Resignation and cessation of ICAS membership

No longer working in accountancy? Considering leaving ICAS? Find out about your membership options.

Freezing, pausing or suspending membership

Your ICAS membership cannot be frozen, paused, suspended or otherwise put on hold, except in cases of serious ill health. We have no reduced fee for members who wish to retain their CA designation but are not using their CA training. If you are a CA you are still regulated by ICAS, no matter what kind of role you are working in, or whether you are working at all.

If you are taking a career break or otherwise will struggle to pay your fees, we do have a range of options to help you. It will normally be easier and cheaper to retain your ICAS membership than to resign and apply for reinstatement later.

Resignation of membership

If you would prefer to end your membership of ICAS and cease to be a CA, you may request to resign. This means that you would no longer be entitled to use the CA designation or to call yourself a Chartered Accountant (unless you are also a member of another chartered accountancy body).

To resign your ICAS membership you must get in touch with us, if possible explaining your reasons for resigning. The feedback we receive from members who resign is used anonymously to help us improve in the future.

Your request for resignation will then be put forward for approval, so it may take a few weeks for the process to be completed. You will receive confirmation once you have been resigned.

Members who are resigned are not published in The CA magazine.

Reciprocal Membership Resignation

If you have gained your CA qualification through ICAS’ examinations route, and have then become a member of a second institute through a reciprocal arrangement, please be advised that your membership with that institute may be dependent upon your continuing membership with ICAS. We would encourage you to contact your second institute to check this prior to sending a resignation request to ICAS, as you may automatically be removed from membership of both institutes.

Cessation for non-payment of subscription fees

If you do not complete your Annual Renewal including making payment for your subscription fees, you may be at risk of removal from membership for non-payment (effective 31 December) under Rule 6.5. ICAS will make every reasonable effort to contact you before you are removed from membership.

In order to avoid being removed for non-payment, please ensure you keep your contact information up-to-date on your profile.

If you are not intending to renew for the next year, please get in touch with us and request to be resigned (see above). This will prevent you from being sent further reminders, or receiving telephone calls or emails from ICAS staff attempting to trace you.

The names of members who are removed from membership for non-payment of subscription fees are published annually in The CA magazine.

Reinstatement of membership

If you have been out of membership for less than one year, you may be readmitted on completion of the readmission application form and payment of:

• All outstanding subscription fees and charges
• A readmission fee of £100

You should get in touch with us and we will guide you through the process and ensure you are readmitted as soon as possible.

Where members were removed for non-payment of subscription fees, the application for readmission must be made by the end of the subscription year (31 December).

Should you resign or be removed from membership, and then want to be reinstated to membership after more than one year, you would be required to pay:

• Annual Subscription fees for every year you were out of membership
• The PDSL for any year that it was charged when you were out of membership
• Any other outstanding charges when you left e.g. admin charges
• A readmission fee determined by Investigations (usually £250 upwards)

Depending on how long you have been out of membership, you will also normally be required to demonstrate that you have maintained appropriate continuing professional development. There may also be further requirements.

For more information on reinstatement to membership and the contact form, please visit our reinstatement page.

Lost-touch members

Where we are unable to contact an elderly member over a number of years, but they do not have any fees to be paid, we may suspend their membership as "lost touch".

Members in serious ill health

Should an ICAS member become unwell such that they are unable to personally maintain their ICAS membership, please get in touch with us.

In this situation, we are able to:

• Arrange a waiver of subscription fees, if this is not already in place
• Grant an on-going exemption from CPD
• End the requirement to complete the Annual Renewal
• Exclude a member from all but essential ICAS communications (Annual Renewal, SGM and AGM)
• Allow a members' next of kin to act on their behalf in communication with ICAS

By putting these arrangements in place, members in ill health are able to retain their status as a Chartered Accountant with no obligations to ICAS beyond notifying us of any change of contact information.

Alternatively, we can arrange for members in serious ill health to be resigned from membership.