There are three ways in which an application for licensure can be obtained:

1. Download the application and accompanying forms from our Forms Page.


2. From the Board's Web site, download and complete the Request for Licensing Application Packet as a Certified Public Accountant in California and mail it to the Board.


3. Contact the Board at (916) 561-1701 to request an application packet.

Yes. Prior to issuance of a California CPA license, all applicants must provide a United States Social Security Number (SSN). Section 30 of California Business and Professions Code prohibits the issuance or renewal of a license by a licensing board if the applicant fails to disclose or is unable to provide a United States SSN. California law does not provide any exception to the SSN requirement for foreign applicants. Further, California law does not permit the Board to make any exceptions to the SSN requirement.

Should the Board determine that the applicant has met all licensing requirements except for the United States SSN, the Board will send written notification that the applicant has one year in which to provide a United States SSN. If no United States SSN is provided within that period, the application will be deemed abandoned pursuant to Section 71 of the Accountancy Regulations, and the application fee will be forfeited. To reapply for licensure, a new Application for Certified Public Accountant License and the application fee must be submitted. In addition, all requirements in effect at the time of reapplication must be met.

Yes. However, it is not necessary to take the ethics examination until you are prepared to apply for the CPA license. Section 10 of the Accountancy Regulations requires that the ethics examination be passed no sooner than two years prior to the Board's consideration of the application for licensure.

The only ethics examination accepted by the Board is the California course in Professional Ethics for CPAs (PETH) available from the California CPA Education Foundation, P.O. Box 44364, San Francisco, California 94144, (800) 877-5897. You may also fax the California CPA Education Foundation at (650) 802-6214. An order form, to be mailed directly to the California CPA Education Foundation, is enclosed in the licensure application package mailed from the Board. Applicants obtaining the licensure application from the Board's Web site should contact the California CPA Education Foundation directly at (800) 877-5897.

The examination is a self-study course and must be returned to the California CPA Education Foundation for grading. Each applicant must indicate on the ethics exam answer sheet that the California Board of Accountancy is to be notified of the passing grade. Key Topics include:

• Ethics in business.
• Basic concepts and philosophy of professional conduct.
• Code of Professional Conduct.
• Independence, integrity and objectivity.
• Interpretations and Securities and Exchange Commission rules.
• Commissions and fees.
• Form of practice and name.
• Advertising and solicitation.
• Sanctions.
• Tax Services.
• California Accountancy Act and Board of Accountancy Regulations.

Yes. All applicants are required to complete a Criminal Conviction Disclosure Form. A conviction includes the initial plea, verdict, or finding of guilt, plea of no contest, or pronouncement of sentence by a trial court, even if that conviction may not be final or sentence actually imposed, until appeals are exhausted. You must include any conviction that arose from military service; any in which the imposition of execution of sentence was suspended, any which arose as a result of a failure to appear; an order of rehabilitation was entered; any record of conviction which was expunged, or a pardon was granted. Only minor traffic infractions may be excluded.

Yes. Pursuant to Section 144 of the California Business and Professions Code, applicants for the California CPA license are required to furnish their fingerprints for purposes of conducting a criminal history record check with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The Fingerprinting Packet Request form can be downloaded here.

Applicants residing in California must use Live Scan, which will expedite the clearance process. However, due to the time required to process non-Live Scan fingerprint cards, applicants residing outside of California are encouraged to submit completed fingerprint cards at least four months prior to completing the experience requirements. An application for licensure will not be considered complete until the criminal history record check is completed, and all other required documentation is received.

Fingerprinting provides the Board with vital information upon which to base licensing decisions. Under Section 475 of the California Business and Professions Code, an applicant may be denied licensure based on the following:

• Knowingly making a false statement of fact, or knowingly omitting to state a material fact, in an application for licensure.
• Conviction of a crime.
• Commission of any act involving dishonesty, fraud, or deceit with the intent to substantially benefit himself or another, or substantially injure another.
• Commission of any act which, if performed by a licentiate of the business or profession in question, would be grounds for suspension or revocation of the license.

Once applicant fingerprints are submitted to the DOJ, the Board receives subsequent criminal conviction information on the applicant or licensee. This is another means of providing consumers with ongoing protection, even after the applicant is licensed.

Live Scan

The DOJ has implemented Applicant Live Scan, a system for the electronic submission of fingerprints and the subsequent automated background check. Live Scan is available in California only and replaces the process of recording an individual's fingerprints using ink and a standard 8" x 8" fingerprint card. Live Scan is inkless fingerprinting by which the prints are electronically submitted to the DOJ. Digitizing the fingerprints enables the automatic transfer of the fingerprint image data in combination with personal information to the DOJ computers in a matter of seconds, instead of the days required to send hard copy fingerprint cards through the U.S. mail. The DOJ also coordinates other processing resulting from the automated submission of fingerprints, including forwarding the fingerprints to the FBI.

While hard copy fingerprint cards may take up to four months to process, 95 percent of the electronic fingerprints are completed in three days or less.

A list of Applicant Live Scan Sites may be found by visiting the Department of Justice's Web site at www.ag.ca.gov.

Fingerprint Cards

Applicants must use the cards furnished by this Board. No other cards will be accepted. Fingerprint cards must be taken to a qualified technician trained in fingerprint-taking techniques. Some law enforcement agencies will provide this service, and a fee may be charged. In addition, telephone yellow page directories may list fingerprinting services. Also, some notary publics provide this service.

Yes. Transcripts detailing completion of all required courses and the conferral of a baccalaureate or higher degree must be sent directly to the Board from the college(s) or university. If the examination was taken in California prior to May 2000, it is possible no transcript was submitted or the transcript on file is "unofficial" or "issued to student" and, therefore, requires an official transcript be submitted. If official transcripts were submitted to the Board during the exam process it may not be necessary to have additional transcripts submitted. Type B and C applicants must have transcripts submitted directly to the Board from the college(s) or university.

The following is a list of options and fees under which you will be applying for licensure.

If an applicant's check is returned by the bank, the applicant is responsible for the entire licensing fee (application fee and fingerprint fee, if applicable). The fee will be assessed immediately upon discovery of a stop payment or a check returned. In addition, the applicant will be charged a $10 fee for checks returned due to insufficient funds. An application for licensure will not be processed until all fees have been paid in full.

NOTE: The Board accepts only checks issued by a U.S.-affiliated bank with the Federal Reserve Bank account number printed on the check.

Yes. To keep you informed about the status of your application, it is important that you notify the Board of any address or name change. Address and name change forms may be obtained by visiting our Web site at www.dca.ca.gov/cba. All name and address changes must be signed and be provided to the Board in writing within 30 days of the change. Failure to provide a current mailing address or change in name may delay the processing of your application.

The Board takes the following steps to keep you informed of the status of your application:

For your privacy protection, Board staff are not authorized to provide information regarding the receipt of or status of your application or documents by fax, e-mail or telephone.

• Upon receipt of the application, the Board will send you an acknowledgment card that your application has been received. The acknowledgement card is included in application packages mailed directly from the Board to the applicant. It is the applicant's responsibility to self-address and return the acknowledgment card to the Board with the application for licensure. The acknowledgement card is not available on the Board's Web site. Therefore, Board staff will address the acknowledgment card for applicants submitting a Web application.
• The Board will mail a status letter following staff's initial review of the application. This letter will advise you of any outstanding documents required to complete your application.
• If your application is not yet completed, the Board will send a second status letter advising you of any remaining documents still outstanding approximately 60 days following receipt of the initial application.
• Applications with outstanding documents following issuance of the 60-day status letter will be placed in a pending status. If subsequent documentation is submitted to the Board, the pending application will be reactivated, and an additional status letter will be sent.
• When all documents have been received to complete your application, the Board will mail a letter advising your file is complete and is in the review process.

Information regarding the receipt or status of an application will not be given over the telephone.

When all documents have been received and a file is complete, the Licensing Technician forwards the application to the Licensing Analyst for a preliminary review and recommendation. The file then is forwarded to the Licensing Manager for a final recommendation. This process will take approximately 10 to 12 weeks from the date the application file is complete. If your application is approved for licensure, the Board will mail a congratulations letter with information necessary to receive your license number.

If an applicant fails to complete the application process within two years of its original submission, or within one year of notification by the Board of any deficiency in the application, pursuant to Section 71(b) of the Accountancy Regulations, the application fee will be forfeited, and the application will be deemed abandoned. The Board will retain all documents submitted.

Once an application has been abandoned, to become licensed as a CPA in California, the applicant will need to submit a new Application for Certified Public Accountant License, the application fee, and meet all requirements in effect at the time of reapplication. Transcripts, evaluations, examination grades, and Certificates of Experience (Form E/Form G) previously submitted to the Board will be retained on file.

Upon approval of a California CPA license, each applicant is required to pay an initial CPA license fee. The initial CPA license fee must be paid in addition to the application fee. Upon receipt of the initial CPA license fee, a postcard will be returned to you reflecting your CPA license number. You may not engage in the practice of public accountancy or use the CPA designation until you have received your CPA license number from the Board.

Each applicant will receive a CPA wall certificate, suitable for framing, approximately 90 days after payment of the initial CPA license fee. If a CPA wall certificate has been lost, stolen, or damaged, a duplicate will be issued upon submission of the Wall Certificate/Pocket ID Replacement Request and payment of the required fee.

Pursuant to California Code of Regulations, Title 16, Division 1, Section 49:

(a) Any applicant who is aggrieved by any action of any of the board's committees or its staff may appeal from such action to the board. The appeal shall be filed within 24 months of the action being appealed or the mailing of written notification from the board, whichever is later. Two signed copies of the appeal shall be mailed or delivered to the office of the State Board of Accountancy. The appeal shall contain the following information:

(b) The board will consider only appeals based on information previously considered by its committees or staff. If the applicant wishes to submit for consideration additional evidence or information not previously submitted to the board's committee or staff, such additional information should be submitted directly to the committee or staff within the request that its previous action be reconsidered. An appeal based on evidence or information not previously submitted to the committee or staff will be referred by the board to the appropriate committee or staff for further consideration.