I am a member of the CIOT having qualified years ago (!) and have receieved my renewal for 2013 (£300 odd).
I am seriously considering whether to renew - I cave in each time when I recall the effort taking the exams etc, but that is a sunk cost.
In reality, clients have never heard of CIOT and I really cannot think of any benefit of actually being a member.
They recently admitted members from the Institute of Indirect Taxation, as far as I can see just to get their member numbers up as an end in itself, but not realising that diminishes the value (at least in my view).
Can any members provide good reasons to renew? Apart from local meetings/lectures which I would agree may make it worthwhile, but I already have my CPD taken care of.
Related resources
Replies (9)
Please login or register to join the discussion.
.
If that bugs you what about the fact that ICAEW students qualifying for ACA will now get a CTA qualification thrown in for (nearly) free!
Thanks for highlighting, I wasn't aware of that!
One redeeming thing about ICAEW is most clients have heard about it, and being a member helps occasionally when you need to give a reference (for mortgage applications etc).
I'd be interested to know...
... why you think that admitting members of the Institute of Indirect Tax diminishes the value of CIOT membership.
Having sat the exams of both the CIOT (Advanced Corporation Tax) and the IIT (VAT obviously!) I can tell you that they are of a comparable level of difficulty.
I think increasingly more people have heard of it, but the value is ultimately a personal one.
For me, I think Tax Adviser is great publication (other tax related journals are available), it does provide access to good quality, low cost CPD of a technical nature (although non-members are also welcome),as well as an annotated copy of each year's Finance Act(s), and you can also be a member of the ATT for half-price.
In turn, the ATT provide as partof their subscription, Tax Tables and Tolleys Tax Guide (fabulous publication with an RRP of somewhere over £100, I think). Oh and a mouse mat!
I also find it a friendly organisation. There will be other members in your local branch, who tend to be humans that you can actually talk to and share experiences with if you feel so inclined.
Personally, if I was going to drop one of my subscriptions, it wouldn't be the CIOT or ATT.
Hi Steve, I just think generally the more there is of something the less its value, and that's all; I haven't thought too deeply about it and you could be right.
But the main question was to do with benefits of membership, so thank you for your comments (hasn't persuaded me I'm afraid!).
Forgot to mention...
... I've already got one less subscription to pay! :)
No seriously though, when you weigh up the cost, do take into account the tax relief, and if you're employed, and can get your employer to pay it for you under salary sacrifice, you'll save NI too.
.
I rather like the CIOT but I was disappointed that they introduced the new exam structure to allow students the opportunity to sit one exam at a time. For me, having to do all 4 exams, at the same sitting, (with no exemptions for ACA's) was a feature worthwhile keeping because people recoghnised it as the "gold standard". I think this decision has devalued it. But I wouldn't dream of not paying the £300.
Steve talks a lot of sense
but as a CIOT branch chair, I may of course be biased!
I wholly agree that in branches there are individuals who are humans. I would go further and say that the head office staff and the office bearers are some of the most friendly, approachable and sociable I have ever come across in any organisation. Unlike some organisations we see here the CIOT does listen to individual members......
I have spent most of my working life in employment (and never yet had an employer who did not pay the full cost outright, never mind any salary sacifice) but had a two year period of self-employment where the last sub I would have given up was my CIOT sub - it was a bit of a marketing tool differentiating me form my local competitors.
One exam at a time
I remember on my degree when I had to sit 9 papers in four and a half days and ICAEW when I had to sit 5 papers in two and a half days. Whenever I felt I was starting to understand a subject well I'd immediately switch to another!
I'd like to take one paper at a time so I could really understand the subject.
I don't think I could pass any exam now at my age.
I understand about the reasons you give for taking all the papers in one sitting though.
I think the continuous assessment basis of subjects is the main reason why employers are not impressed by qualifications - especially degrees and GCSEs.
Uuuugh Peter!
....your comments about ACA bring it all horribly back. All those papers all at once, plus if you failed one you had to sit the entire lot again (even the ones you passed). It was really pressured and you ended up leaving out bits of the syllabus because you couldn't learn everything and the training colleges told you they were unlikely to come up. So many people were winging it.
I just sat my first single ATT exam and had the luxury of understanding and learning absolutely everything - not just for the exam but because I wanted to know it for my work. I enjoyed it so much more!