A timeline of bookkeeping and accounting in New Zealand

For most of the 19th century there was little demand for professional accounting services in New Zealand and only a few people could earn a living from it, mostly working for institutions such as banks, or combining the work with related fields such as clerical, law or real estate work.

1894 :   First professional accounting body in NZ, Incorporated Institute of Accountants formed (IIA). Until the First World War no women were allowed to join.

1898 :    Accountants’ and Auditors’ Association (AAA) established by those who disagreed with the IIA admission policy

1900 :   One of the first accounting firms established in NZ is Dunedin’s Thompson, Land and Associates, it is claimed to be the oldest accounting practice in the world with the founding family still involved.

1901 :   The NZ government required all private companies to be audited which caused the accountancy profession to rapidly develop.

1902 :   AAA became the first accounting body in British Empire to admit women members, those were Eveline Pickles of Christchurch and Winifred Hill of Nelson.

1908 :  NZ Society of Accountants Act (NZSA) passed resulting in legal recognition of qualified accountants. Of its found membership of over 2000, 19 were women.

1996 :   NZSA changes name to NZ Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA)

2010 :   A group of like-minded bookkeepers come together for support. Seeing a need for an organization that could develop standards, educate and support the bookkeeping community, the New Zealand Bookkeepers Association Incorporated (NZBAI) was registered under the Incorporated Societies Act 1908.

2013 :   Members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia (ICAA) and New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (NZICA) vote to merge and become Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ)

2017 :   NZBAI members vote to enter into a joint venture agreement with ICB Global and become the Institute of Certified NZ Bookkeepers (ICNZB)