SOCPA is short for The Saudi Organization for Chartered and Professional Accountants. It is a part of Vision 2030, the blueprint for reforming Saudi Arabia. Accordingly to Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia is opening its doors to the world. The organization was founded in 1992 and is now a mandatory registration platform for all Certified Public Accountants (CPAs). In this guide, we will explain in detail How to Register With SOCPA.
All accountants working within the Kingdom are required to register with this organization. However, ex-pats are especially required to do so. Expat accountants working in Saudi Arabia can only apply for an iqama or its renewal if they are members of this platform.
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How To Register With SOCPA?
It is relatively easy to register with the SOCPA. I have explained the complete process in detail below.
- First of all, visit the SOCPA website and select the option “New User”.
- Now, fill in the SOCPA registration information on the form. This includes your full name, email address, phone number, and, iqama number.
- An email is sent to your email address to Activate your account and log in.
- As soon as you have logged in, select the option “Membership and Professional registration”.
- Once a drop-down menu appears, choose the first option of “Membership Request”
Additionally selecting the Membership Request option will take you to a new form with four subdivisions.
SOCPA Registration Process
- Now read the membership info, read everything carefully. Then, select Next. Keep in mind any fee for the process is non-refundable.
- Your existing qualifications are discussed on the second page. Here you need to select your graduating degree, name of graduating university & country, GPA, moreover, your profession as stated on the iqama. Fill in everything correctly and click Next.
- The third step requires you to upload all your necessary documents for SOCPA, which is mentioned below. To clarify, you must download the authorization letter from the website, sign it, and upload it again.
- Now process your payment details. The certificate validation fee is SR 525 (payable once only) and the annual registration fee is SR 315. That makes a total of SR 840. You can pay this via debit, credit card, or SADAD.
- Once you have applied and completed the payment process, you can select the paid bill option from the drop-down menu on the payment division. Here, you will find the invoice for the transaction.
- On successful registration, SOCPA will issue you a provisional accountant technician certificate. You can select the Membership and Professional registration and then go on the Dashboard to download this certificate. This certificate is useful if you need any official work done for your Iqama, such as renewal.
- Once SOCPA verifies your documents and is satisfied, they will issue you a certificate of Associate Membership. Upon completion of the registration process, you will become a permanent member in their records. There may be a lag time of 4-6 months, depending on many factors, so it is not possible to give an exact estimate.
Read More: How To Register with Saudi Council of Engineers
What does SOCPA (membership) Do?
SOCPA is supervised by the Ministry of Commerce in Saudi Arabia. Which pledges to keep up with particular financial standards in the industry. SOCPA commits to:
- SOCPA setting and maintaining accountancy and auditing standards.
- Fulfilling ethical requirements.
- The organization delivers professional quality education.
- Meeting the thorough professional examination standards.
- Approving in addition to administering CPA training to interested candidates.
- SOCPA establishes a systematic quality assurance review system for CPAs.
- Therefore, SOCPA is not just any organization. It guarantees the training and discipline of new CPAs and the quality control of older ones. And that, of course, is a need rather than a want in the bustling, industrialist society of today.
What are the SOCPA degree requirements?
Similar to all other organizations, SOCPA requires a degree for membership. SOCPA recognizes the following degrees:
- Bachelor’s degree in accounting.
- Master’s degree in accounting.
- Secondary accounting diploma.
- SOCPA issued a certificate of recognition.
- Any bachelor’s degree with at least 15 credit hours in accounting. For anyone who has credit hours less than 15 can arrange to appear for exams.
- A professional accounting certificate from a body approved by the IFAC. For instance, CPA from the USA, CICA, CA from Australia and New Zealand, ICAEW, ACCA, ICAP, ICMA from Pakistan, and CMA from the USA. However, these degrees or certificates have to be attested by the Saudi Embassy of issuing country.
What are SOCPA membership requirements?
By working with SOCPA, all accountants and financial specialists in the Kingdom receive adequate training and are legally permitted to practice. You can therefore expect a great deal of paperwork. In order to join SOCPA, you must have:
- Passport-size photographs.
- Scanned or digital copy of graduating degree.
- Transcripts.
- Copy of the work permit (iqama).
- Copy of nationality passport.
- A SOCPA authorization letter.
Frequently Asked Questions – FAQs
Q. Do I have to take the SOCPA exams?
A. In Case SOCPA rejects your application with the objection that you have less than 15 credit hours in accounting. In that case, you have a choice to make. You can take a bachelor’s degree in accounting anywhere globally and re-apply for the certificate. However, on the off chance that you think you are well-versed in the subject, you can appear for the SOCPA examinations that test your accountancy skills.
Q. If you do opt to appear for the SOCPA exams, you can register through the site?
A. Log in to your SOCPA account. Firstly, select the Exam option. Secondly, on the Registration button from the drop-down menu. The fee per subject is SR 1000 if you are appearing for the first time and SR 500 for repeating candidates.
Q. Who needs to register with SOCPA?
A. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia requires registration with SOCPA for certain occupations. For example, we have listed some of these jobs below.
- Cost clerk & accountant
- Internal Audit Director
- General accountant
- Finance clerk
- Internal auditor
- Zakat & Taxes Director
- Managers
- Director financial affairs
- Financial auditor
- Accounts auditing clerks
- Financial controllers
- Chief of internal auditing programs
- Technician of general accounts
- Auditor of accounts
- Director of financial reports
Conclusion:
The above article is very helpful for those who want to register with SOCPA. We have explained everything in detail. Finally, if you have any queries about the SOCPA registration process you can ask us in the comments.
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