Verified November 6, 2026 against the state board. Rules change, so read the board’s current rules before relying on them.
North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners licenses CPAs in North Carolina. Its rules and forms are the authority for everything on this page.
Active North Carolina CPAs complete 2,000 CPE minutes (40 CPE hours) each calendar year by December 31, including at least 50 minutes (1 CPE hour) of regulatory or behavioral ethics, under 21 NCAC 08G .0401.
Sources: nccpaboard.gov/nc-cpas, nccpaboard.gov/?p=822, nasbaregistry.org/cpe-requirements/north-carolina
North Carolina CPA licenses renew annually before July 1. A license not renewed within 30 days of the mailing of a Letter of Demand is forfeited (G.S. 93-12(15)).
Sources: nccpaboard.gov/nc-cpas, nccpaboard.gov/cpa-license-applicants, nccpaboard.gov/resources/fee-schedule
Since January 1, 2026, North Carolina offers three licensure pathways under G.S. 93-12(5), as amended by Senate Bill 321 (Session Law 2025-35): 150 semester hours plus one year of experience, a master's degree plus one year, or a bachelor's degree plus two years.
Sources: nccpaboard.gov/cpa-license-applicants, nccpaboard.gov/cpa-exam-applicants, ncleg.gov/EnactedLegislation/SessionLaws/HTML/2025-2026/SL2025-35.html, ncacpa.org/news/third-pathway
Active North Carolina CPAs complete 2,000 CPE minutes (40 CPE hours) each calendar year by December 31, including at least 50 minutes (1 CPE hour) of regulatory or behavioral ethics, under 21 NCAC 08G .0401. At least 50 CPE minutes (1 CPE hour) of regulatory or behavioral professional ethics and conduct each year, due December 31, from a sponsor on the NASBA National Registry (21 NCAC 08G .0401(e)). A North Carolina-specific ethics course is not required. Ethics courses from unregistered sponsors count only as general CPE. Minutes above the annual requirement carry forward, up to 1,000 minutes (20 CPE hours). Carryover cannot satisfy the ethics requirement, but surplus ethics minutes count as general CPE. Inactive and CPA-retired statuses have no CPE requirement. A non-resident North Carolina CPA can meet the requirement in the jurisdiction where they are licensed and work or live.
CPE is reported on the annual renewal and counted in minutes; NASBA treats 50 minutes as one CPE hour. CPAs keep records for the current year and the four prior calendar years (21 NCAC 08G .0401(i)). Missing the December 31 date but finishing by June 30 can bring a Letter of Warning for a first offense in five years; a second offense can lead to renewal being denied for at least 30 days.
North Carolina CPA licenses renew annually before July 1. A license not renewed within 30 days of the mailing of a Letter of Demand is forfeited (G.S. 93-12(15)). Annual. Before July 1. Renewal is $60. Reissuing a forfeited or revoked license is $100 plus any penalties. Moving from active to inactive or CPA-retired is free; moving from inactive to CPA-retired is $60; reinstating to active is $100.
A CPA currently licensed in another jurisdiction who lives or has a principal place of business in North Carolina, or plans to, can apply for a reciprocal license. Board staff issue a temporary permit to practice on receipt of the application and fee; it lasts 120 days or until the reciprocal license issues, whichever is first (21 NCAC 08H .0101).
To sit for the exam, a candidate needs a bachelor's degree in any subject with an accounting concentration: 30 undergraduate semester hours of accounting, 20 graduate hours, or a combination in which each graduate hour counts as 1.5 undergraduate hours. A candidate can test before the degree is conferred if it is completed within 120 days after the Board receives the application. All four sections must be passed within 30 months of the first passing score's release. Pathway 1 is a bachelor's degree plus enough coursework to reach 150 semester hours, with 24 semester hours across at least 8 of 10 defined fields of study. Pathway 2 is a master's or higher degree in accounting, tax law, economics, finance or business administration, or a law degree. Pathway 3 is a bachelor's degree plus 24 semester hours across at least 8 of the 10 fields.
Pathways 1 and 2 need one year of accounting experience under the direct supervision of a CPA; pathway 3 needs two years. Full-time means at least 30 hours a week. Alternatives are four years of accounting experience without CPA supervision, four years teaching accounting at a qualifying college, or a combination the Board finds substantially equivalent.
Within one year before applying, applicants complete an eight-hour course on North Carolina accountancy statutes and rules, including the Rules of Professional Ethics and Conduct (21 NCAC 08F .0504). The NCACPA course is the only one the Board accepts.
CORAA AI drafts audit working papers from your client’s QuickBooks books and does the first pass: lead schedules, tie-out, memos, draft notes and letters. CORAA Network reviewers clear every finding. Your firm reviews and signs.
