End of affiliation between CGA Canada and CPA Quebec: CPA, CGAs need not worry about having their rights respected

As a result of the decision by CGA-Canada and its affiliated associations to exclude the Ordre des CGA du Québec from the CGA affiliation agreement in August 2011, the arbitrator of the dispute between the Association des comptables généraux accrédités du Canada (CGA-Canada) and the Ordre des comptables généraux accrédités du Québec (CGA-Québec) rendered his decision a few days ago. This decision confirms the following:

• the Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec (CPA), which succeeded to the rights and obligations of CGA-Quebec on May 16 when the CPA Act came into force, is no longer affiliated with CGA-Canada;
• the contractual relationship between CGA-Canada and CGA-Quebec, and by extension, the Quebec CPA Order, ended on August 2, 2012;
• CPA, CGAs ceased to be members of CGA-Canada as of August 2, 2012.

In concrete terms, CGA-Canada’s exclusion of Quebec CPA, CGAs does not take away any of our members’ rights. In fact, you should know that membership in CGA-Canada, the CICA or CMA Canada is not required to be a member of the Quebec CPA Order and to enjoy the rights granted by the CPA designation. Furthermore, although Quebec CPA, CGAs ceased to be CGA Canada members as of August 2, their mobility in Canada is fully guaranteed under the Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT), whose principle is recognized by both the CPA Act and the regulations adopted by the Board of Directors of the CPA Order. Accordingly, under the AIT, all CAs, CGAs and CMAs from other provinces and territories of Canada are recognized as CPAs in Quebec and likewise, all Quebec CPAs, whatever their legacy order, enjoy the same recognition in all other provinces and territories of Canada.

In addition, the Quebec CPA Order is still affiliated with the CICA and CMA Canada and remains as determined as ever to maintain all of its members’ rights. In order to ensure that our members receive appropriate services from a national organization in the future, we intend to maintain our affiliation with the CICA, CMA Canada and CPA Canada, once that organization has been created, and to represent all of our members when new mutual recognition agreements are negotiated.

For the time being, Quebec CPA, CGAs who participated in the group life and disability insurance plan offered by CGA-Canada will continue to enjoy the same benefits on the same terms until further notice. In fact, even if the insurer decides that they are ineligible for the plan, the CPA Order has already taken the necessary steps to provide them with an alternate solution at no additional cost. That way, if such a situation arises, the members concerned would not have to pay a fee on an individual basis to CGA-Canada in order to continue to qualify for the group plan.

Finally, the membership fee collected by the Ordre des CGA du Québec on April 1, 2012 specifically covered both the services it received from CGA-Canada up to the termination of the affiliation agreement on August 2, 2012 and the services provided by the national partners of the CPA Order - CICA, CMA Canada and CPA Canada - until March 31, 2013. As a result, the portion of the membership fee collected by the Ordre des CGA du Québec and paid to other organizations in the form of an assessed contribution is not refundable.

We hope that these explanations answer any questions or concerns raised by the announcement of the definitive end of the affiliation with CGA-Canada. We assure you that we are doing everything possible to prevent CPA, CGAs from being penalized in any way by this situation.

Sincerely,

Stephan Robitaille, FCPA, FCGA                        Daniel McMahon, FCPA, FCA
Chair of the Board                                              President and Chief Executive Officer

If you have questions or concerns about this situation, feel free to contact us.
T 514 288-3256 [2222] • 1 800 363-4688
profession@cpa-quebec.com