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One of the world’s leading licensing examinations, the CPA Examination serves to protect the public interest by helping to ensure that only qualified individuals become licensed as Certified Public Accountants (CPAs).

Congratulations on your decision to become a Certified Public Accountant! Follow these 5 easy steps to begin the journey to a rewarding career:

Specific requirements for becoming a CPA, and the rights and obligations of a licensed CPA, are set forth in the laws and regulations of 54 United States jurisdictions. For a summary of the requirements of each jurisdiction, click here. Scroll down page to interactive state map.
If you have previously taken the CPA Exam, re-apply to the state board of accountancy in your jurisdiction.

The bulletin is intended for individuals who plan to take the Uniform Certified Public Accountant (CPA) Examination. This document will help you understand how to apply, register and take the examination, and offers general information about examination content and preparation. The bulletin is only available online. To download a copy of the Uniform CPA Candidate Bulletin, click here.

First-time candidates must complete and submit the application forms, along with any required documentation, to the proper address. Because the rules vary by jurisdiction, follow the information about fee payment provided by your board or its designee. Your board of accountancy, or its designee, will contact you once the application has been reviewed. It is estimated that this initial application process will take six to eight weeks; the goal is to continue to shorten this time as the new year-round application process is implemented.

Note: Make sure applications are complete and contain accurate information. Completeness and accuracy dramatically affects the amount of time needed to process the application.

Re-examination candidates: Follow the process set by your jurisdiction. The processing time for re-examination candidates is much shorter; many states are working toward a 24-hour turn-around.

After you have applied to take the exam and been deemed eligible, you will receive a Notice to Schedule (NTS) for each exam section you are approved to take. Once you receive an NTS, schedule your test appointment as soon as possible. Since each NTS is only valid for a finite period of time, we recommend you take your exams as soon as you are prepared – you don’t want to lose a testing opportunity or run out of time.

Go to www.prometric.com/CPA to schedule your exam(s) and get instant email confirmation of your appointment. You can also schedule your test by calling the Candidate Services Call Center at 800-580-9648.

Examinations must be scheduled at least six days in advance. You select the test center location, time and date of your exam(s). While every effort is made to accommodate CPA Exam candidates, appointment times depend on seat availability at the test center. So schedule as early as possible to get your first choice! It is recommended you schedule 45 days in advance.

CPA Examination sections are offered on a continual basis two out of every three months throughout the year (the “testing windows”). For example, in 2004, you can take any section of the exam during: April-May; July-August; and October-November. The test is not available one month each quarter to maintain and refresh the databank.

International candidates are eligible to qualify as U.S. Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) as long as they meet Board of Accountancy eligibility requirements in one of 54 U.S jurisdictions - the 50 states, District of Columbia , Puerto Rico , U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. (The 55th jurisdiction, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands , is not yet ready to accept CPA applicants.)

International candidates must be prepared to take the Uniform CPA Examination in one of the 54 U.S. jurisdictions. (It is not offered anywhere else.) They must also be able to take the CPA Examination in English. (It is not available in any other language.)

Qualifying through a board of accountancy is the ONLY route to the CPA designation. There is NO central professional body in the U.S. through which candidates may qualify as CPAs.

The application process is basically the same for U.S. and international candidates alike. Prospective candidates must select the U.S. jurisdiction to which they will apply, contact the Board of Accountancy (or its agent) in that jurisdiction to obtain application materials, submit completed applications and required fees as instructed, and once deemed qualified, schedule the examination. Any special requirements that international applicants must meet (such as arranging for an evaluation of their educational credentials by an agency approved by the board) are explained in accountancy board application instructions.

Prospective candidates who are undecided about the jurisdiction to which they should apply may wish to review the requirements of several Boards of Accountancy before making their decisions. Contact information for all boards is available at www.nasba.org

Applying for IQEX (International Uniform Certified Public Accountant Qualification Examination)

IQEX is a four-and-a-half hour examination designed to facilitate the U.S. CPA qualification process for those accounting professionals from other countries whose professional bodies have entered into reciprocity agreements with the U.S. accounting profession. Such agreements are currently in effect with the following organizations:

Detailed information about IQEX eligibility requirements and IQEX application materials are available from NASBA at www.nasba.org

The IQEX Content Specifications Outline (CSO) listing examination topics is available from the AICPA. Click here to access.

Decide what state board you wish to apply to (requirements for CPA licensure vary by jurisdiction. For A Summary of requirements by state, click here. Then request an application from the board of accountancy of your choice or CPA Examination Services (CPAES).

Apply to take your remaining exam sections as soon as possible. Most state boards have set a finite amount of time for candidates to transition to the computerized CPA Exam. You will begin to lose your conditional credit if you don’t pass the remaining sections in the time and/or number of attempts allowed. Do not lose a testing opportunity – apply now.

Testing Windows
The CPA Examination is offered two out of every three months of each quarter. The months when testing is available are called "testing windows." The testing schedule is as follows:

Testing is Available	Testing is NOT Available
January and February	March
April and May	June
July and August	September
October and November	December

In order to make appointments at test centers, candidates must have a valid Notice to Schedule (NTS). Candidates receive an NTS after they apply to take an examination and are deemed eligible by their state boards of accountancy. An NTS is provided for every section a candidate has been approved to take. The NTS is valid only for a specified period of time and cannot be used once it expires. Therefore, it is important that candidates schedule their test appointments as soon as they receive the NTS.

Candidates may schedule examination sessions at www.prometric.com/CPA or by calling Prometric`s Call Center at 1-800-580-9648. Candidates must have their Notices to Schedule available when making test appointments. Tests are scheduled on a first come, first served basis. The earlier candidates schedule appointments, the better their chances are of obtaining the location, date, and time of their choice. Test appointments cannot be scheduled less than six days in advance. Walk-in testing is not allowed.

The Uniform CPA Examination measures professional competence and helps to establish the CPA license as evidence of professional qualification. The examination is a 14-hour computer-based test (CBT) with four sections: Auditing & Attestation, Financial Accounting & Reporting, Regulation, and Business Environment & Concepts.

Once candidates are deemed eligible by a board of accountancy, they can take one or more exam sections at a time. They cannot, however, take the same section more than once during any testing window (the quarterly period during which the exams are available). Generally, candidates have 18 months to pass all four sections and retain credit; but check with your state board as some states may differ.

The AICPA does not provide or recommend exam practice materials. However, candidates are advised to review the examination content specification outlines (CSOs), and other content-related documents or materials available via the links on the right side of this page.

Candidates are urged to review both the tutorial and sample tests, even if they have previously taken computerized CPA Examination sections. APRIL 1, 2006 is the implementation date for simulation version 1.5 software. Any simulation taken on or after that date reflects somewhat different functionality than was previously in use.

The tutorial is basically a guided tour of the CPA Examination. It demonstrates what candidates should expect in terms of question types, what tools and resources they will have to work with and how to use them, and how they will be expected to navigate through the various parts of the examination.

Because it is designed to show candidates how the examination functions, it is very important that candidates review the tutorial before they take the examination. The tutorial is NOT available at test centers. It does NOT contain actual examination content.

Sample tests provide candidates with a preview of the real examination experience. They give them an opportunity to become familiar with examination format and content, and also to observe examination functionality in action. (Candidates are advised to learn how the examination functions by reviewing the tutorial before they review the sample tests.)

Sample test software allows candidates to download and answer a set of multiple-choice questions for all sections, as well as one simulation for all sections except Business Environment and Concepts (which does not contain simulations at the present time). Sample tests provide answers to sample questions but are NOT intended for use as study materials in preparation

The Uniform CPA Examination consists of multiple-choice questions and condensed case studies called simulations. Within the simulations, candidates must do an online search of professional literature databases to answer questions. Here are some ways that candidates, students, educators, and schools can get access to helpful online resources.

CPA exam candidates can get a free six-month subscription to professional literature used in the computerized CPA Examination. This online package includes AICPA Professional Standards, FASB Current Text, and FASB Original Pronouncements. Only candidates who have applied to take the CPA exam, and have been deemed eligible by state boards of accountancy, will receive access to this package of professional literature. This online package of literature will familiarize CPA Exam candidates with the use of online accounting resources. However, the interface used by the online package is not exactly the same as that used in the operational CPA Examination. Candidates are strongly encouraged to also review the CPA Exam tutorial and sample tests found on this web site. The sample tests reflect the functionality and interfaces used in the actual examination.

Discounted Student/Recent Graduate Member Subscriptions AICPA Student Affiliate/Recent Graduate Members (who pay annual dues of $30) can subscribe to AICPA Resource at a special price of $75 for a one-year subscription. Students or recent graduates who wish to become AICPA members should go to https://www.aicpa.org/nolimits/nav/benefits.asp.

Free Subscriptions for Educators
Educators who are members of the AICPA can get a free subscription to AICPA Resource. Go to http://ceae.aicpa.org/Products/ for further information.

Site Licenses for Schools
The complete set of AICPA Professional Standards, Technical Practice Aids, and Audit and Accounting Guides is also available in a CD-Rom format. Schools can purchase an academic site license program for $1,185 in the first year, with annual renewals for $885. Please visit http://ceae.aicpa.org/Products/ for information about the AICPA site license program.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has available on its website www.fasb.org the full text of all FASB Statements issued since 1973. Please note that FASB statements are presented as originally issued, are not in a searchable format, and may not be stored on your computer in any archival system. Additionally, superseded sections of the standards are not highlighted and it is difficult to identify such sections.

Written Communication

The Uniform CPA Examination consists of multiple-choice questions and condensed case studies called simulations. Each case study simulation will include a writing skills exercise. In this portion of the exam, candidates must read a situation description and then write an appropriate document (“constructed response”) relating to the situation. The instructions will state what form the document should take (such as a memo or letter) and its focus. The candidate’s response should provide the correct information in writing that is clear, complete, and professional.

Only those writing samples that are generally responsive to the topic will be graded. If your response is off-topic, or offers advice that is clearly illegal, you will not receive any credit for the response.

Constructed responses will be scored holistically. Scores will be based on three general writing criteria: Organization, Development, and Expression.
Organization: the document’s structure, ordering of ideas, and linking of one idea to another:

Development: the document’s supporting evidence/information to clarify thoughts:

Expression: the document’s use of conventional standards of business English:

Additional business writing resources can be found in different price ranges at regular and Internet bookstores. Two that come in inexpensive paperbacks and have been well respected for many years are The Elements of Style, by Strunk and White (Macmillan Paperbacks), and The Business Writing Handbook, by William Paxson (Bantam Books).

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