Experience

Question: I have passed the exam but have not worked in public practice. I work for a CPA now, but on the private side. I have worked for CPAs in the past for more than 2 years in total. I have more than 150 units. Will this past work count for the new rules?

Response: Under the new rules, experience may be obtained in public accounting, private industry, or government as long as it was obtained under the supervision of an individual with a valid license to practice public accountancy. It appears that your past experience may be qualifying and that you could meet the experience requirements of either Pathway 1 or 2.

Keep in mind that to qualify for licensure you must meet the education and exam passage requirements of the new rules as well as the experience requirement.

Question: I completed a bachelor's in Business Administration with 18 semester units in accounting in 1994. I passed all four sections of the CPA Exam in California in May 1995. I completed an MBA with 6 units in accounting in 1997. Because I had worked in private industry during this time, I could not get certified in California. So, in 2000, I had a California CPA who I had worked with during our company's year-end work verify my level of experience to the Arizona Board of Accountancy and qualified as a CPA in that state. Will I now qualify in some way as a CPA in California under either of the new pathways without doing anything further?

Response: Having passed all four sections of the exam in one sitting in 1995 and subsequently obtained the additional education, you appear to meet the exam and education requirements of the pathways.

If you have accumulated 150 semester units of study, you may qualify for licensure with a one year experience requirement under Pathway 2. Because you did not meet the current educational requirements at the time that you initially applied for the exam, you must qualify and apply for licensure no later than Dec. 31, 2010. If you do not have 150 units of education and do not want to complete additional units, Pathway 1 is available to you and has a two year experience requirement. Again, you must qualify and apply for licensure no later than Dec. 31, 2010. Under the new requirements, experience may be obtained in private industry as long as it is performed in accordance with professional standards and is supervised by a CPA with an active license. If your private industry experience meets this standard, it may be qualifying and you could become licensed in California.

Question: How can I find my old supervisor? He was a CPA in California, but he moved to another state.

Response: Many state boards have added a License Lookup feature to their Web sites. For information about licensees of the California Board of Accountancy, go to the CBA's License Lookup.

To check the Web sites of boards of accountancy in other states, visit the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy at http://www.nasba.org/ and click on Site Map, then links and then Boards of Accountancy.

Question: What do I do if my employer still won't sign a form for me?

Response: Contact the California Board of Accountancy's licensing manager at (916) 263-3680 for assistance.

Out-of-State Licensure

Passed Exam Before Dec. 31, 2001

Attest Experience

Education Requirements

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