Arkansas CPA requirements

This page serves as a resource for the Arkansas CPA and CPE requirements. Be sure to consult the Arkansas State Board of Accountancy CPA requirements for the most current information, as the state board will ultimately license you.

Arkansas CPA requirements

Getting a CPA in each state mandates different requirements for taking the CPA Exam and becoming a licensed CPA. In order to be eligible to become a CPA in the state of Arkansas, you need to meet certain education and experience requirements. Below, we've highlighted the Arkansas CPA requirements for taking the CPA Exam and acquiring licensure.

Arkansas CPA Exam requirements

In order to sit for the CPA Exam in the state of Arkansas, you must meet the following requirements: 

• You must have a bachelor's degree, 30 hours of upper-level accounting courses and 30 hours in business courses other than accounting.
• Accounting and business classes must be completed with a grade of "C" or above.

In order to meet the education requirements to sit for the CPA Exam, the accounting classes must cover the following topics:

• Financial accounting (intermediate accounting)
• Management accounting (cost accounting)
• Governmental or not-for-profit accounting (institutional accounting)
• Federal taxation (advanced income tax or fundamentals of taxation)
• Auditing and attestation
• Accounting information systems

Arkansas CPA license requirements

In order to apply for CPA licensure in the state of Arkansas, you must meet the following requirements:

• You must authorize the Board of Accountancy to obtain state and national criminal background checks, to be conducted by the Identification Bureau of the Division of Arkansas State Police and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
• You must pay examination fees, as detailed below. 
• All applicants must have at least one year of work experience, including providing any type of service or advice involving the use of accounting, attestation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax, or consulting skills. This experience will be acceptable if it was gained through employment in government, industry, academia or public practice.

Ethics exam requirement

In addition to the requirements above, all licensees are required to take one hour of Arkansas Board Ethics covering the Accountancy Law and Board Rules. This requirement will replace one of the four hours of ethics from previous Board Rule requirements (now requiring one hour of ASBPA Ethics and three additional hours of ethics over every three-year period).   

Arkansas CPA CPE requirements

CPA renewals

Arkansas CPE licenses are renewed yearly, every January 1 (period of Dec. 31 to Jan. 1).

CPE requirements in Arkansas

An applicant for renewal of a license must have completed acceptable continuing professional education (CPE), in the amount of 120 hours within 36 months or 40 hours within 12 months, immediately preceding January 1 of the year for which the license is renewed. Further CPE requirements include:

• All license holders shall complete at least 50% of the required hours in the subject areas of accounting, accounting ethics, attestation, or taxation.
• License holders engaged in any attest or compilation function shall complete at least 20% of the required hours in the subject areas of attestation and accounting theory/practice.
• License holders must complete at least 4 hours of CPE in the area of accounting professional conduct and ethics during the 36-months immediately preceding the expiration date of their current license.
• Licensees who received their initial license during the current calendar year are exempt from the ethics requirement until their first full calendar year of licensure.
• Licensees must also complete one hour of CPE on Arkansas State Board of Public Accountancy specific laws and rules. This requirement may be satisfied by completing a web based course via the Board's website or attending group training taught by a board member, board staff member, or a designee of the Board, and will count towards the 4 hour ethics requirement. The hour of CPE on Board specific rules and laws must be completed during the 36 months immediately preceding the expiration date of the current license.

Arkansas CPA license fees

Learn more about the fees here.

Sources:

Arkansas State Board of the Accountancy CPA requirements - Sitting for the CPA Exam

CPE, renewals

Ethics exam