Chartered Accountancy in Ireland for Non-EU Students

Morshed13

Hi,

I am a Non-EU citizen, currently living outside of Ireland. I have completed my BBA with a major in accounting. I have been given F1-F4 ACCA paper exemptions on the basis of my BBA result. I am also going to sit for F6 and F7 paper ACCA on next session. But i am totally interested in chartered accountancy profession.

Now i am planning to start Masters is Accounting from Ireland. Hopefully I will enroll myself into Waterford IT or DCU. After completing masters, i will register myself to CAI program and i need to start practicing in any accountancy firm in Ireland as a trainee or get an accountancy related job to gain practical experience.

My questions are:

1) Will it be tough to get a trainee position or a job in any accountancy firm in Ireland considering to the fact that i am a non-EU?

2) To start professional accountancy course, i need to change my visa status from Stamp 2 to Stamp 1A. Isn't it?

3) I heard that getting a job in Ireland, especially, for non-EU students, is really tough. Companies do not want to hire non-EU students, rather they prefer Irish or EU students. Is it true?

By the time i will apply, i will be completed some papers of ACCA and will be completing masters in accounting from Ireland. In addition, i am desperate to start my career as a chartered accountant and will pursue it under CAI. So given all the facts into consideration, will it be hard to get job as graduate trainee in Ireland? Will i be welcomed in Ireland?

I look forward to hearing from you. Thanks in advance.

What will your visa status be?
If there is a lot of paperwork involved you will be at a disadvantage to EU jobseekers.

Morshed13

I will be on stamp 2 visa when i will pursue Masters course in Ireland. It will allow to work 20 hrs per week during studies and 40 hrs week on holidays. As soon as i enroll myself into a professional accountancy program, my visa status will be changed from Stamp 2 to Stamp 1A. Stamp 1A visa defines that a non-EU student studying professional accountancy is permitted to remain in Ireland for the purpose of full time training with a named body (i.e. ACCA/CPA/CAI) until a specified date.

The rules and regulations that i have found from Irish immigration website are as follows:

From 1 September 2011 the maximum time allowable for trainee accountants on Stamp 1 A conditions will be limited to 54 months (i.e. 4.5 years. This limit is considered sufficient for students to complete their professional accounting qualifications.

Trainee Accountants are responsible for managing their studies and any required work
experience to ensure compliance with these time limits.

With regard to work placement it is recognised that trainee accountants pursuing professional accountancy qualifications in many cases are required to work full time
in an accounting role.

The immigration authorities do not have sufficient competence in determining what constitutes suitable work experience; therefore it is beholden on the professional accounting bodies to quality assure the type of work being undertaken by their trainee accountants in pursuit of their qualifications.

As part of this the immigration authorities require accounting bodies to submit letters
verifying that a trainee accountant is employed in a suitable position and that the type
of work being undertaken is directly related to the achievement of the professional
qualification.

So i think it will be professional accounting body's responsibility to confirm immigration authorities that the person is working in a suitable position that is related to the achievement of his/her professional qualification. I do not think it will involve a lot of paperwork that the "Third Level Graduate scheme" status does.

What do you think? Any advice or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

bobmalooka

What CAI exemptions will you have after your masters? Most accountancy masters courses will grant CAP2 exemptions but will your ACCA exams cover CAP1?

I don't have experience in hiring trainees but from talking to people who do one issue would be the perception that there will be more 'hassle' for the employer if they went with a non EU candidate i.e. Extra Paperwork, potential loss on training investment if visa terms are breached etc.

Accounting firms are crying out for suitable candidates so if you look like a good candidate you should have a good chance.

I would think its vitally important to be able to demonstrate that you know exactly where you stand in relation to visa status & exemptions, exactly what is required of the employer and that everything will run smoothly.

Morshed13

I don't think there ll be many hustles. All I need to do is to get a trainee position. Then I'll automatically become eligible to apply for stamp 1a visa.

I don't think I ll be able to do masters in accounting in ireland. Without cap 1 exemption, I won't get admission. So I think I need to choose post graduate diploma in accounting. What's the possibility to get trainee position after post grad diploma?

él statutorio

You won't be at any disadvantage to an EU student with regard to your visa situation. My wife (American) trained as an ACCA in Ireland and the visa stuff was never a problem.

Morshed13

Thanks man. That's good to hear.

Dellboy2007

Before applying to do the masters, you should confirm if you are entitled to any cap 1 exemptions with CAI. some colleges won't even let you do the masters until you get the cap 1s. The masters is for cap 2 exemptions, or all F papers in ACCA.

Morshed13

I talked with the accounting department head of DCU. She said that i wont get full CAP 1 exemption because i haven't studied Irish business law and taxation. So i wont get admission in Masters in Accounting. However, they said that i would be a good match for PGDip in Accounting program and would most likely get the offer given to the grades i have achieved in my undergraduate program.

But i heard that postgrad. diploma in accounting in DCU is quite tough. Should i apply into DIT for PGDip in Accounting?

LoreRG

Morshed13 wrote: »

I talked with the accounting department head of DCU. "She said that i wont get full CAP 1 exemption because i haven't studied Irish business law and taxation. So i wont get admission in Masters in Accounting. However, they said that i would be a good match for PGDip in Accounting program and would most likely get the offer given to the grades i have achieved in my undergraduate program."

You can enrol with ICA and only sit for Taxation exam.

Martyy

OP there is a new DIT masters course. Its called MBS in international accounting and you dont need CAP1 to get in there.

Morshed13

Martyy wrote: »

OP there is a new DIT masters course. Its called MBS in international accounting and you dont need CAP1 to get in there.

Yeah, there is. But it won't give me Cap 1 exemption. I am more
interested in doing aca than doing acca. So I think a program which provides cap 1 exemption will be better for me.

Jesheep

Hi anyone know how or if its even possible to switch from stamp 2 to Stamp 1a? I cant seem to find the application forms for Stamp 1a online. Ive applied for exemptions with CAI and I am waiting for feedback but I'm not sure how one switches from stamp to stamp 1a? Any advice on this issue will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

ehkim79

If you want CAP 1 exemptions and ACCA fundamentals exemptions you could apply to Ulster University which runs a graduate diploma in accounting. I recently completed the course in June and achieved a distinction with all CAP1 exemptions and ACCA exemptions.

I applied for DCU and DIT but decided to go to Ulster, as they provided all the exemptions for CAP 1 and ACCA ( I think DIT now allows exemptions for all 9 of ACCA fundamentals).

I decided to go to Ulster as it was cheaper then DCU and DIT at the time I applied, may have changed this year.

I will begin the MAcc at UCD in September and will be looking for a training contract during the year.

Ulster is in Northern Ireland, so you visa status may be different. That being said, 3 of my classmates were international students and I pretty sure that one of them got a contract at a top 10 accounting firm.

Morshed13

The problem with Ulster university is that the VISA is quite different compared to that of Ireland. If you pursue your masters there, you will get UK visa which you will not allow you to extend your stay for post study work.

ehkim79

That is not completely correct, you have up to 4 months after you graduate to find employment.

The government tried to change the VISA conditions but had to make a u-turn as they did not receive the support that they needed.

That being said, there are tough conditions for Non-EU graduates such as obtaining a job worth £24,000 a year. However, the Big 4 are employing a lot more graduates in Northern Ireland than before.

Competition is tough in Ireland, and is the reason why I am studying for a Masters of Accounting at University College Dublin.

I'm hoping that with both CAP 1 exemptions (from my Graduate Diploma) and CAP2 exemptions (hopefully after successful completion from MAcc). I will be in a good position to find a training contract and begin training as a trainee Chartered Accountant.

If money is not an issue have you checked out the MSc in Accounting at Liverpool University London campus. They give you 12 exemptions for ICAEW and preparation for the final level examination i.e all exemptions from the exams.

I heard that over 95% are international students, however, I'm not sure what the employment rates are like though.

Morshed13

Thank you for you info. But the cost is too high. Its around 18k which is way high compared to that of Irish institutions. I think DIT, DCU or UCD will be better for anyone if he/she wants to study professional accountancy in Ireland.

Jesheep

Hi, I've secured a training contract in a big 4 firm in dublin and i have exemptions in ACCA from F1-F4. I've only been in Ireland since beginning of 2015 on stamp 2 and the school I was with when i first came closed a few months ago. Given my situation does anyone know my chances of getting stamp 1a? Anyone on stamp 1a who got it when doing fundamental levels of ACCA? Thanks I'd really appreciate any and all feed back on this.