ACA-CTA Joint programme: Tax specialisation

ICAEW and the Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) have developed a joint programme which enables students to achieve both the ACA and the Chartered Tax Adviser qualification (CTA) in three to four years.

This is a unique route that allows your students to specialise in one of three areas of tax: taxation of major corporates, owner-managed businesses, or indirect tax. You can support your student in finding the right specialism for your workplace, taking into account their experience and training.

The programme has been designed to maintain the rigorous standards of both ICAEW and CIOT, while offering students a fast-track route to become a specialist in tax.

As this is an opportunity for your students to gain dedicated expertise, your organisation will benefit from gaining a qualified chartered accountant with specialist tax knowledge, helping to future proof your workforce.

In addition, the training time on this route is significantly reduced in comparison to studying the two qualifications individually.

Like other routes to the ACA, the ACA-CTA Joint Programme offers flexible training options. Meaning your students can frontload exams, study remotely, hybrid or take block leave, and put learning into practice in real time, all to fit business needs.

Students can join the joint programme on the first day or partway through their ACA training agreement, providing they work in tax. ACA-CTA can even be undertaken via the Level 7 apprenticeship, meaning you can benefit from the government funding available.

They can then apply for membership of CIOT once all parts of the ACA and CTA qualifications are completed.

There are three specialist routes available:

Taxation of major corporates: designed for students specialising in the tax affairs of FTSE 350 companies or other large corporates. Students must complete:

• 14 of the 15 ACA modules (excluding the Professional Level Business Planning: Taxation).
• CTA Advanced Technical examination: Tax of Larger Companies & Groups.
• CIOT Professional Responsibilities & Ethics examination (this must be passed before entering for the final CIOT examination).
• Either one additional CTA Advanced Technical examination or one CTA Application and Professional Skills Case Study; or one ADIT (Advanced Diploma in International Taxation) examination.
• The professional development, ethics and professional scepticism and practical work experience components of the ACA and CTA.

Taxation of owner-managed businesses: designed for students specialising in the tax affairs of owner-managed or private businesses. Students must complete:

• 14 of the 15 ACA modules (excluding the Professional Level Business Planning: Taxation).
• CTA Advanced Technical examination: Taxation of Owner Managed Businesses.
• CIOT Professional Responsibilities & Ethics examination (this must be passed before entering for the final CIOT examination).
• Either an additional CTA Advanced Technical examination, CTA Application and Professional Skills Case Study or one CIOT ADIT exam.
• The professional development, ethics and professional scepticism and practical work experience components of the ACA and CTA.

Indirect taxation: designed for students specialising in indirect taxation. Students must complete:

• 14 of the 15 ACA modules (excluding the Professional Level Business Planning: Taxation).
• CTA Advanced Technical examination: Domestic Indirect Taxation.
• CIOT Professional Responsibilities & Ethics examination (this must be passed before entering for the final CIOT examination).
• CTA Advanced Technical: Cross-Border Indirect Taxation.
• The professional development, ethics and professional scepticism and practical work experience components of the ACA and CTA.

If you’re interested in extending a tax specialisation to your students, your organisation could benefit from offering the ACA-CTA joint programme. Register your interest to speak to our dedicated support team who can guide you through your options, as well as how to become an ICAEW Authorised Training Employer.

• Register your interest to start exploring your options today.

Want to learn more about the other routes you can offer with ICAEW? Explore them all, here:

• ACA
• ICAEW CFAB
• Graduate
• Apprenticeship
• AAT-ACA Fast Track