Puerto Rico CPA Exam Requirements

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To sit for the CPA exam as a first-time four-part candidate in Puerto Rico, follow these steps: You must be a United States citizen, or submit a statement of intent to become a citizen, be a resident of, or have a place of business in, Puerto Rico and be at least 21 years of age at time of certification. In addition you will need the following:

• A Bachelor's degree from a college or university approved by the Board with 150 hours of college credit, to include 38 hours in Accounting and 32 hours in general business, with a minimum 2.0 GPA in the Accounting and business courses. This rule applies to candidates graduating after December 31, 1999. Candidates graduating by December 31, 1999 need:
  1. A Bachelor's degree in Accounting from a college or university approved by the Board, or
  2. A Bachelor's degree from a college or university approved by the Board with at least 58 hours in business subjects, of which 32 must be in Accounting, or
  3. A Bachelor's degree from a college or university approved by the Board with 8 years of public accounting experience in lieu of Accounting and business education hours. The Board may, at its discretion, substitute governmental accounting or teaching experience for public accounting experience.

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If you meet the educational requirements, submit your application to the CPA Examination Services Puerto Rico Coordinator in Nashville, Tennessee. The application fee will be $210, the exam fees will total $743.20, and the process may take as long as eight weeks. Your name on the application should exactly match your name on your primary form of identification, which is usually your driver's license. At this time you should also begin planning your study approach by making inquiries into CPA reviews available in your area. The Becker CPA Review offers classes live, online or self-study to accommodate the needs of all candidates.

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Contact any educational institutions attended and request that transcripts be forwarded to CPA Examination Services for their evaluation. If you do not expect any problems in processing your application it is best to make plans to start your review at this time. The Becker CPA Review will significantly increase your chances of passing the exam.

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After receiving the required information, CPA Examination Services will issue your Authorization to Test (ATT) to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA). You will receive a Notice to Schedule (NTS) which is good for six months; however, since every third is non-testing, the NTS covers four testing months.

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Your NTS allows you to start scheduling your exams. You can sit for the exam parts in any sequence so you can plan your reviews to coincide with your exam scheduling. The most efficient approach is to sit for two parts in each exam window; however, exam fees paid for parts not taken are not refundable. Exam times are scheduled with Prometric and can be set up online at www.prometric.com/cpa . You can take the exam at a site in Guaynabo or any other Prometric location that is convenient to you.