I have recently gained MAAT status (more to improve my CV than anything else).
I have been practicing under the IAB for my self employed work for a couple of years and very happy with them but now the AAT have said I HAVE TO apply for a practice licence through them.
Does anyone else have this problem? I don't mention the AAT anywhere for my self employed work so not sure why this is an issue. Do I really have to gain 2 practice licences or drop the IAB membership?
its been mentioned on the site a few times before that once you move to MAAT you cannot do what you were previously doing quite happily as a student without mentioning AAT.
Its right up there with ACCA regulation 8 as a complete dogs dinner of a rule that makes no sense.
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
I assume that the edit was to take out expletives.
Yep, you've hit the nail on the head Matt.... Well, you can be members of other institutions but if you are and you practice don't you need multiple practice certificates (like the ACCA people who become ACA's need both ACCA and ICAEW practice certificates plus two seperate PII's!).
David Ballantyne and / or possibly Nick Craggs would be your bods for advice on this.
Whilst you wait for a reply from one of them you might find this thread about the two levels of AAT practice certificate useful :
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
From my experience when I was looking at the AAT MIP scheme I was advised that I would need a practising certificate from them, as well as from the IFA which I am also a member of.
The IFA took a similar view point whether I made any reference membership or not. This was after both bodies gained IFAC status.
I assume that the edit was to take out expletives.
Yep, you've hit the nail on the head Matt.... Well, you can be members of other institutions but if you are and you practice don't you need multiple practice certificates (like the ACCA people who become ACA's need both ACCA and ICAEW practice certificates plus two seperate PII's!).
David Ballantyne and / or possibly Nick Craggs would be your bods for advice on this.
Whilst you wait for a reply from one of them you might find this thread about the two levels of AAT practice certificate useful :
I'm wondering what will happen if I am not eligible for MIP? Looking at the chart on their website I will need practice continuity cover which I don't have.
-- Edited by matt123 on Monday 10th of November 2014 01:54:07 PM
From my experience when I was looking at the AAT MIP scheme I was advised that I would need a practising certificate from them, as well as from the IFA which I am also a member of.
The IFA took a similar view point whether I made any reference membership or not. This was after both bodies gained IFAC status.
Hal
Are IFA good? I did think to cancel them all and just have IFA membership/licence but they couldn't tell me if I was eligible unless I paid £72 which put me off a little.
To be ACCA if you have a practicing certificate with anyone else then you must have one with the ACCA.
With IFA you cannot practice unless you have a practice certificate with them.
With ACCA you do not need a practice certificate if you remain within the remit of regulation 8
Therefore to remain a member of the ACCA I must step down my membership of the IFA and take MLR through HMRC.
To all and sundry I will now be appearing as if I'm an unqualified....
Why do we bother!
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Shaun
Responses are not meant as a substitute for professional advice. Answers are intended as outline only the advice of a qualified professional with access to all relevant information should be sought before acting on any response given.
If part of the reason is to improve your CV then my view and experience is that MAAT is better as it is more recognised by employers.
For self employed I would suggest there is little distinction. The "assessment fee" re IFA eligibility seems fairly standard.
Shamus
I suppose each institute is looking after its own interests! Maybe that is why there have been a number of financial controller posts locally asking for CIMA, ACCA or QBE....
this is an awkward one. If you are a member of the AAT you are expected to go with them for MLR. Unless you have MLR in place by either ACCA/ACA/CIMA, in which case you dont need to. As a member of the IAB you are expected to join the AAT scheme. ( i dont know the reasoning why).
I would suggest that you apply for an AAT practice licence, if you have been praticing under IAB it should be fairly straight forward. If not you will need to resign from the AAT which is a shame for all concerned.
Kind regards
Nick
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Nick
Nick Craggs FMAAT ACA AAT Distance Learning Manager
AAT wouldnt give me the MAAT status without applying for MIP- I had a full practice licence with ICB and wanted to keep that because of the pain transferring the MLR over plus wanted to stay for other reasons so now I have 2 licences -one with each -costs me a fortune but the benefits are that I dont have to take my studies with ICB any further to be able to work with Business Tax and Self Assessment etc as my AAT licence allows this
Its a bit of a con really because if you are employed you are granted MAAT without a muff
Just as a point of interest, if you have a practising certificate with another professional body CIMA don't require you have a practising certificate with them.
The only lack of clarity is which other professional bodies would be acceptable. When I queried with the AAT if I could practise without a practising certificate, I was told that I could only do so if I had a practising certificate with one of the chartered bodies.
This is an interesting thread, as I am looking at becoming MAAT MiP as well.
I took the AAT qualification quite a while back, but did not apply for MAAT at that time. I have run my own business, as a self employed bookkeeper for the last 8 years, under HMRC MLR. I make no mention of AAT. I do accounts to TB only, (thoroughly, I am told by clients accountants) VAT, Payroll, & Self Assessment for Sole Traders. I have no experience yet of finalising year end accounts / submitting to HMRC /Comp House, but would like to get into that area, as I feel at the moment, I only offer a service up to a point.
I have been trying to find out from AAT if I can join as MAAT, apply for MiP with my current skill set, and look to get a mentor so I can gain the necessary experience in Account Preperation and Corporation Tax etc. I am going round in circles though! My query is there is no point in me becoming MAAT, if I then don't get the MiP with my current skills, I will then not be allowed to practice as a bookkeeper under MAAT rules.
The AAT website is pretty useless, I've called their helpline, and have been given conflicting advice, (IE 'Just go for it and see what happens'??!) Email questions have a 5 day response time! It has taken me 3 weeks of asking AAT about this, and I am still none the clearer!!
So if there is anyone out there who started out like this, got MAAT MiP without the Account Preparation side, and added it after experience gained, I'd be interested to hear from you!
I am in a similar position to yourself. I am now an MIP but I have not been authorised to do tax work. So I have had to find a mentor who will review my tax work (which I can't charge clients for until I am authorised), who will then provide a reference to AAT regarding my competence.
Hey Matt!! I say this nicely, bear with me on the words! Its a bit tongue in cheek, and so I hope this wont spark some torrid responses!!
Can I go out and practice on HGV, pass the UK theory test and then not bother to take the practical test, or apply and buy a licence, BUT still be allowed to drive? Could I use my foreign version of a HGV licence instead? Who would you blame if I ran over your moggy? Me? Or the person who let me drive a HGV in the UK without the appropriate checks?
As you said yourself, you wanted to make yourself appear "better" by adding MAAT to your CV.. better qualified? You are practising under IAB, which mustn't have had enough clout for you, on its own? It suggests you might actually acknowledge the value of those letters, just a little bit above IAB? Maybe, maybe not.. just a thought.
You are practising, so you are looking "better qualified" to a client, not an employer. The work you do will not be supervised. The client will be trusting your MAAT status (even if it is in conjunction with your IAB status), as an indicator of your knowledge. The job you do then reflects on the AAT brand. You might say "well I wont use the letters", but how could AAT monitor that? If you were them, could you see the point in being a member, if you didn't want the letters?? You could still tell people you had passed the exams? But that's not what its about, is it? Really? You want the letters, they make you straighten your tie and feel a little bit shiner.
Possibly MAAT is a higher status than IAB, and so as David says, you can only practice without an AAT licence if you have a higher certificate than theirs - which is proof you have qualified in everything the AAT covers, and more. Why should AAT let you use their letters, as a practitioner, if the practice certificate you hold is a lower value (in their eyes if no one else's)? Why should they let you practice, as one of their members, if they haven't vetted you (which is what the MIP application basically does). To use those letters and be in practice, of course AAT have to insist you must get their licence. Getting a licence is about much more than being a member and having done all the paper exercises. You have to prove yourself, at their level, not just on paper (by passing their exams) but in real life by showing them your experience and getting references etc... and clearly they see IAB requirements as below that? Maybe?
Of course, revenues come into it, but brand status does too. I am not saying AIB IS lower, just that the AAT reserve the right to decide which certificates are suitable and which aren't.
Disclaimer: No AIB members were hurt in the making of this post. I totally respect every qualification in its own right. I am just trying to put a practical light on how things MIGHT be in the AAT's eyes. The AIB will have their own set of rules, and that's totally fine too.
Now for me, I wish, as a member in practice, I had better letters! I was MAAT when I passed, and I worked in a firm.... then I became FMAAT - officially an old dog in the joint... and now I am MIP and there is no official title change!
Accounting technician.. well you get nail technicians.. its not exactly WOW is it??
FMAAT MIP.. meh! What a mouthful!!
I have mentioned to the AAT that it would be nice to have some sort of status to make me feel shinier!! Make my heels feel a little bit taller... show I have reached the top of the AAT ladder!
I am thinking of joining IFA just so I can call myself a bonefide "Financial Accountant"!! And wouldn't you know, I have to apply for second licence and hold two practising certificates IF I want to stay a member of the AAT! S'the way it goes...
