The Swiss Institute of Certified Accountants and Tax Consultants is the leading professional organisation in the fiduciary and audit sector, representing the professional fields of audit, advisory, financial reporting and tax consulting services. Its membership is comprised of around 920 companies, employing a total of approximately 13'000 people, as well as 5'000 individuals (holders of a degree in accounting or tax consulting and licensed audit experts). The estimated annual turnover of its member companies amounts to 3 billion Swiss francs.
The Swiss Institute of Certified Accountants and Tax Consultants was founded in 1925. Its purpose is to bring together recognised experts and companies doing business in the fields mentioned above. Its core tasks are to promote the reputation and independence of the profession, to issue uniform principles for use by the profession, to offer qualified education and training courses, to represent the professional and economic interests of its members and to protect the professional title.
These tasks are put into practice through the following activities:
- Issuing standards and guidelines on technical questions and professional ethics (including independence)
- Formulating opinions on matters of economic policy and legislative matters
- Promoting technical knowledge through education and training courses for members of the profession
- Carrying out examinations for certified accountants and tax consultants, and
- Public relations (in particular publication of the professional journal "Der Schweizer Treuhänder").