The requirements to become a CPA in Florida can be a bit confusing so I put this guide together to help you navigate the process! If you’re just starting to research getting your CPA license in FL then I suggest starting from the top. Otherwise, feel free to skip ahead to any section you’d like to know a little more about!
Contents
- 1 6 Simple Steps to Becoming a CPA in Florida
- 2 Meet the Eligibility Requirements for the CPA Exam
- 3 Fulfill the FL CPA Education Requirements
- 4 Apply to Sit for the CPA Exam and Pay the Exam Fees
- 5 Study for, and PASS the CPA Exam!
- 6 FL CPA Work Experience Requirements
- 7 Obtain Your CPA License!
- 8 Additional Resources and Information
- 9 Contact Information
- 10 Bottom Line
6 Simple Steps to Becoming a CPA in Florida
Meet the Eligibility Requirements for the CPA Exam
Here are the basic age and citizenship requirements to sit for the CPA exam in Florida:
- Minimum age requirement?: No
- US citizenship required?: No
- Florida residency required?: No
- Minimum level of education required: See next section
- Valid Social Security Number (SSN)* required?: Yes
*An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) may also be provided
Fulfill the FL CPA Education Requirements
In Florida you need at least 150 semester hours (or 225 quarter hours) to obtain your CPA license but only 120 semester hours (180 quarter hours) to sit for the CPA Exam, which means you can sit for the exam while you’re still in college!
If you’d like more information, here’s a detailed breakdown of exactly what’s needed to sit for the CPA Exam and for licensure:
Requirements to sit for the CPA Exam:
- Have at least 120 semester hours or 180 quarter hours from an accredited college, university or foreign equivalent
Applicants who have graduated from a non-accredited school may still qualify to sit for the CPA examination, but you need to have taken at least 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. These courses cannot duplicate other courses which the applicant has taken and they cannot be used to satisfy the educational requirements.
Applicants must also submit an evaluation of their foreign transcripts, which must be completed by an evaluation service which has been approved by the Board (see Board Approved Evaluation Service).
- 24 semester hours or 36 quarter hours of Upper Division Accounting courses, including the following: Taxation, Auditing, Financial, and Cost
Do you have Law School accounting courses? If so, Taxation courses are generally the only courses for which the Board is able to grant accounting credit. The Board will not grant credit for the following:
- Wills and Estate or Gratuitous Transfer classes that do not emphasize taxation topics
- Law school courses that duplicate courses for which the applicant has previously received credit (Law School courses, Federal Taxation I and II, are substantially equivalent to Taxation I and II (or Individual Taxation and Corporate, Partnership Taxation) classes taught in accounting programs. They will be considered duplications)
- 24 semester hours or 36 quarter hours of General Business courses, including at least three (3) semester hours or four (4) quarter hours business law
One microeconomics, one macroeconomics, one statistics, one business law, and one introduction to computers course may be lower division.
Excess upper division accounting courses may be used to meet the general business requirement, but not the business law requirement. However, elementary accounting classes are never acceptable for credit. Neither are courses for non-accounting majors and any MBA courses that are equivalent to elementary accounting.
Also, the following Law School courses are generally accepted for General Business credit:
- Consumer Law Corporation Finance & Reorganization
- Bankruptcy Fiduciary Administration
- Marketing Real Estate
- Business Organization Estate Planning
- Corporations Commercial Paper
- Insurance Debtor’s Estates
- Security in Goods Property
- Torts Contracts
- Agency & Partnership Anti-Trust
- Sales Secured Transactions
Requirements to obtain your CPA license:
- Have at least 150 total semester hours or 225 quarter hours (i.e. bachelor’s degree or higher) from an accredited college, university or foreign equivalent
- 30 semester or 45 quarter hours of Upper Division Accounting courses, including the following: Taxation, Auditing, Financial, and Cost/Managerial
- 36 semester hours or 54 quarter hours of General Business courses, including at least three (3) semester hours or four (4) quarter hours business law
Apply to Sit for the CPA Exam and Pay the Exam Fees
Be sure to check out this post where I break down the entire CPA Exam application process for you, step-by-step.
The cost to apply and register for all four parts of the CPA Exam in Florida are as follows:
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*Florida‘s Notice to Schedule (NTS) window is 6 months, so you should only register and pay for the exam section(s) you intend to take within that time. If you need to schedule any sections beyond the original 6 month NTS window, a $75 examination fee plus the associated exam section fees above will apply.
Have you ever sat for the CPA Exam in another state? If so, you’ll also need to submit an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Examination and Licensure Information form, even if you didn’t pass any sections.
Study for, and PASS the CPA Exam!
Studying for the CPA Exam is definitely the most challenging and time consuming part of the whole process, so you might as well get a jump start on studying as soon as your fees are submitted.
Not sure which exam section to take first? Check out my post where I break down the pros and cons of each route you can go so you can make the best possible decision: Which section of the CPA Exam should I take first?
By far the most important factor to success on the CPA Exam is sticking to a consistent study schedule and not letting too much time lapse between study sessions.
The CPA Exam is not a test you can just cram for so you’ll want to make sure you space out the material into manageable chunks in a way that fits your schedule.
As long as you schedule things out properly, you won’t have to sacrifice your entire social life for the CPA Exam like some folks say!
You’ll also need to purchase a CPA review course that’s best suited for your study style and budget. I’ve personally tested and examined all of the top review courses out there so you can find the best one for you.
If you still can’t decide which course is best, send me an email and I’ll personally help you!
FL CPA Work Experience Requirements
In addition to the education requirements discussed above, the Florida’s Division of Certified Public Accounting requires that you have a certain amount of work experience before you can obtain your CPA license. The requirements are fairly straightforward: but vary depending on the type of work you’ll be performing:
- You must have at least 1 year of work experience under a licensed CPA.
- Experience may be from full-time or part-time employment, as long as you’ve worked a minimum of 2,000 hours over the course of a 1-2 year period.
Work experience is defined as “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.”
Obtain Your CPA License!
Whew! After passing all four sections of the CPA exam and meeting the education and work experience requirements, you’ll finally be ready to apply for your CPA license!
Florida’s application process is fairly straightforward. In order to receive your CPA license, you’ll need to complete and submit the following:
- Your CPA license application
- Documentation of work experience
- Application fees
Assuming you’ve completed all of the requirements noted above, then you should be well on your way to getting your CPA license!
Be sure to check out the resources I’ve included below to help you during the application and licensing process.
Additional Resources and Information
FAQs on the Application, Exam and Licensing
Contact Information
Division of Certified Public Accounting
240 NW 76th Drive, Suite A
Gainesville, FL 32607
Email: veloria.kelly@myfloridalicense.com or
Contact form: http://www.myfloridalicense.com/contactus/
Phone: (850) 487-1395
Fax: (352) 333-2508
Additional Organizations
Bottom Line
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To learn more about some of the things you’ll need to prepare for the CPA Exam, be sure to check out my detailed reviews of each of the top courses on the market:
