Ethics, licensure and data handling
The rules that decide whether you can take a file, what you may do with it and what you must keep confidential. This page lists three topics in one place; each page also sits in its own topic.
Independence and ethics
| Page | Type | Applies to | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| AICPA Code: independence explained for subcontractorsHow the AICPA independence framework reaches a subcontractor who performs audit procedures: the engagement team definition and what the firm must ask. | Ethics | US rule | Draft |
| AICPA Code: the confidentiality rule explainedWhat the AICPA Confidential Client Information Rule requires, who it binds, its main exceptions, and what a freelancer should do with client files. | Ethics | US rule | Draft |
| AICPA Code: using a third-party service providerWhat the AICPA interpretation on third-party service providers asks of a firm, and what it means for a freelancer who receives client files. | Ethics | US rule | Draft |
| Confidentiality: what freelancers owe client and firmWhere a freelancer's confidentiality duties come from: the AICPA rule, the firm's contract, tax-return rules and AI tools, plus steps for every file. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Conflicts of interest for freelancersHow to spot and handle a conflict of interest when you work for several firms: the IESBA threats framework, disclosure, and where the AICPA text is. | Ethics | Country-neutral | Draft |
| Honest titles: who may use the title CPAWho may call themselves a CPA: state law decides, with New York's statute as a worked example, and what freelancers outside the US should check. | Ethics | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Independence checks before every file: a worked exampleAn illustrative walk through the checks a freelancer runs before taking an audit file: investments, balances, business ties, fees and the written answer. | Ethics | US rule | Draft |
| Independence when you freelance for CPA firmsHow independence rules reach a freelancer on someone else's audit file: who is on the engagement team, what the firm must ask, and what to disclose. | Overview | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
Licensure, mobility and supervision
| Page | Type | Applies to | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| Can an accountant with an inactive US CPA licence do audit file workInactive or lapsed status is defined by your board. What it means for the CPA title and for file work, and how to describe yourself truthfully. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| CPE for freelancers: requirements and trackingCPE rules come from your state board. How to find your requirement, use registered sponsors, keep records and avoid a lapse that changes your status. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Documentation standards for reviewers and preparersWhat reviewer and preparer notes should show so another person can follow them: what was done, by whom, when, what was found and what happened next. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Evaluating foreign credentials for US licensureHow NASBA International Evaluation Services reviews non-US education for CPA licensure: documents, translations, the 90-day window, and the board's role. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Is it legal to work on audit files without a US licenceThe answer depends on state, task and signer. A method for getting a reliable answer, with the questions to put to the board and to the firm. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Practice mobility: working across state linesWhat CPA practice mobility is, who it helps, what NASBA says about it, and how a freelancer checks a second state's rules before taking work. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| State CPA licensure basics for freelancersHow US CPA licensure works for freelancers: state boards issue licences, requirements differ by state, firms register separately, titles follow the board. | Overview | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Substantial equivalency and no-notice mobilityHow to read the 'substantially equivalent' and 'no notice' terms in state mobility rules, and how to build your own evidence file before you rely on them. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Who owns the workpapersWorkpapers usually sit with the firm that issues the report. What that means for a freelancer's copies, notes and reuse, and what to settle in writing. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Who signs and who does not: reviewer role vs report signerThe firm signs the report; a reviewer or preparer checks work and does not. How to keep the two roles apart in your agreement, your notes and your title. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Working on US files from outside the USWhat an accountant outside the US should check before working on US files: licensure, titles, tax return information rules, and your own regulator. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Working under another firm's supervisionWhat it means to work under a CPA firm's direction as a freelancer: who is responsible, what to put in writing, and what to keep out of the file. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
Section 7216, data security and AI use
| Page | Type | Applies to | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI-use policies for freelance accountantsWhat a written AI-use policy for a solo accounting practice should cover, built on confidentiality, section 7216, service-provider duties and security. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Data security for remote accounting workPlain controls for accountants working on other firms' files from home, based on IRS Publication 4557, the FTC Safeguards Rule and NIST guidance. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Handling client files: no downloads no email no personal cloudWhy client files should stay in the firm's workspace, what downloads, email and personal cloud accounts risk, and what to do instead. | Guide | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| IRS Publication 4557 and the FTC Safeguards Rule for freelancersWhat IRS Publication 4557 and 16 CFR Part 314 ask of tax preparers, who the rule covers on the sources' wording, and what it means for a solo practice. | Guide | US rule | Draft |
| Remote work security checklist for accountantsDevice, account, network, file-handling and incident controls for accountants working remotely with client data, drawn from IRS Pub. 4557 and the FTC rule. | Checklist | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Section 7216 and work done outside the United StatesConsent rules in 26 CFR 301.7216-2 and -3 and Rev. Proc. 2013-14 for sharing tax return information with a preparer outside the United States. | Ethics | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| Section 7216 basics for anyone who touches tax return informationWhat 26 USC 7216 and its regulations say, who they bind, what needs consent, and where a freelance accountant meets them. US rule, from primary text. | Overview | US rule | Draft |
| Section 7216 vs section 6713 vs Circular 230How the criminal rule in 26 USC 7216, the civil penalty in 6713 and Circular 230 section 10.51(a)(15) differ, with figures taken from the primary text. | Guide | US rule | Draft |
| Secure your home office: devices passwords and networksHome office security for accountants handling client files: device list, updates, encryption, passwords, router settings and physical space. | Guide | Country-neutral | Draft |
| Set up multi-factor authentication and a password managerStep-by-step: list your accounts, choose a method, turn on MFA, set up a password manager and keep recovery codes safe. Based on NIST and IRS guidance. | Tutorial | Country-neutral | Draft |
| Tax return information in audit files: when it shows upWhen an audit or review file holds tax return information under 26 CFR 301.7216-1(b)(3), and what the regulation lets an accounting firm do with it. | Guide | US rule | Draft |
| Using AI tools with client data: what the Code impliesWhat the AICPA confidentiality section and section 7216 imply when client data meets AI tools: who they bind, two scenarios and what to do. | Ethics | US rule; elsewhere, check your own regulator | Draft |
| What to do if you suspect a data breachSteps for a freelance accountant who suspects a breach: contain, tell the firm, IRS and FTC routes, state law, helping clients, based on IRS and FTC pages. | Guide | US rule | Draft |