Verified November 6, 2026 against the state board. Rules change, so read the board’s current rules before relying on them.
Arkansas State Board of Public Accountancy licenses CPAs in Arkansas. Its rules and forms are the authority for everything on this page.
Arkansas licensees complete either 40 CPE hours in the 12 months before January 1 of the renewal year or 120 hours in the preceding 36 months, with 4 hours of ethics in each 36-month window.
Sources: labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/17CARpt.236-Final.pdf
Arkansas licenses renew every year, with the registration filed by January 1.
Sources: labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/17CARpt.236-Final.pdf
Since March 5, 2026, Arkansas licenses CPAs through three pathways: a graduate degree with one year of experience, a bachelor's plus 30 more semester hours with one year, or a bachelor's with two years of experience (17 CAR 236-311(d)). Candidates pass three core sections and one discipline section within a rolling 30 months.
Sources: labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/17-CAR-236-311.pdf, labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/17CARpt.236-Final.pdf, labor.arkansas.gov/wp-content/uploads/Revised-Board-Rules-Now-in-Effect.pdf
Arkansas licensees complete either 40 CPE hours in the 12 months before January 1 of the renewal year or 120 hours in the preceding 36 months, with 4 hours of ethics in each 36-month window. At least 4 hours in accounting professional conduct and ethics in the 36 months before the license expires. One hour must cover Arkansas Board laws and rules (Arkansas Ethics), met by the Board's web course or board-led group training, and it counts toward the 4. The ethics requirement starts in the first full calendar year of licensure (17 CAR 236-1203(d)). The Board makes exceptions for hardship such as health, military service, foreign residency or other good cause, but not solely for age or retirement. Deployed service members, veterans within one year of discharge and their spouses receive a full or partial exemption on written request. Inactive licensees are exempt, and retired status (age 55 and up, no paid accounting work) carries no CPE. Returning to active within three years of last reporting CPE requires 3 1/3 hours for each month since the last report; after more than three years, a Board-approved 120-hour program in the prior 36 months (17 CAR 236-1208).
The CPE statement is filed with the annual registration and lists sponsor, NASBA number or E for exempt sponsors, location, title, dates, field of study and hours (17 CAR 236-1206). Records are kept five years after the year of completion. The Board audits a selection of statements each year. At least 40% of hours (20% for licensees not in public practice) must be in accounting, accounting ethics, attest or taxation, and attest or compilation work requires 20% in attest and accounting theory. Missing hours by January 1 leads to disciplinary action and a monthly penalty (17 CAR 236-1207).
Arkansas licenses renew every year, with the registration filed by January 1. Annual. January 1 each year. Board fee schedule (17 CAR 236-1101): annual active license $110, inactive $55, firm $110, late fee $25 per month for an active license or firm and $10 per month for inactive. Initial CPA license application $50, reciprocal license $50, reinstatement $150.
To sit, 18 upper-level semester hours of accounting with a grade of C or better (17 CAR 236-302). For licensure, a bachelor's or graduate degree with 27 semester hours of upper-level accounting (or 18 graduate hours, or a combination) covering financial accounting, management or cost accounting, federal taxation, auditing and attestation, and accounting information systems, plus 24 semester hours of business (or 16 graduate hours), each course with a C or better. Successful candidates finish the education within three years of passing the last exam section. Not required. The 150-hour route (bachelor's plus 30 semester hours, one year of experience) is one of three pathways; the bachelor's-plus-two-years pathway needs no hours beyond the degree.
One year for the graduate-degree and 150-hour pathways, two years for the bachelor's pathway. A year is at least 2,000 hours of accounting, attest, advisory, tax or consulting work, full- or part-time, over one to three years, in industry, government, academia or public practice, verified by a licensee (17 CAR 236-311(c)).
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