With the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI), the number of "unassigned accountants" who passed the certified public accountant exam but cannot find a place to complete their practical training is surging, and the government has formed a task force (TF) to select certified public accountants suited for the AI era.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) said on the 12th that it formed and decided to operate a "TF to improve CPA selection and training" with related agencies including the Financial Supervisory Service and The Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants (KICPA), as well as outside experts, and held a kickoff meeting that day.
The government and related agencies decided to ease regulations on CPA practical training and expand eligible training institutions, while improving the selection system so that CPAs needed by the market are produced in line with environmental changes such as the rise of AI.
Under the Certified Public Accountant Act and related regulations, those who pass the CPA exam must complete at least one year of practical training to register as CPAs, but as hiring by the "Big 4" accounting firms—Samil PwC, Samjong KPMG, EY Korea, and Deloitte Anjin—has dropped sharply, the number of unassigned accountants has soared.
Participants in the meeting agreed that, since there are trainee accountants who have not yet found jobs, it is necessary to provide a stable training environment. They also agreed that comprehensive institutional improvements should be reviewed in light of changes in the selection and training environment to date.
An FSC official said, "The TF will run through the first quarter of next year, during which we will listen to stakeholders and continue in-depth discussions," adding, "Through this, we plan to prepare a '(tentative title) plan to improve systems related to CPA selection and training' and submit it to the CPA qualification and disciplinary committee in the first half of next year."