws. By obtaining the designation, BFP holders demonstrate an ongoing commitment to professional development and ethical behaviour.

No. You will not need to re-register, you would just go straight to the BFP application form on our website and choose the second category which states “I am an ICAEW CFAB certificate holder”. However, if you are a ceased CFAB student who hasn’t completed the qualification and decided to stop studying, you would be required to re-register for CFAB.

The level 4 ICAEW Apprenticeship uses ICAEW CFAB as its qualification, so providing you complete your Apprenticeship and have done at least 12 months relevant work experience, you will just need to complete the Ethics Learning Programme online assessment and get a score of at least 70% to be eligible to apply for your BFP designation.

Yes. ICAEW CFAB will still be available as a standalone certificate. If you want to complete the additional requirements to get BFP at a later date, you can and there is no time limit.

The work experience must:

• Cover a total period of 12 calendar months within the last three years – full time (35 hours a week), or the pro rata equivalent over a longer period of time. This work experience can be completed overseas as well as in the UK.
• Be of a business and/or finance nature
• Be overseen and signed off by a qualified member of an IFAC body, or a person approved by ICAEW, who works for the same employer as the applicant.
• An update on the work experience: applicants will be able to claim work experience for periods of at least 3 months across a maximum of 4 employers.

Yes. Up to 12 months of prior work experience will be recognised, providing it has been gained during the three years prior to the date of application.

The best thing to do is ask your employer. The IFAC website lists who its member bodies are – see ifac.org. When you have identified someone suitable, you should ask them first if they’re prepared to sign off your work experience.

Alternatively, validation can be done by an individual (non-IFAC members) approved by ICAEW who works for the same organisation. This sponsor would need to fill in a separate form to be pre-approved by ICAEW before the applicant applies for BFP.

The sponsor does not have to oversee the work, they just simply have to work at the same organisation as the applicant – but we expect, ethically, somebody who has not overseen the work will not be happy to sign off work they cannot vouch for. We’d expect the individual in pursuit of BFP to have approached the sponsor to ask them if they are happy to sign off/oversee their work.

It’s likely we won’t really know or investigate whether they are related, but in case we do, that wouldn’t be an issue.

There is no prescriptive list and the roles are not restricted to just accounting roles. The work experience can be very broad in nature, it is down to the judgement of the person validating the work experience, and whether in their view the work carried out has been of a business and/or finance nature. The work experience requirements have been kept as broad as possible so that BFP is as accessible as possible.

The work experience should have provided the applicants with professional skills development required in the application form (ethics and professionalism, communication, teamwork, decision making, problem solving, adding value, technical competence).

Yes. But only if it has been completed within ICAEW authorised firm(s) and meets all of the usual work experience requirements.

You will need to register as a CFAB student first if you haven’t already done so, and then request access to the Ethics Learning Programme by filling out the form available at icaew.com/becomeabfp.

The Ethics Learning Programme (ELP) is an online learning programme based on the ICAEW Code of Ethics and includes interactive videos, webinars, self-tests and real life scenarios. It provides an understanding of potential ethical dilemmas, appropriate ways to address ethical threats and how to identify ethical principles. This helps demonstrate to employers, clients and colleagues your personal integrity and ethical awareness.

In order to access the ELP, you will need to first register for BFP at icaew.com/becomeabfp. Once you have registered, you will receive an email from the ICAEW with a link to log in to the ethics learning programme.

Once you have completed CFAB, reached the required standard in the Ethics Learning Programme and fulfilled the work experience requirement, you should download and complete the 6 page BFP registration form available at icaew.com/becomeabfp which will ask all of the information we need to assess your eligibility – this form needs to be returned to applications@icaew.com.

Once we have made a decision as to whether you are eligible, we will send you an invitation to obtain the letters along with a form to complete, and return to pay@icaew.com who will take payment, and then our Records team will call you for the £25 fee.

Yes, but the first requirement would be for them to sign up for ICAEW CFAB, as they need a student number to start their BFP application. They can then apply to get access to the BFP elements (work experience and ELP) while they’re studying for ICAEW CFAB, or once they have completed it. There are no entry requirements for ICAEW CFAB.

The standard ICAEW CFAB costs apply to the CFAB element (£197+VAT). To get the designation there’s a one off registration fee of £25 and an annual subscription fee of £138. There is a concessionary annual subscription rate of £55 available if you are earning less than £34,109. This earning threshold changes each year in line with the average earning levels.

The fees are subject to change.

ACA students who have met all BFP requirements can apply to use the BFP letters at no cost until they either become an ICAEW member or discontinue their ACA training.

You can still do the ICAEW CFAB and Ethics Learning Programme and online assessment but in order to get your BFP designation you will need to have 12 months of full time, or equivalent part time work experience. We can accept work experience completed up to three years previous to your application providing it is signed off by a member of an IFAC body, or a person approved by ICAEW, who worked there at the same time as you did.

The BFP designation is internationally recognised. Although exam centres for the ICAEW CFAB exams may not be available in all countries, you can opt to take exams via OnVUE remote invigilation.

No, this is the same programme for both BFP and ACA students, so no need to complete both.

They would only be eligible for BFP if they had been attempt barred at Professional or Advanced Level, having successfully completed the Certificate Level exams without having CPL for the Accounting module. So if they are attempt barred for the certificate level modules this doesn’t mean they can have a clean slate for those if they register as a new type of student.

In most cases, the Accounting paper is mandatory, however you may be exempt from this paper if you:

• Are AAT qualified and have passed the ACA Financial Accounting top-up assessment or the ACA Financial Accounting and Reporting assessment; or
• university graduates who have passed the ACA Financial Accounting module or the ACA Financial Accounting and Reporting module.
• Are an ICAEW full member.

Once you have filled in your application form to obtain the BFP designation, had it signed and dated by your appropriate sponsor and emailed it to applications@icaew.com, the process can take up to 4 week before you receive confirmation that you now hold and can use the designation. You must not use the designation prior to receiving confirmation from ICAEW that you now hold the designation.

No, BFP is not an ICAEW membership. With the BFP designation, they will be able to call themselves ICAEW Business and Finance Professionals or BFPs and use those letters after their name. In order to call themselves a chartered accountant, they will need to complete the full ACA qualification and be accepted into membership, as usual.

However, as a BFP they will have already completed some elements of the ACA (certificate level exams, ELP and 12 months of relevant work experience and business and finance).

This depends on how many of the elements the person applying has already completed.

ICAEW CFAB takes about a year to complete, but that is completely up to the student – they can do it quicker, they can take longer. If they don’t already have experience or if they’re not working in business and/or finance while studying for ICAEW CFAB, then that would be an additional year until they can become BFPs. The Ethics Learning programme duration is also up to them. As a rule of thumb, and with no prior knowledge of ethics, that would be about a month of studying. Of course, if they have completed all of the above by the time they apply for the designation, then they can become BFPs as soon as we have processed their application, so probably within a month. This will depend on the applications team’s workload at any given time.

We need to clarify that BFP is a standalone qualification, with the ICAEW CFAB qualification as one of the requirements. BFP will not affect your ACA qualification but will in fact compliment the requirements as you work towards membership (eg The six certificate modules of the ACA, the ethics learning programme and potentially part of the work experience requirement). While you’re an ACA student, having the BFP designation will only work in your favour. It will show ICAEW, as well as employers, that you have passed the certificate level exams of the ACA, you have a good understanding of ethics having completed one more element of the ACA qualification (ELP), and you have also been recognised by us. The fact that you also need to adhere to certain regulations and work on their professional development to retain your BFP status is also a sign of a great future chartered accountant.

BFP holders must pay an annual subscription of £125 due 1st January to retain the right to use the designation and have access to the services (unless they are an ICAEW member or a current ACA student under a training contract, in which case they do not pay anything). If you earn less than £28,600 you could be eligible for a reduced annual fee of £50 payable on the 1st January. They also need to abide by the relevant regulations, the Code of Ethics and meet the CPD requirements including making an annual declaration.

Yes, and they will also be bound by the ICAEW Code of Ethics and have to do an annual CPD declaration.

• Accepting the responsibilities that a professional status with a world leading membership body brings. In short this means not doing anything that brings yourself, ICAEW or the accountancy profession into disrepute.
• You must abide by our Code of Ethics. The Code sets out five fundamental principles of Integrity, Objectivity, Professional competence and due care , Confidentiality, Professional behaviour. BFP holders are responsible for assessing threats to complying with those principles and for implementing safeguards where those threats are significant.
• And you must meet our CPD guidelines which means you should continually assess your competence to perform your job, promptly take any necessary action to meet any training needs, and make an annual declaration that you have done so. You may be asked to provide evidence of compliance.

To maintain your Business and Finance Professional (BFP) designation you are required to consider your continuing professional development (CPD), by keeping your training and development needs under review.

This means you should be considering your professional work, as well as any other work you undertake, and whether you need any additional knowledge or skills to complete those tasks. ICAEW regulations also require that where a specific need for training or development is identified that you act promptly to meet that need.

You must also be able to provide evidence of compliance if requested by ICAEW.

As of November 2023 you are also required to complete at least one hour of training aligned with ICAEW's Code of Ethics.

The qualification and ongoing support you receive from ICAEW provides endless career opportunities, however BFP holders cannot engage in public practice unless they are an ICAEW member and eligible to engage in public practice under ICAEW’s Practising Certificate Regulations.

You will have:

• Designatory letters from a world leader in the Finance and accountancy profession
• Enhanced status by ongoing relationship with a professional body and by committing to ongoing personal development and ethical behaviour (and being held to account by ICAEW regulations to do so).
• You also get access to a dedicated set of web pages (icaew.com/bfp) which will support you in your professional development and therefore improve your employability and career prospects. Core content includes: 
  • Management development courses and learning materials from the Chartered Management Institute
  • Refresher materials on ethics and an A-Z Business and Finance Refresher area
  • Excel learning modules with an Excel IQ quiz and tailored learning programme and an excel community to learn from excel experts
  • Specialist technical opt in zones for those working in the areas of tax, corporate finance and deals, or assurance and risk
• One to one free and confidential help from ICAEW’s technical and ethics helplines and library research team.
• BFP holders can also join a Faculty at preferential rates and come to some of ICAEW’s member CPD events.
• Lifestyle discounts and offers

In addition to the knowledge and understanding gained from completing the ICAEW CFAB qualification, BFP will enhance their employability in the following ways: 

• It demonstrates commitment to professional development
• Shows they are able to pass our exams and the other elements, and can adhere to regulations and high standards
• They will have recognition from a membership organisation. The ICAEW name is well known in the business and finance industry, so someone professionally recognised by us can assure employers of the designation’s quality
• Access to the ICAEW helplines can be a great asset, especially for smaller organisations
• Some organisations do not need chartered accountants, but designated staff can enhance their credibility with clients, so employees with BFP would be highly valued
• The knowledge and skills gained towards and through the BFP designation can help professionals make informed business decisions

When it comes to members, the process is a bit different compared to a normal application because it’s just for the BFP designation, without access to the resources.

Members get the designatory letters free of charge, they would have to fill in this form:

• BFP designation application for ICAEW members

The form they would be completing is different to the form a non-member would complete. They do not need a sponsor or have to meet any of the other BFP eligibility criteria, as they are automatically eligible for the designation based on being an ICAEW member.

***Please note: ICAEW Members cannot use the BFP designation until they have been contacted by ICAEW following submission of their application – usual application processing timescales apply.***