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CPA exam and license requirements in North Dakota

North Dakota requires 120 semester credit hours to sit for the CPA exam. Licensure requires 150. Administered under the North Dakota State Board of Accountancy. 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
State ethics requirement
See below

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

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

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

North Dakota 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 Dakota?

The CPA exam in North Dakota costs $262.64 per section, a $120 application fee. Four sections at $262.64 is $1,050.56 in section fees alone. These are North Dakota 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 Dakota?

North Dakota 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 Dakota?

North Dakota 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 Dakota State Board of Accountancy before planning around it.

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

North Dakota 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 Dakota?

Not through NASBA. North Dakota does not appear as an origin on NASBA's transfer service, so you request your scores from the North Dakota State Board of Accountancy directly. This is read from NASBA's archived fee schedule rather than a current board page, so confirm it before posting anything.

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 Dakota?

We did not find one. North Dakota'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 Dakota State Board of Accountancy before relying on it.

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

North Dakota: Pass the AICPA Professional Ethics comprehensive course with a score of 90% or higher before the certificate is issued.

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

North Dakota requires one year totaling at least 2,000 hours of accounting experience gained within four calendar years, in public practice, industry, government, or academia.

Who regulates CPAs in North Dakota?

CPAs in North Dakota are regulated by the North Dakota State Board of Accountancy. Its published requirements are at https://www.ndsba.nd.gov.

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

No. North Dakota still requires 150 semester hours for CPA licensure and has not enacted an alternative route. More than half of US jurisdictions have, so this is now the minority position and it may change.

Worth knowingThe board states it may permit a candidate to take the examination at 120 semester hours, and separately if it is satisfied the candidate will finish the education requirement within six months of applying. That is exam eligibility only and does not reduce the 150-hour requirement for a license. Trade coverage in Accounting Today and guidance from the North Dakota CPA Society indicate an alternative pathway bill is planned for the 2027 session, because the North Dakota legislature meets biennially in odd-numbered years and had no 2026 regular session. That 2027 intention rests on secondary reporting, not on a board or legislative filing.

North Dakota State Board of Accountancy, Requirements to Become a CPA: https://www.ndsba.nd.gov/requirements-become-cpa. Verified 2026-08-19.

Recent changes and notes for North Dakota

The other jurisdictions that still require 150 hours

North Dakota is one of 9 jurisdictions with no alternative route enacted, which is now the minority position.

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.ndsba.nd.gov/requirements-become-cpa. Requirements change; confirm with the North Dakota State Board of Accountancy before applying.