Earning your Certified Public Accountant certificate can be a smart move for your career that pays off again and again over time. However, getting that certification will take some work and some financial investment. If you’re planning to pursue the CPA certification, you need to learn how to qualify to take the exam.
The CPA Exam requirements vary by the 55 CPA jurisdictions, one jurisdiction for every state and US territory. Despite the variation, the base qualifications for all states remain similar. Nevertheless, you should always look up the specifics of the state where you plan to take the CPA Exam. The information below will help you do just that.
To sit for the exam, you must meet some CPA eligibility requirements first. Your state board will automatically reject the application if you are not eligible. And if this happens, not only will you not be able to sit for the CPA Exam, but you also won’t get your application fees back. The most basic qualifications are citizenship, identification, age, and education.
In most (but not all) states, you must…
Note that there are extra requirements once you’ve passed the exam to earn your license. We’ll outline those below. But first, let’s take a closer look at each requirement.
In some states, you will need to be a citizen of the United States of America to take the CPA Exam. However, this is not the case exclusively. If you are an international candidate looking for a career in public accounting, then you may want to review the best states for international CPA candidates.
You may need a social security number to apply to sit for the CPA Exam. Your social security number serves as a form of identification and is a requirement in nearly every state. However, just like the citizenship requirement, there are states where you will find an exception to the rule. And some states allow you to use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) in place of an SSN.
For international candidates, there are still states that do not have this requirement. Consequently, candidates without an SSN can apply in Illinois, Montana, New York, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
There is a minimum age of 18 years old to sit for the CPA Exam in all 55 jurisdictions. For most people, this will not be an issue, as the average age of a CPA candidate is around 28. However, if you are a very young candidate and you’re waiting until your 18th birthday to officially apply, there are some things you can do to prepare. For example, you can start studying for the exam now.
In most jurisdictions, you must have a bachelor’s degree (equivalent to 120 credit hours) to take the CPA Exam. However, this degree does not have to be in accounting. Nevertheless, some jurisdictions require specific lower-level accounting or business credit hours. Be sure to double-check the state you are interested in so that you can ensure that you meet all of their specific requirements.
In most states, you need to meet the educational requirements before you sit for the exam. Alternatively, some states will allow you to sit for the exam first and finish up the additional credit hours needed to reach 150 for licensure later. In fact, some jurisdictions allow you to take the exam before you’ve even finished your bachelor’s degree as long as you’re close to graduating. If you’re currently a student and going for your CPA, this might work in your favor.
Furthermore, your education must be from an accredited and recognized school. If you are an international candidate, be especially aware to verify that the school you have chosen to attend has its accreditation and meets the requirements of the state in which you plan to become licensed.
If you are unsure of any of the requirements for your chosen jurisdiction, you can contact your state board and ask any questions you have. Additionally, you can use the resource provided below for information about each state board of accountancy.
To help you learn more about the requirements for your state, follow one of the links below.
Next, let’s take a look at the different sections of the exam. This gives you a very brief overview of what’s covered on the CPA Exam.
The AICPA creates the Uniform CPA Examination with input from NASBA and the state boards of accountancy. Receiving feedback from the state boards of accountancy is very important because while each state can vary in its requirements, the exam itself will still be uniform. This means every candidate is getting the same experience when they take the exam, regardless of the state in which they sit for the CPA Exam.
Note that the test underwent some important changes in 2024. Specifically, the old Business Environments and Concepts (BEC) section has been replaced by a Discipline section. You can choose from one of three Disciplines, listed below.
The four CPA Exam Sections are:
Essentially, everyone must take and pass AUD, FAR, and REG. These are Core exam parts. However, you can choose your fourth section from BAR, ISC, and TCP. You only need to pass one of these.
The questions of each exam are presented in the form of different question types. The questions are put together in a series called testlets.
The question types include:
The new CPA Exam no longer includes Written Communications (WCs) questions. You will get four hours of total testing time for each section of the exam.
Previously, you needed to take and pass all four sections within an 18-month period; the date for this period begins on the date you took your first passed section. However, most jurisdictions have now switched to a 30-month window. Basically, from the time you take and pass your first section, the clock starts ticking, and you have two and a half years to finish the other three parts.
NASBA has recommended that all jurisdictions use the 30-month window. However, as of 2025 some jurisdictions, including South Carolina and Guam, have not yet approved the change, and the window is still 18 months.
If you do not pass all four CPA sections, or you do not pass them in the timeframe allowed, you have to start over. Additionally, you will lose any CPA exam fees you’ve already paid and have to pay them again. As you can see, it’s very important to fully prepare for the exam. You want to have the best shot at passing within the time window allowed.
Next, let’s take a look at the educational and work CPA experience requirements. These apply to people who have already passed the four parts of the CPA Exam before they can be officially certified.
Passing the CPA Exam is only one of the requirements for actually becoming a CPA. To do this, you’ll need to add education and work experience.
As you’ve seen, a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent of 120 college credit hours is required to sit for the CPA Exam. Further, to be licensed, EACH jurisdiction requires an extra 30 college credit hours, putting the total necessary hours at 150. In some states, you’ll need 150 hours to sit and also to be licensed. However, in others, you’ll only need 120 hours to sit and 150 to be certified.
Your extra 30 hours may also need to include specific upper-level accounting or business courses. Whether your state requires you to major in accounting or not, you will still be expected to have accounting and financial knowledge in areas like:
While work experience is always helpful in starting your career, it is not mandatory to have this experience before you sit for the exam in any of the 55 jurisdictions. However, each jurisdiction requires a certain number of work hours under set guidelines before you can be licensed. Typically, this involves at least one year of relevant experience.
Nevertheless, if you have no experience before taking your exam, don’t worry. You will have plenty of time to meet those requirements once you pass the exam.
To recap, the basic CPA requirements are sometimes referred to as the “3 Es” and must be met before you can be licensed:
Candidates who remember the 3 Es are on track for their CPA. Also, some states have an additional “E” requirement: the ethics exam. Again, check your state’s guidelines to see if they require an ethics exam and also which ethics exam your state uses.
To take the Certified Public Accountant exam, you must meet eligibility guidelines in citizenship, identification, age, and education. Once you meet each of the requirements for the state, you are ready to apply to take the CPA Exam. Are you eligible to sit for the exam now that you know what is required? If so, then your next step will be to start studying as soon as you can.
If you’re taking the exam, you’re also going to need a quality review course to help you prepare. We don’t recommend that anyone try to go this alone. It’s a very difficult test (CPA Exam pass rates hover around 50%), and there’s no reason to struggle when there is so much help available.
Before you spend your hard-earned money and time registering and sitting for the CPA Exam, you also need to plan for how you will study. To increase your chances of passing the CPA Exam the first time you take it, you must purchase a CPA review course. Studies have proven time and time again that candidates who use an effective CPA review course do better on the CPA Exam. Becker CPA, Gleim CPA, and NINJA CPA are all great study resources for CPA Exam candidates.
Find the most beneficial course of studying by looking into the available CPA review courses, and then hit those books!
Do you still want to know more about the CPA certification and how to get it yourself? Learn more about how to become a CPA.
Starting your career at one of the Big Four Accounting Firms can put you in…
The path to becoming a Certified Internal Auditor requires you to pass all three parts…
If you’re pursuing a job with a Big 4 firm such as EY, we’re here…
Is Becker CPA Only for Big 4? While the short answer is no, you're probably…
View Comments
This is really very informative. Thanks.
May I ask you something. I am an Indian living in the UAE. I have a bachelors degree (B.Com) from Calicut University, India. Am I eligible to pursue CPA?
Hello! Please carefully read the requirements. You'll need 150 credit hours, the equivalent to a US master's degree. It is almost 95%+ likely that you'll need to pursue additional education, as bcom candidates generally only have 90 credit hours. Cheers!
Hi, I am a Sri Lankan National live in UAE for past 15+ years. I have Bachelors Degree (B.Comm) from Sri Lanka and Masters (MBA - Finance) from University of Bedforshered- London. May I know the eligibility to follow CPA US. Or any other requirements to be completed. Please advise. Thank you in advance.