We fully appreciate that the global coronavirus crisis means that members are managing huge disruption in their personal and professional lives.

We wanted to provide some reassurance about the approach the IFoA is taking to ensure members are able to meet their professional requirements:

CPD

  • Most members already have an additional two months with which to comply with their CPD requirements for the 2019/2020 CPD year as a result of the consultation into the CPD Scheme. Therefore the end of the CPD year will be extended from 30 June to 31 August 2020.
     
  • Practising Certificate Holders in Category 1 of the CPD Scheme, will also be given an extra two months, added to the end of their CPD year, to comply with their CPD requirements, should they need it. This applies to those renewing and to those applying for a new PC.
     
  • To help you meet CPD requirements online, the IFoA events team is working hard to deliver the same high quality CPD events that were due to take place between now and the end of August in an alternative, online format.  Members are encouraged to keep checking our events listings to see the programme of webinars, which will continue to be updated as those online events are arranged. There is also a bank of existing material available on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE), which includes our Professional Skills Training videos. Members are reminded that there is guidance available which covers how online materials can count as CPD activity.
     
  • When CPD compliance audits are carried out for 2019/2020 reporting year, we will take into account the impacts of COVID-19 crisis upon members’ ability to carry out appropriate CPD, for example the impact of childcare or ill health.
     
  • We will continue to monitor the situation and take further steps in relation to CPD requirements as necessary.

Practising Certificates

  • Holders of Practising Certificates whose renewal is imminent are asked to apply to renew as usual.
     
  • We are temporarily lifting (until further notice) the requirement that full category 1 CPD needs to be completed prior to a PC application.
     
  • Members are reassured that the technical experience requirements to demonstrate that advice has been delivered face to face (which may be particularly relevant for Scheme Actuaries) can be met in virtual meetings or on conference calls to the user.
     
  • We will (until further notice) allow identity and basic criminal record checks to be completed at a later date and not hold up the issue of a certificate for initial applicants. We will explore alternative ways to carry out identity checks remotely, if we can.
     
  • We will accept applications from the email address that we hold on record for the member, instead of signed copies.

Quality Assurance Scheme (QAS)

  • We understand that all organisations will currently be working to ensure continuity in challenging circumstances. For this reason we are extending QAS Annual Return deadlines by eight weeks for those due to submit them between now and 1 September. If you are still experiencing difficulties in meeting this extended deadline, please contact the QAS team.
     
  •  The dates for payment of Annual Fees will be unaffected.
     
  • The current restrictions mean that onsite assessment and monitoring visits are not currently possible. However, we are exploring alternative, virtual methods of assessment. We will be in touch with affected organisations to make arrangements.

Actuarial Monitoring Scheme (AMS)

  • We launched our first AMS Thematic Review “Actuarial Factors in Pension Schemes” on 2 March 2020. We are currently accepting submissions from organisations employing Scheme Actuaries of actuarial advice relating to the setting of transfer values and commutation rates.
     
  • Given the current situation, we have extended the submission deadline by 4 weeks, from 1 May to 29 May 2020.
     
  • The IFoA is also currently scoping the second Thematic Review “General Insurance Pricing” and we will be aiming to engage with stakeholders, relevant committees and members during April and May 2020. We would like to be in a position to commence the review itself in late Q2 / early Q3 2020.
     
  • We are mindful that in our GI community both individual members and employing organisation priorities will be impacted by the current situation and will keep the timing around this review under observation.

We encourage members to contact us if they have any questions about their professional requirements.

We will also keep these measures under review and implement further changes, as needed, depending on wider developments.