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Eligibility
International candidates are eligible to qualify as U.S. Certified Public
Accountants (CPAs) as long as they meet Board of Accountancy eligibility
requirements in one of 54 U.S jurisdictions - the 50 states, District of
Columbia , Puerto Rico , U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. (The 55th jurisdiction,
the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands , is not yet ready to accept
CPA applicants.)
International candidates must be prepared to take the Uniform CPA Examination
in one of the 54 U.S. jurisdictions. (It is not offered anywhere else.) They
must also be able to take the CPA Examination in English. (It is not available
in any other language.)
Qualifying through a board of accountancy is the ONLY route to the CPA
designation. There is NO central professional body in the U.S. through
which candidates may qualify as CPAs.
Applying for the Uniform CPA Examination
The application process is basically the same for U.S. and international
candidates alike. Prospective candidates must select the U.S. jurisdiction
to which they will apply, contact the Board of Accountancy (or its agent)
in that jurisdiction to obtain application materials, submit completed applications
and required fees as instructed, and once deemed qualified, schedule the
examination. Any special requirements that international applicants must
meet (such as arranging for an evaluation of their educational credentials
by an agency approved by the board) are explained in accountancy board application
instructions.
Prospective candidates who are undecided about the jurisdiction to which
they should apply may wish to review the requirements of several Boards of
Accountancy before making their decisions. Contact information for all boards
is available at www.nasba.org
Applying for IQEX (International Uniform Certified Public Accountant
Qualification Examination)
IQEX is a four-and-a-half hour examination designed to facilitate the U.S.
CPA qualification process for those accounting professionals from other countries
whose professional bodies have entered into reciprocity agreements with the
U.S. accounting profession. Such agreements are currently in effect with
the following organizations:
Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA)
Instituto Mexicano De Contadores Publicos (IMCP)
Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI)
Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA)
CPA Australia
Detailed information about IQEX eligibility requirements and IQEX application
materials are available from NASBA at www.nasba.org
The IQEX Content Specifications Outline (CSO) listing examination topics
is available from the AICPA. Click
here to access.
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