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CPA exam and license requirements in North Carolina

North Carolina requires 120 semester credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. Licensure requires 150. Administered under the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners. Last reviewed 2026-08-19.

Credit hours to sit
120
Credit hours to license
150
Exam fee per section
$262.64
Exam credit window
30 months
Notice to Schedule valid
6 months from issue
Transferring scores out
Through the board, free
State ethics requirement
Accountancy law course

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

North Carolina requires 120 semester credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. Candidates in North Carolina sit under the rules of the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners.

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

North Carolina requires 150 semester credit hours for CPA licensure. That is 30 more than the 120 needed to sit, so candidates can begin testing before completing the licensure requirement.

How much does the CPA exam cost in North Carolina?

The CPA exam in North Carolina costs $262.64 per section, a $230 application fee. Four sections at $262.64 is $1,050.56 in section fees alone. These are North Carolina 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 North Carolina?

North Carolina 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 North Carolina?

North Carolina 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 North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners before planning around it.

Can you appeal a failed CPA exam score in North Carolina?

North Carolina 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 North Carolina?

Not through NASBA. North Carolina does not appear as an origin on NASBA's transfer service, so you request your scores from the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners directly, which states a fee of free. You can still transfer INTO North Carolina from anywhere; it is only the outbound route that runs through the board.

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 North Carolina?

We did not find one. North Carolina'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 North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners before relying on it.

Researched against North Carolina'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 North Carolina require a CPA ethics exam?

North Carolina: Instead of the national AICPA ethics exam, complete the board's 8-hour course on the North Carolina Accountancy Statutes and Rules (including the Rules of Professional Ethics and Conduct) within one year before applying.

What work experience is required for a CPA license in North Carolina?

North Carolina requires one year of experience under a CPA (Pathways 1-2) or two years (Pathway 3), or alternatively four years in accounting practice or teaching per board rules.

Who regulates CPAs in North Carolina?

CPAs in North Carolina are regulated by the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners. Its published requirements are at https://nccpaboard.gov.

Can you become a CPA in North Carolina without 150 credit hours?

Yes. North Carolina has an alternative route to CPA licensure that does not require 150 semester hours, and it has been in force since 2026-01-01. The traditional 150-hour route remains available alongside it. The change came through Senate Bill 321, the Accounting Workforce Development Act (2025), amending NCGS 93-12(5)(a).

What the alternative route requires: Pathway 3: a bachelor's degree in any subject that includes or is supplemented by a concentration in accounting, with 24 semester hours across at least 8 of the 10 defined Fields of Study, plus two years of accounting experience under the direct supervision of a licensed CPA.

Worth knowingThe statute took effect ahead of the conforming administrative rules. The Board's July 2025 newsletter noted that revising the Administrative Code is a formal process running through the Office of Administrative Hearings and was still under way. Separately, the 300hours.com state comparison table still lists North Carolina under "no new pathway enacted," which directly contradicts the Board's own licensure application guidance. An applicant under any pathway may alternatively satisfy the experience requirement through routes such as accounting instruction at an accredited institution.

North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners, CPA License Applicants: https://nccpaboard.gov/cpa-license-applicants. Verified 2026-08-19, and independently re-checked against the cited source.

Recent changes and notes for North Carolina

Jurisdictions that changed around the same time as North Carolina

North Carolina'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://nccpaboard.gov/cpa-exam-applicants. Requirements change; confirm with the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners before applying.