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A joint declaration signed between the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants confirms that the mainland’s code of ethics for professional accountants has converged with its counterpart code in Hong Kong.

Codes of ethics for accountants are set by an international bod, the International Ethics Standards Board (IESBA) Ethics Standards Board (IESBA) under the auspices of IFAC, and are required for membership. The Hong Kong Institute of CPAs adopted the membership.

The Hong Kong Institute of CPAs adopted the IESBA code of ethics in 2006 and the revised code of ethics with effect from 1 January 2011.

“Equivalence of Code of Ethics between Hong Kong and mainland China and comprehensive convergence with the international code of ethics strengthens China’s capital and commercial markets and follows the equivalence of accounting and auditing standards between Hong Kong and mainland China," says Philip Tsai, president of the Institute.

“This is especially important given the west's financial vulnerability and the gravitation of capital to gravitation to the east.”

The joint declaration includes a commitment to maintain convergence with international ethical standards, as set by IESBA from time to time.

The mainland's code is not a direct copy of the Hong Kong code as it has additional code  requirements in areas like definitions of family, rotation audit partners and referral fee in or commission, that are unique to mainland businesses and do not conflict with the Kong code.

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