What does the day-to-day work of a Fiduciary Clerk look like?

The tasks of fiduciary clerks are very varied. They manage payroll accounting for customers or clients, are responsible for operational work in financial and management accounting and help prepare interim and annual financial statements and complete tax returns.

They assist the trustee with other tasks such as auditing mandates, administration or liquidation of trust mandates, formation, merger or dissolution of companies. For all fiduciary tasks, they conduct correspondence, prepare reports and maintain contact with authorities, lawyers, notaries and banks.

(Note: The distribution of tasks (weighting and frequency) may vary slightly depending on the task profile/job profile or function and company).

Target group and skills: Who is the further training course for fiduciary clerks suitable for? What qualities and skills are required?

The fiduciary clerk training/further training with edupool certificate is aimed at the following target groups.

• People who have completed an apprenticeship (EFZ) and would like to enter this professional field
• Interested persons who wish to enter the fiduciary business and acquire initial professional qualifications
• People who work in trust companies and are looking for qualified further training in this field
• Persons who do not yet meet the requirements for the federal specialist certificate (e.g. fiduciary with a federal specialist certificate or specialist in finance and accounting with a federal specialist certificate) but want to take the first step
• Re-entrants or career changers who are looking for specialist further training

Trust officers should have the following personal qualities and skills:

• Independent, reliable way of working
• Quick comprehension
• Flair for numbers
• Confident appearance and good social skills
• Planning ability and adherence to deadlines, commercial skills
• Organizational talent
• Service and customer orientation

Prerequisites for admission to the fiduciary clerk training, further training:

In order to be able to start a further training course for fiduciary clerks with an edupool certificate, you must meet the following requirements when you start the course:

• Completion of the edupool.ch accounting clerk course (i.e. the edupool.ch fiduciary clerk course can only be completed if the edupoo.ch accounting clerk course has been completed in advance. Passing the examination is not a prerequisite. However: the diploma is only awarded after passing BOTH examinations)
• At least two years of general professional experience
• Good written and spoken German (level C1)
• In addition, for admission to the final examination: regular class attendance of at least 80%.

Note: At some schools, it is also possible to attend the course without the intention of taking the edupool diploma exam. The admission requirements in this case are determined individually by the schools and can vary from provider to provider. Nevertheless, you will not be left empty-handed - in this case, you will usually receive a so-called "school certificate".

Subject matter and content of the training

Schools that offer the fiduciary clerk certificate course as preparation for the (external) edupool certificate examination follow the edupool specifications regarding subjects/learning content, which are then also tested in the examination. These are set out in the official course description. These are the following subjects:

• Tax and legal basics(e.g. general legal bases, Code of Obligations, income taxes, withholding taxes)
• Taxes(Basic principles, cantonal taxes, profit taxes, capital taxes, third-party comparison principle)
• Law(Introductory articles of the Swiss Civil Code and personal law, family law, inheritance law, company law, debt collection and bankruptcy law)
• Linking and deepening(preparation of tax returns for natural persons and legal entities, assessment of civil law and tax issues, establishment of an SME, assumption and organization of a fiduciary mandate)

The contents of the Accounting Clerk edupool.ch training course completed in advance are part of the compulsory knowledge for the Fiduciary Clerk edupool.ch training course. These topics in particular: Financial accounting, social insurance, financial management incl. cost accounting, value added tax.

Costs and financing of further training

The costs vary depending on the school and the program. In general, the following costs must be expected for the 1 to 2-semester part-time fiduciary clerk course:

• Course feesBetween CHF 2'900.- and CHF 5'700.-
  Note: Members of thecommercial associationcan benefit from a discount of up to 10%.
• Fee edupool diploma (external examination): The examination fee is charged directly by edupool.ch and currently amounts to CHF 500 (as of March 2023)
• Some providers requireExtra costsfor
  • Enrollment
  • Teaching aids
  • Training documents
  • Internal examinations and examination training
  • Simulation test

It is best to contact the provider of your choice directly regarding the possible extra costs.

* Since 1.1.2018, preparatory courses for federal professional examinations have been financially supported by the federal government. Depending on this, the edupool fiduciary clerk course is accepted as a preparatory course for the professional examination. This means that if, after completing the edupool certificate, you go on to obtain the federal professional certificate for fiduciaries or specialists in finance and accounting within seven years and have not yet received any cantonal contributions for your fiduciary clerk edupool training, 50% of the course costs paid (max. CHF 9,500) will be reimbursed by the federal government.Herefind out more.

Duration of study, training options, number of lessons and learning effort

• The fiduciary clerk course with edupool certificate has a modular structure, is designed for part-time work and lasts 1-2 semesters (depending on the provider and course offered).
• The fiduciary clerk training program comprises between 120 and 250 lessons.
• Various time options are offered for attending the lessons or learning sessions. For example, twice or once in the evening per week and/or on Saturdays every week.
• Many schools offer a mix of face-to-face and online courses (online, hybrid teaching, blended learning) as well as self-study. You can therefore choose the format that allows you to combine further education with your family, career and free time in the best possible way.
• Thanks to the in-service training concept, you can apply and deepen the learning material in practice straight away. Nevertheless, you should allow sufficient time for preparation and follow-up of the lessons and for self-study - how much depends on your prior knowledge, working style and learning speed. We recommend that you allow at least 4-6 hours per week as a precaution.

Note: Some schools offer so-called "taster lessons". This gives you the opportunity to gain an insight into the lessons and the learning atmosphere. Important aspects on the way to a successful graduation. It is best to contact the school of your choice directly for a taster lesson.

Degree, diploma and title

Many schools hold internal (simulation) examinations towards the end of the course "Fiduciary Clerk Advanced Training edupool". This prepares you optimally for the external edupool final examination. After successfully completing the internal exam, you will receive a so-called "school certificate".

The (external) diploma examination for the edupool diploma and corrections are organized and carried out centrally by edupool.ch.

Note: If the school of your choice is one of the edupool-accredited schools, the edupool examination usually takes place there on site.

Diploma and title

Successful graduates receive the edupool.ch diploma recognized throughout Switzerland and co-signed by the Swiss Commercial Association and EXPERTsuisse: "edupool.ch Fiduciary Clerk".

Reminder: For the award of the diploma "Accounting Clerk edupool.ch" the diploma "Accounting Clerk edupool.ch" is required!

What is edupool.ch?

Edupool is a quality label of the commercial association that has existed since 2001. Edupool has become the most important Swiss examination organization in non-formal commercial continuing education.

Edupool is made up of the Commercial Association (KV) and the accredited partner schools.

Edupool is characterized in particular by its close cooperation with renowned industry and professional associations (such as EXPERTsuisse, the leading association in Switzerland for auditing, tax and fiduciary services), which also co-sign the edupool certificates and diplomas.

This close cooperation and signature of the industry and professional associations guarantees a high level of practical relevance of the courses, as well as topicality of the content and underlines the credibility and quality of the edupool degrees.

The final examinations for the edupool certificates are organized centrally by edupool and corrected according to uniform guidelines.