The Professional Year Program

A Professional Internship To Becoming An Independent Bookkeeper

In 2010, the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) was established to manage new regulation and standards for bookkeepers providing BAS Services to fee paying clients and reform regulation of the Tax Agent system.

It is now a mandatory prerequisite that all Bookkeepers currently providing BAS Services are required to be registered with the Tax Practitioners Board. For details, go to the BAS Agent page at the TPB.

The new BAS Agent registration requirements mean that new entrants wanting to start their own small business as a Bookkeeper providing BAS Services for fee paying clients must meet minimum education qualification standards and have gained between 1,000 and 1,400 hours of relevant experience in the last three years.

Many Bookkeeping services providing BAS Services are micro businesses and small businesses; the opportunity for new entrants into Bookkeeping finding initial employment without the minimum educational requirement and any relevant work experience is now more difficult than ever as many Bookkeeper employers are too small to be able to provide experience on the job to meet the new requirements.

The Professional Year Program (PYP) is a new and unique initiative designed by The Australian Institute of Financial Services and Accounting (AIFA) to provide a professional pathway for people wanting to become professional Bookkeepers and registered BAS Agent in this new Tax Practitioners Board regulated environment.

The Professional Year Program Allows You To Build The Qualifications And Experience You Need

The Professional Year Program for Bookkeepers is a 52 week program initiative that will provide you with both the qualifications you need and the experience you must have for BAS Agent registration with the Tax Practitioners Board. AIFA has developed this program in conjunction with Criteria Bookkeepers Company Pty Ltd (CBCo) located at Parramatta.

Professional Year Program - Training Interval:

• You will be participating in training in a classroom setting and internship in an office setting from 8:30am to 5:00pm from Monday;
• You will complete Certificate IV in Accounting, Certificate IV in Bookkeeping, and Diploma of Accounting;
• The first 10 weeks of training is intensive full-time training activity to prepare you to commence a supervised internship with CBCo clients;
• In the second 10 week period, your training activity will reduce as you take on more practical work experience with CBCo and are taught how to apply your new skills to the real-life world of a professional services business;
• The Diploma of Accounting element of study is undertaken either as part of the practical internship (if invited) or as an independent student of AIFA.

Professional Year Program - Internship Interval (by invitation only):

• The second half of the program schedule you will participate in supervised practical experience on a full time basis while you complete and review your formal qualification training; your qualified trainer / supervisor will support you throughout the Professional Year Program;
• You will participate in the provision of BAS Services under supervision with clients of CBCo whenever you are not in classroom training;
• By the end of the Professional Year Program 52 week program you will have successfully completed your qualifications and internship to have recorded sufficient supervised work experience with qualified BAS and Tax Agents in providing BAS Services to allow CBCo to support your registration application to become a professional BAS Agent.

Professional Year Program Entry Requirements

Applicants for the Professional Year Program will undertake a challenging and rewarding program to provide career and business opportunities for the right individuals. To ensure the Professional Year Program is the right choice for you, we will:

1. Ask you to complete a comprehensive application form to understand your experiences, previous qualifications, and the benefit you expect to achieve from completing the Professional Year Program;
2. Interview, and select candidates we believe will be best suited and will gain the greatest benefit from the Professional Year Program;
3. Make you an offer to join the Professional Year Program as soon as possible before the commencement of the next up-coming Professional Year Program.

To be eligible for consideration you must be:

1. An Australian citizen or Permanent Resident of Australia;
2. Over 18 years of age or have agreed to and signed AIFA's underage parent consent form;
3. Able to meet the Professional Year Program full-time attendance requirements at all times at the Criteria Bookkeepers Company P/L located in Parramatta, including conforming with the designated two 2-week break periods in the Professional Year Program only; the 2-week breaks occur in the first six months of the Professional Year Program and align with NSW School holiday breaks.

It is likely you will have some or all of the follow characteristics:

• Have a significant interest in bookkeeping and accounting and working with clients;
• Recently graduated from high scholl and now require both the mentored work experience and recognised qualifications to join the workforce;
• Graduated from and Australian or International university in an accounting or business discipline and are seeking independent work in Australia;
• Looking to re-enter the workforce both qualified and highly skilled through a professional program that will offer an independent business entry point on successful completion;
• Be a person with within the bookkeeping or accounting industry without previous accounting qualifications;
• Have good communication skills, both written and verbal which will allow you to communicate with a broad range of business clients;

Fee For Service Program

The Professional Year Program is a fee for service program. Eligible candidates may receive a fee subsidy of up to 50% of the Professional Year Program Fee from grants made to AIFA by NSW State Training Services to support training.

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