Florida CPA Exam Requirements 2026
A qualified candidate can use the Florida route with 120 semester hours, subject to every other published rule. Check your education, application route, current known fees, deadlines, and next steps in one place.
Florida CPA requirements at a glance
Exam eligibility and CPA licensure are different decisions. This page leads with the rules to sit and keeps licensing information in a separate comparison.
Are you eligible for the CPA Exam in Florida?
Florida allows a qualified candidate to sit at 120 semester hours. The application authority makes the final decision from official documents.
What to confirm before applying
- Complete bachelor's degree.
- Complete at least 120 semester hours.
- Complete 24 qualifying accounting semester hours.
- Complete 24 qualifying business semester hours.
Named coursework and accreditation
- Accounting: financial accounting.
- Accounting: cost or managerial accounting.
- Accounting: taxation.
- Accounting: auditing.
- Business: business law.
Coursework must be from accredited institutions and satisfy Florida upper-division definitions.
| Question | Current answer | Action |
|---|---|---|
| Can I sit before 150 hours? | Yes, if every other requirement is met. | Keep licensing education separate from exam eligibility. |
| Can I apply before the degree is awarded? | No published pre-degree application route is available. | Follow every final-transcript deadline. |
| Must I live in the jurisdiction? | No Florida jurisdiction-residency rule was identified. | Check separate U.S. residency, citizenship, SSN, and identity rules. |
| Are nontraditional credits accepted? | Treatment differs by credit type. | Use the credit-treatment checklist below and confirm unknowns. |
Education-hour details
| Requirement | Semester hours | Quarter hours | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total college credit | 120 | 180 | The 24 accounting hours must be upper division. Florida's Board controls the detailed treatment of elementary accounting, internships, duplicate courses, and business-law credit. |
| Accounting | 24 | 36 | Named subjects: financial accounting, cost or managerial accounting, taxation, auditing. |
| Business | 24 | 36 | Named subjects: business law. |
| Upper-level accounting | 24 | Not yet confirmed | Shown separately when the jurisdiction publishes an upper-level minimum. |
Credit types to confirm
- Community-college credit: Allowed subject to the published conditions
- Online credit: Allowed subject to the published conditions
- CLEP credit: Confirm with the application authority
- AP credit: Allowed subject to the published conditions
- Pass/fail credit: Confirm with the application authority
- Internship credit: Allowed subject to the published conditions
Florida eligibility gap planner
Enter your education and personal details to compare them with the published Florida requirements. Nuanced course classifications still require an official evaluation.
Check 4 published eligibility gates
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How to apply for the CPA Exam in Florida
Florida Board of Accountancy for eligibility; NASBA CPAES for section registration is the application authority. Application method: Board eligibility application followed by NASBA online section registration.
Your application sequence
- Audit your transcriptsMatch total hours, degree status, accounting, business, and named-course requirements.
- Read the current official instructionsConfirm personal rules, deadlines, fees, and the exact application route.
- Submit the applicationApply through Florida Board of Accountancy for eligibility; NASBA CPAES for section registration and pay the amount shown in the live application.
- Send official documentsArrange transcripts and evaluations through the method required by the application authority.
- Resolve follow-up requestsMonitor the applicant portal and respond to education or identity questions.
- Download the NTS and scheduleUse the exact name and expiration printed on the Notice to Schedule.
Documents to prepare
- Florida Board application.
- official transcripts.
- NASBA section registration after Board approval.
Processing time
The application authority does not publish a standard processing time.
Always follow the live application instructions in case a recipient, document method, address, or fee has changed.
Build your Florida application plan
The calculators use currently published numeric fees and time limits. Any amount or period not published is excluded.
CPA Exam cost calculator
Calculate the currently published fee components. Charges not listed by the application authority are excluded.
6-month NTS planner
Estimate the end of the published NTS period before purchasing more sections than you can reasonably take.
Florida application checklist
Check off each step as you finish it. Progress is stored only in this browser.
See what the CPA Exam journey feels like—while fighting off zombies.
Open CPA Exam Survival inside the CPA Exam Arcade and choose Story Mode. You will experience a playful version of the journey from signing up through studying and sitting for the exam.
Choose Story Mode when the game opens. This is an educational game, not an official AICPA or Prometric exam simulator.
Florida exam, NTS, and retake rules
Eligibility gets you into the exam. These rules determine how long your authorization and passing scores remain useful.
Pass four sections with a 75
Pass AUD, FAR, and REG plus one discipline: BAR, ISC, or TCP. Each required section uses a passing score of 75.
- Core sections are generally available through continuous testing.
- Discipline sections follow the applicable AICPA administration windows.
- Schedule only sections you can reasonably prepare for before the NTS expires.
Your 30-month credit window
Use the NTS expiration date printed by NASBA.
- Initial eligibility is determined by the Florida Board.
- Discipline sections follow AICPA testing windows.
Check CPA score-release timing · Compare how long CPA Exam scores last.
Compare review courses by the support you actually need.
Evaluate teaching style, practice tools, access length, guarantees, and total price before spending.
Important limits for international candidates
Foreign-education acceptance, the application jurisdiction, and the country where you physically test are separate decisions.
If your education was earned outside the U.S.
- Foreign education accepted: Yes, subject to evaluation conditions
- Credential evaluation required: Yes
- NIES required: No—use an evaluator accepted by the jurisdiction
- Approved evaluation services: Florida Board-approved foreign credential evaluation services
- Certified translation: Required
The Board controls the evaluator list; NIES should not be assumed mandatory.
If you want to test outside the United States
An international Prometric location does not create independent CPA Exam eligibility. You must first qualify through a participating U.S. jurisdiction.
Confirm that Florida participates for the country where you want to test and check the international administration fee before scheduling.
Check NASBA's current international administration list · Compare CPA jurisdictions for international candidates.
Florida CPA licensure comparison
Passing the exam is not the same as receiving a CPA license. This limited comparison prevents the licensing threshold from being mistaken for the rule to sit.
| Requirement | To sit for the exam | For licensure |
|---|---|---|
| Education | 120 semester hours plus all applicable degree and coursework requirements | 150 hours under the current comparison route |
| Experience | Not treated as an exam-sitting requirement unless the application instructions expressly say otherwise | 1 year required |
| Ethics exam | Separate from the Uniform CPA Exam | Confirm |
| Alternative pathway | Do not apply a licensure alternative automatically to exam eligibility | No Change Identified: No enacted alternative licensure pathway was identified in the official sources reviewed for this update. |
Pathway timing matters: Current Board and NASBA materials retain Florida's existing licensure framework; no separate enacted or adopted alternative licensure pathway was identified as Of September 8, 2026.
Florida CPA Exam requirements FAQ
How many college hours do I need to sit for the CPA Exam in Florida?
Florida currently lists 120 semester hours for exam eligibility, together with every applicable degree, accounting, business, and personal requirement.
Do I need 150 semester hours to sit in Florida?
No. Florida allows a qualified candidate to begin testing before completing 150 hours. Licensure education is a separate requirement.
Do I have to live in Florida to take the CPA Exam?
No Florida jurisdiction-residency requirement applies to exam eligibility. Other personal requirements can still apply.
Can I apply before my degree is awarded in Florida?
Florida does not offer a published pre-degree application route. Wait for the required degree or obtain written direction from the application authority.
How much does the CPA Exam application cost in Florida?
The current known first-section total is $414.59, using every mandatory fee layer in the verified snapshot. Returning-candidate and later-section totals can differ. Always confirm the live amount before payment.
How long do Florida CPA Exam credits last?
Florida provides a 30-month examination-credit window. Follow the jurisdiction's exact start-date rule and the expiration shown in your candidate account.
Can I use education earned outside the United States for Florida?
Florida accepts foreign education subject to an approved credential evaluation. Use an evaluation service accepted by the application authority.
Your next CPA Exam research steps
Use this Florida page as your eligibility command center, then move into application timing and study-material research.
Official Florida sources used for this guide
Open the controlling source before paying a non-refundable fee if your education, residency, identity, or pathway is unusual.
Confirm your situation before applying: We reviewed each requirement against the official sources below. Rules, fees, and Board interpretations can change quickly and sometimes without a widely distributed announcement, and your transcript or circumstances may be evaluated differently. Before you apply, pay a fee, or enroll in coursework, confirm your situation directly with Florida Board of Accountancy for eligibility; NASBA CPAES for section registration.
- Certified Public Accounting ExaminationFlorida Department of Business and Professional Regulation · State Board
- Florida CPA ExamNational Association of State Boards of Accountancy · NASBA
- Sit for CPA Examination — Application ChecklistFlorida Department of Business and Professional Regulation · Official Application
Editorial standard: Proposed rules are not presented as effective, and interactive results are planning guidance rather than official eligibility determinations. Official sources last reviewed: August 8, 2026.
Reviewed by Bryan Kesler, CPA
Bryan Kesler is the founder of CPA Exam Guide. Regulatory eligibility is always determined by the applicable Board or examination authority.