PocketCPA

CPA exam and license requirements in Alaska

Alaska requires 120 semester credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. The same total applies for licensure. Administered under the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy. Last reviewed 2026-08-19.

Credit hours to sit
120
Credit hours to license
120
Exam fee per section
$262.64
Exam credit window
30 months
Notice to Schedule valid
6 months from issue
Transferring scores out
Through NASBA, free
State ethics requirement
See below

How many credit hours do you need to sit for the CPA exam in Alaska?

Alaska requires 120 semester credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. Candidates in Alaska sit under the rules of the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy.

How many credit hours do you need for a CPA license in Alaska?

Alaska requires 120 semester credit hours for CPA licensure. Alaska uses the same credit requirement to sit and to license.

How much does the CPA exam cost in Alaska?

The CPA exam in Alaska costs $262.64 per section, a $109 application fee, a $121 education evaluation fee. Four sections at $262.64 is $1,050.56 in section fees alone. These are Alaska board and NASBA fees and exclude review course costs and any re-take fees.

How long do you have to pass all four CPA exam sections in Alaska?

Alaska gives candidates a 30-month window to pass all four CPA exam sections. The clock starts when the first section is passed.

How long is your Notice to Schedule valid in Alaska?

Alaska gives you 6 months from the date your Notice to Schedule is issued to sit the section it covers. If it expires you forfeit the fees already paid for that section and must reapply.

From the Validation Periods map in the NASBA Candidate Guide, edition 2026-07-16. That is NASBA's summary of the board's rule rather than a reading of the board itself, so confirm it with the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy before planning around it.

Can you appeal a failed CPA exam score in Alaska?

Alaska offers a score appeal. An appeal lets you view the multiple-choice questions or simulations you answered incorrectly and submit comments on them, under supervision, and it requires a formal request, board approval, a fee and a deadline that runs from the date your score was reported. A score review is separate and is available everywhere: it re-checks that the approved answer key was applied correctly to your responses, and it is not a way to have an alternative answer considered.

Appeal availability is listed in the NASBA Candidate Guide, edition 2026-07-16. See also what happens on test day.

How do you transfer CPA exam scores out of Alaska?

Through NASBA, at no charge. Alaska is one of the 36 jurisdictions NASBA is authorized to transfer scores out of, so the request goes to NASBA's own service rather than to the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy. Transferring INTO a jurisdiction is never the constraint, because every jurisdiction accepts an incoming transfer. The one you are leaving is what decides the route.

Route read from NASBA's transfer service and cross-checked against NASBA's Interstate Authorization Fee Schedule, 2026-09-20, and every route claim was handed to a pass instructed to refute it. How exam credit moves between jurisdictions sets out the whole picture, including what moving does to your credit window.

Do your CPA exam credits expire after you pass all four sections in Alaska?

We did not find one. Alaska's statutes and board rules were read for a deadline to apply for licensure after passing, and neither sets one, so the sections you have passed do not appear to go stale while you finish the experience requirement. That is a "not found" rather than a guarantee: confirm with the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy before relying on it.

Researched against Alaska's own statutes and administrative rules on 2026-09-20, not against the board FAQ alone. What happens to CPA exam credit after you pass all four sets out all 55 jurisdictions and the clocks that are mistaken for deadlines.

Does Alaska require a CPA ethics exam?

Alaska: Pass the AICPA Professional Ethics self-study course and exam (90% to pass) before licensure.

What work experience is required for a CPA license in Alaska?

Alaska requires two years (about 4,000 hours) of accounting experience using accounting, attest, tax, advisory, or consulting skills, verified by an actively licensed CPA supervisor.

Who regulates CPAs in Alaska?

CPAs in Alaska are regulated by the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy. Its published requirements are at https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/ProfessionalLicensing/BoardofPublicAccountancy.aspx.

Can you become a CPA in Alaska without 150 credit hours?

Yes. Alaska has an alternative route to CPA licensure that does not require 150 semester hours, and it has been in force since 2026-01-01. There is no separate 150-hour track; the requirement was removed rather than supplemented. The change came through HB 121, ch. 22 SLA 2025, amending AS 08.04.120(a).

What the alternative route requires: A baccalaureate degree with an accounting concentration (24 semester hours of accounting plus 9 semester hours of business law, economics and statistics, computer science or mathematics) and two years of accounting experience.

Worth knowingAlaska did not add a parallel route alongside a 150 hour route. It deleted the 150 hour language, leaving a single education standard, so traditionalRetained is recorded as false in the sense that no separate 150 hour track exists. The board's January 2026 statutes and regulations booklet at https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/portals/5/pub/CPARegulations.pdf confirms the amended AS 08.04.120(a) text is in force.

Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy, Rule Changes Beginning January 1, 2026: https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/Portals/5/pub/CPA_BoardFlyer_2026.pdf. Verified 2026-08-19, and independently re-checked against the cited source.

Recent changes and notes for Alaska

Jurisdictions that changed around the same time as Alaska

Alaska's alternative route started on 1 January 2026. These started closest to it, which is the comparison that matters if you are choosing where to apply or holding a license in more than one.

The full picture, with every statute and the jurisdictions where the published trackers are behind, is on the 150-hour rule tracker.

Studying for the CPA exam

PocketCPA covers all six CPA exam sections with 11,896 questions, each cited to the specific standard or statute it tests, and 1,071 lesson pages written from primary source text. A nine-item sample of every section is open with no account, and a full-length FAR mock exam is free with one.

Source: https://www.commerce.alaska.gov/web/Portals/5/pub/CPA_BoardFlyer_2026.pdf. Requirements change; confirm with the Alaska State Board of Public Accountancy before applying.