Arizona CPA requirements
This information is here to help you take the next step in your career. While we strive to keep this up-to-date and accurate, we also recommending that you check the Arizona Board of Accountancy for the most current information.
Taking the CPA Exam is one of the biggest challenges to obtaining your CPA license in Arizona. In order to sit for the exam, you must meet the following requirements:
- A bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution, college or university
- At least 24 semester hours (36 quarter hours) in accounting, 12 (18 quarter hours) of which must be upper-level coursework.
- At least 18 semester hours (27 quarter hours) of related coursework that may include business administration, statistics, economics, finance, advanced mathematics, advanced communications, management, ethics and business law
- Submitting an application form, including your college transcripts plus the application fee
Taking the CPA Exam is one of the biggest challenges to obtaining your CPA license in Arizona. In order to sit for the exam, you must meet the following requirements:
- A bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution, college or university
- At least 24 semester hours (36 quarter hours) in accounting, 12 (18 quarter hours) of which must be upper-level coursework.
- At least 18 semester hours (27 quarter hours) of related coursework that may include business administration, statistics, economics, finance, advanced mathematics, advanced communications, management, ethics and business law
- Submitting an application form, including your college transcripts plus the application fee
Taking the CPA Exam is one of the biggest challenges to obtaining your CPA license in Arizona. In order to sit for the exam, you must meet the following requirements:
- A bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited institution, college or university
- At least 24 semester hours (36 quarter hours) in accounting, 12 (18 quarter hours) of which must be upper-level coursework.
- At least 18 semester hours (27 quarter hours) of related coursework that may include business administration, statistics, economics, finance, advanced mathematics, advanced communications, management, ethics and business law
- Submitting an application form, including your college transcripts plus the application fee
CPA requirements in Arizona
In addition to passing all four sections of the CPA Exam (3 Core sections and 1 Discipline of your choosing), you must also complete additional education and experience requirements.
Education requirements
CPA candidates must complete at least 150 semester hours (180 quarter hours) of college credit which must include:
- 36 hours (54 quarter hours) of accounting courses, 30 hours (45 quarter hours) of which at least 30 hours are upper-level courses
- 30 semester hours of business courses which can include business administration, statistics, economics, finance, management, business law, college algebra or other advanced mathematics, advanced communication and ethics.
Experience requirements
CPA candidates must have at least 2,000 hours of relevant experience the demonstrates your ability to analyze and understand financial statements and tax returns and communicate these results to your employer, client or third party. This can be paid or unpaid and may be completed before, during or after passing all four sections of the CPA Exam. Your supervisors must complete a Certificate of Experience to verify your work and show you’ve completed 2,000 hours of accounting experience.
Additional Arizona CPA requirements
All CPA candidates must provide proof that they completed the Professional Ethics for CPAs Exam with a minimum score of 90 percent. You can take the ethics exam through the AICPA
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Arizona CPA license renewals
Arizona CPA license renewals are given on a biennial basis based on birth year. Even-number birth years will register during the month of their birth every even-numbered year. Odd-number birth years will register during the month of their birth every odd-numbered year.
To meet the Arizona CPA CPE requirements, you will need to complete 80 hours of continued professional education (CPE) every renewal period (two years). Those 80 hours must include:
- Four hours in ethics. Of those, one hour must be ethics related to the practice of accounting. This can include the AICPA Professional Code of Conduct. One hour must also be related to the Arizona State Board of Accountancy statutes and administrative rules.
- 16 hours of classroom or via a live webcast or webinar
- 40 hours must be in accounting, auditing, taxation, business law or consulting services. Of those, 16 hours must be focused on accounting, auditing or taxation.
To meet the Arizona CPA CPE requirements, you will need to complete 80 hours of continued professional education (CPE) every renewal period (two years). Those 80 hours must include:
- Four hours in ethics. Of those, one hour must be ethics related to the practice of accounting. This can include the AICPA Professional Code of Conduct. One hour must also be related to the Arizona State Board of Accountancy statutes and administrative rules.
- 16 hours of classroom or via a live webcast or webinar
- 40 hours must be in accounting, auditing, taxation, business law or consulting services. Of those, 16 hours must be focused on accounting, auditing or taxation.
To meet the Arizona CPA CPE requirements, you will need to complete 80 hours of continued professional education (CPE) every renewal period (two years). Those 80 hours must include:
- Four hours in ethics. Of those, one hour must be ethics related to the practice of accounting. This can include the AICPA Professional Code of Conduct. One hour must also be related to the Arizona State Board of Accountancy statutes and administrative rules.
- 16 hours of classroom or via a live webcast or webinar
- 40 hours must be in accounting, auditing, taxation, business law or consulting services. Of those, 16 hours must be focused on accounting, auditing or taxation.
