Florida CPA Exam

application guide
December 29, 2023
Table of Contents
Helpful list of organizations
Summary of exam application process
Other Resources
Exam Evolution 2024
Transition Policy
Proposed Testing Schedule 2024
Examination Credits
Education Requirements to SIT for the exam
Education Requirements to LICENSE
Florida Course Book Guide
Accreditation
Clay Ford Scholarship
Exam Application Process
Licensing Requirements
Helpful list of organizations
The following organizations each have a role in delivering the Uniform CPA Exam.

The American Institute of CPAs is a CPA membership organization that oversees the design, maintenance, and
AICPA
scoring of the Uniform CPA Exam.

In Florida, the Division of Certified Public Accounting determines who is eligible to sit for the CPA exam. The
CPA Division
CPA Division is part of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR).

Prometric Prometric is a world-wide testing provider who administers the CPA Exam.

The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy is a service provider for state boards of
NASBA accountancy. For Florida, these services include evaluations of foreign transcripts, managing registrations to
sit for the exam, publishing exam scores and maintaining a database of exam scores on exam candidates.

Information regarding CPA exam requirements, application, and licensing requirements and application can be
Florida DBPR
found here: http://www.myfloridalicense.com/DBPR/certified-public-accounting/

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Summary of the Exam Application Process

In Florida, a person desiring to sit for the CPA exam must submit an application that is separate and
different from an application for licensure. Applicants wishing to sit for the CPA exam must be
declared eligible by a “jurisdiction.” In Florida, the CPA Division processes applications to sit for the
exam and determines eligibility. Florida’s one-time eligibility determination covers all sections of the
exam.

Once eligibility is determined, the CPA Division notifies the applicant and NASBA’s CPA Examination
Services (CPAES). In about 3 to 5 business days, CPAES will email the candidate their Jurisdiction ID,
instructions on how to register to take exam sections, when to expect their Notice to Schedule (NTS),
and how to print it.

Your NTS will list the sections of the exam you are approved to take and will enable the candidate to
contact Prometric to begin the scheduling process. Prometric’s website includes a list of test centers.
 Other Resources

• An invaluable resource from NASBA on the process is: The Candidate Guide
• For detailed information relating to the actual exam, please visit NASBA CPA Exam.
• For an exam overview and resources to help you prepare, the AICPA offers The CPA Exam Booklet
• This link is to a Prometric site for CPA Exam information: CPA | Prometric
• The AICPA offers information on scoring: Learn more about CPA Exam Scoring and Pass rates

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Exam Evolution 2024
Beginning January 1, 2024, the exam will have a different
format.

The new CPA Exam model is a Core + Discipline model. The

model starts with a robust core in accounting, auditing, and
tax that all candidates must complete. Then, each candidate
must choose a Discipline section in which to demonstrate
greater skills and knowledge. Technology knowledge and skills
will be tested in all sections, as it pertains to each section.
Regardless of a candidate’s chosen discipline, this model leads
to a full CPA license, with rights and privileges consistent with
any other CPA. The Discipline section selected for testing does
not mean the CPA is limited to that practice area.

The new Disciplines reflect three pillars of the CPA profession:

Business analysis and reporting (BAR)
Information systems and controls (ISC)
Tax compliance and planning (TCP)

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 Transition Policy
• The transition policy is quite simple. Candidates
who have credit for AUD, FAR or REG on the prior
CPA Exam will not need to take the corresponding
new core section of AUD, FAR or REG on the 2024
CPA Exam. Candidates who have credit for BEC on
the prior CPA Exam will not need to take any of
the three discipline sections.
• If, however, a candidate loses credit for AUD,
FAR or REG after December 31, 2023, they then
must take the corresponding new Core section of
AUD, FAR or REG. A candidate who loses credit for
BEC after December 31, 2023, must select one of
the three Discipline sections to be tested. It is
important to note that none of the sections of the
current CPA Exam will be available for testing
after December 31, 2023. There is a hard cutover
from the current CPA Exam sections to the 2024
CPA Exam sections on the January 2024 launch.

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Proposed Testing Schedule for 2024

Note: DISCIPLINE TESTS ARE ONLY OFFERED FOR ONE MONTH PER QUARTER

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 Currently, Florida exam candidates must pass all four sections of the CPA examination
within a rolling eighteen-month period, which begins on the NASBA grade release date
for the first test section passed.

Credit relief initiative

on September 8, 2023, the Florida board considered but did not approve NASBA’s
recommendation for a one-time credit relief initiative that would have extended
examination credits that expired from January 30, 2020, through May 11, 2023, to June
30, 2025. These dates were based on the United States Department of Health and
Human Services declaring a national public health emergency.
On September 8, 2023, the Florida Board of Accountancy began the process to change
the rule from an eighteen-month to a thirty-month period. The proposed changes to rule

Examination
61H1-28.0052 (1) f.A.C. State:

“For any test section passed with a grade release date prior to January 1, 2024, a credit
will be valid for 18 months from the NASBA grade release date for that test section. For

Credits any test section passed with a grade release date on or after January 1, 2024, a credit will
be valid for thirty months from the NASBA grade release date for that test section.”

The proposed rule revision does not impact an extension granted in May 2023 in rule
61h1-28.0052 (2). It reads,

“The eighteen-month requirement, as stated in this rule, does not apply to credits
expiring between January 1, 2024, and June 29, 2025. Those credits shall be granted an
extension through June 30, 2025.”

Notes:

The extension is for credits expiring between 1/1/24 and 6/30/25.

The new rule applies to credits earned with a grade release date on or after 1/1/24.

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Education Requirements to SIT for the Exam:
(Chapter 61H1-27.002)
Total required hours to sit for the exam:
120 semester or 180 quarter hours:
Total upper-division accounting hours required of the 120 semester or 180 quarter hours:
24 semester or 36 quarter hours to include:
coverage in auditing and cost accounting,
three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of financial accounting and three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of taxation, both of which must be based on
USA accounting standards.
Total upper-division general business hours required of the 120 semester or 180 quarter hours:
24 semester or 36 quarter hours to include:
three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of business law based on USA Law.

All accounting courses and at least 21 semester or 32 quarter hours of general business courses must be at the upper-division level.

All general business courses must be taken at the upper-division level, except for Introductory Macro and Micro Economics, Introductory Statistics, Business
Law, Introduction to Computer Information Systems, and any written or oral communication course described in Rule 61H1-27.002(2)(b), F.A.C.

Upper-division accounting courses in excess of the accounting requirement may be used to meet the general business requirement.

Elementary accounting courses are not accepted for accounting or general business credit. Elementary accounting subjects include principles of financial and
managerial accounting courses even if they are covered in a three-course sequence, are titled “introductory,” “fundamentals,” or “principles,” and even if they are at
the graduate level.

Other important information: Staff cannot determine if courses taken meet education requirements via telephone, fax, or email. CPA Board staff determines eligibility
by conducting an official evaluation which includes submitting an application, transcripts, and other required documents and paying the required fee.

No credit will be given for courses that duplicate another course for which the applicant has received credit. Review courses are considered duplicates.

CLEP courses cannot be used to satisfy the Accounting Education Program requirements or the General Business Education Program. CLEP hours may be used
toward the 30 semester hours in excess of the degree.

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Education Requirements to LICENSE:
150 semester or 225 quarter hours
TOTAL UPPER-DIVISION ACCOUNTING HOURS:
30 semester or 45 quarter hours to include coverage in auditing, and cost accounting, and three (3) semester or four
(4) quarter hours of financial accounting and three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of taxation both of which
must be based on USA accounting standards.

TOTAL GENERAL BUSINESS HOURS:

36 semester or 54 quarter hours to include three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of business law based
on USA Law.
Note: All accounting courses and not less than 21 semester or 32 quarter hours of general business courses
must be at the upper-division level. For the purpose of paragraph 61H1-27.002(2)(b), F.A.C., all general
business courses, including accounting courses in excess of the 30 semester hours required, must be taken
at the upper-division level, except for Introductory Macro and Micro Economics, Business Law,
Introductory Statistics, Introduction to Computer Information Systems, and any written or oral
communication course described in paragraph 61H1-27.002(2)(b), F.A.C. Lower level general business
courses, other than those listed above, posted to transcripts after August 31, 1989, will not count.
Standardized tests, such as CLEP, are not acceptable for accounting or general business courses; however,
advanced placement (AP) courses will be counted if the applicant has been granted college credit for those
AP courses by their degree-granting institution.
Note: The requirements listed above include the 120 semester or 180 quarter hours required to sit for the
CPA exam.

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 Florida
Course Book Guide
http://www.myfloridalicense.com/dbpr/cpa/documents/mastercoursebookguide.xlsx

Key Points:
The Guide is not all-inclusive. It may not include every accounting or business course offered by a
college or All transcripts are subject to evaluation when submitted to determine educational
qualifications.
If the course material and depth of study change, the Educational Advisory Committee may
change the eligibility determination.
The course guide is downloadable as an Excel document and separated by institution.
The only valid version of the Course Guide is on the Division of Certified Public Accounting
webpage. The Division of Certified Public Accounting will update this guide periodically as the
Board and the Committee approve or deny courses for eligibility. The version date listed on the
course guide references when it was last updated.
If an applicant has questions pertaining to the educational requirements, they are encouraged to
read about the educational requirements to sit for the exam or for licensure:
• on the Certified Public Accounting website or
• 61H1-27.0002 Concentrations in Accounting and Business, F.A.C.

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Accreditation
(Chapter 61H1-27.001)
The Board accepts degrees from schools accredited by the following associations:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools;

Middle States Commission on Higher Education;
New England Association of Schools and Colleges;
Higher Learning Commission;
Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities;
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools;
Western Association of Schools and Colleges;
Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB);
European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS):
Association of Independent Colleges and Schools. After August 2, 1992 the Association of Independent
Colleges and Schools (AICS) will no longer be deemed an acceptable accrediting agency, unless the college or
school accredited by the AICS is regulated by the Commission for Independent Education and exempted from
licensure by the CIE under the provisions of section 246.085, F.S.
Canadian, Mexican, Irish, Australian, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, and Hong Kong academic
accounting programs approved by the provincial education bodies or the equivalent educational accreditation
body for that country.
If you have graduated from a school or college which is not accredited by the above-mentioned means,
then you must use the provisions of 61H1-27.001(5), F.A.C.

Non-Accredited Schools
(Chapter 61H1-27.001(5))
Applicants who have graduated from a non-accredited school may still qualify to sit for the CPA
examination. The candidate must take 15 semester hours of graduate classes from an accredited
institution. The 15 semester hours must include at least nine hours of graduate-level accounting courses to
include three semester hours of graduate tax. The applicant must complete the graduate school courses to
validate the non-accredited degree. These courses cannot duplicate other courses that the applicant has
taken and cannot satisfy the educational requirements.

Foreign Transcripts
(Chapter 61H1-27.001(6))
Applicants with a foreign transcript must submit a transcript evaluation completed by an evaluation service
approved by the Board (see Board Approved Evaluation Service). The applicant must instruct the
evaluation service to prepare an evaluation specifically for the Florida Board of Accountancy. The Board
will not accept an evaluation prepared for another entity.

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 APPLICATIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY JUNE 1
About
The DBPR Clay Ford Scholarship Program was established to assist dedicated
students entering the required fifth year to obtain a CPA license. Each year,

CERTIFIED
$200,000 is made available in scholarship funding for this program. Eligible
applicants may receive up to $8,000 per semester for a maximum of two
semesters.

PUBLIC Eligibility
• Financial need (as calculated through completion of FAFSA application)
Financial Aid Form

ACCOUNTING • Ethnicity, gender, or racial minority status pursuant to section 288.703(4)

F.S.

– CLAY FORD
• Scholastic ability and performance, (including the intention of sitting for the
CPA exam) Registrar’s Form
• Completion of 120 credit hours from an accredited institution in Florida

SCHOLARSHIP • Florida residency

Application
Complete the application by clicking the link below. Applications must be
submitted by June 1 via one of the three options listed below.
Applying early will allow time for staff to review your application and notify
you of any missing information required to complete your application by the
deadline. Incomplete applications may not be accepted.

dbprcpa11clayford.pdf (myfloridalicense.com)

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 Step 1: Once you have satisfied the education requirements to sit for the exam, you
must apply to sit for the CPA exam through Florida DBPR FIRST. Florida will review your
transcripts and notify you of any lacking credits. After Florida has approved all credits
needed to sit for the exam, you will receive a letter by email approving you to sit for
the CPA exam. You will receive an email with your Jurisdiction ID number from CPAES
(CPA exam services) within 10 business days. If you do not receive this, you must email
or call cpaes_general_email@nasba.org, cpaexam@nasba.org, 1-800-CPA-EXAM.

Exam
Application website: Welcome to DBPR Online Services (login.login)
(myfloridalicense.com)
Note: Applying for your jurisdiction ID number is not the same thing as applying

Application for your NTS. When you get to the screen that asks which exams you are sitting
for, you can check one or all of them. When you are approved by Florida DBPR to
sit for the exam, you are approved for all sections.
Process Note: When uploading your transcripts, you can upload an electronic copy that
was submitted to you from your university, even if it says, “submitted to student”
or “unofficial transcript”. Florida DBPR prefers electronic copies and does not
(currently) have a way to submit electronic copies from the school.

Step 2: Once you receive your jurisdiction ID number, you will register for a CPA portal
account and buy your first Notice to Schedule (NTS).
NASBA CPA Portal: NASBA.org - Sign In

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Exam Application Process
Step 3: Buy your NTS. In Florida, the NTS costs $344.80 per test. Once you buy
your NTS, you have 6 months to take the test before your NTS expires and will
be required to buy a new one. NASBA does not offer refunds. Due to this, it is
recommended to buy one NTS at a time. You cannot buy another NTS for the
same exam while waiting for an exam score.
I.e. if you take AUD on 2/1/24 and think you failed and want to take it again before the next
exam score cut-off date, you cannot. You cannot buy another AUD NTS until you have received
your score for the current NTS issued.
Note: for your first exam, it may take Prometric 72 hours to receive your information in their
system, resulting in a lag between the NTS issued and the ability to schedule your exam. For
the following exams, the NTSs are populated in Prometric within an hour, allowing immediate
scheduling.

Step 4: Schedule your exam through Prometric. Note the 2024 testing schedule
for the discipline exams, as they are only offered for one month per quarter.
After scheduling your exam, if you need to reschedule your exam, you can do so for free if it is
over 30 days out of your exam. Within 30 days, there is a fee of $35. Within 4 days and up to
24 hours, the fee is $84.84. If the exam is within 24 hours, you cannot reschedule, and you will
forfeit your NTS and need to reapply for a new one (spending an additional $344.80).

Step 5: Day of the test, ensure you bring your NTS and identification listed on
your NTS. For most people, this is your Florida driver’s license. You may need a
secondary ID, such as a passport if you are international. If your name on your
ID does not EXACTLY match your NTS, you will not be allowed to test.
Note: the exams are 4 hours long, with a 15-minute break that is not timed. You cannot take anything
into the exam room except for a jacket and foam earplugs. You will receive a locker for your phone, keys,
and water bottle. You cannot bring notes in to the test center. You can only access your locker for water,
food, and medication. You cannot access your phone during breaks. During your break, you cannot access
any paper, including paper money.

Step 6: Wait for the score release and repeat steps 3-5 for the remaining exam
parts.
Step 7: When all four exam parts are complete, you can apply for licensing
through Florida DBPR if all licensing requirements are met.

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 Initial Licensure Requirements:

Applicants must apply for licensure and complete the application process within three years of receiving notification from NASBA of passing
the last part of the CPA exam. If an applicant fails to complete the licensure application process within this three-year period, their CPA
examination grades will expire and the applicant may reapply for licensure by endorsement, pursuant to Section 473.308(7) (a), F.S.

PASS ALL FOUR PARTS OF CPA EXAMINATION within a rolling 18-month period.

ONE YEAR OF WORK EXPERIENCE: Work experience must be verified by a licensed CPA and must commence after completion of 120
semester, or 180 quarter, hours from an accredited college or university with a concentration in accounting and business courses.

*Work experience shall include any type of service or advice involving the use of accounting, attest, compilation, management advisory,
financial advisory, tax, or consulting skills, all of which must be verified by a certified public accountant who is licensed by a state or territory
of the United States. This experience is acceptable if it was gained through employment in government, industry, academia, or public
practice and constituted a substantial part of the applicant’s duties.

The experience must either average at least twenty (20) hours a week over no more than one-hundred and four (104) weeks, or average no
more than forty (40) hours a week over no more than fifty-two (52) weeks.

The verifying certified public accountant shall verify that the applicant rendered such services for a minimum of 2,000 hours gained over a
period of not less than fifty-two (52) weeks or more than one-hundred and four (104) weeks when submitting the Verification of Work
Experience form. The sequence of the experience, whether the experience was secured before or after taking the examination, or partly
before the examination and partly after the examination is considered immaterial, provided the two periods combined equal at least one

Licensing
year.

TOTAL REQUIRED HOURS: 150 semester or 225 quarter hours.

TOTAL UPPER-DIVISION ACCOUNTING HOURS: 30 semester or 45 quarter hours to include coverage in auditing, and cost accounting,

Requirements
and three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of financial accounting and three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of taxation both of
which must be based on USA accounting standards.

TOTAL GENERAL BUSINESS HOURS: 36 semester or 54 quarter hours to include three (3) semester or four (4) quarter hours of business
law based on USA Law.

Note: All accounting courses and not less than 21 semester or 32 quarter hours of general business courses must be at the upper-division
level. For the purpose of paragraph 61H1-27.002(2)(b), F.A.C., all general business courses, including accounting courses in excess of the 30
semester hours required, must be taken at the upper-division level, except for Introductory Macro and Micro Economics, Business Law,
Introductory Statistics, Introduction to Computer Information Systems, and any written or oral communication course described in
paragraph 61H1-27.002(2)(b), F.A.C. Lower level general business courses, other than those listed above, posted to transcripts after August
31, 1989, will not count. Standardized tests, such as CLEP, are not acceptable for accounting or general business courses; however,
advanced placement (AP) courses will be counted if the applicant has been granted college credit for those AP courses by their degree-
granting institution.

Note: The requirements listed above include the 120 semester or 180 quarter hours required to sit for the CPA exam.

Application Requirements:

To successfully obtain an original license, a candidate must:

Submit DBPR CPA 2 CPA Licensure Application and $50.00 non-refundable fee.

Evidence one year of acceptable work experience as described above under Initial Licensure Requirements.

Submit official transcripts evidencing completion of the required hours listed above under Initial Licensure Requirements.

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Good Luck!
Stephanie Bruce-Torres
sbrucetorres@ksdt-cpa.com