CPA Requirements

Utah is a great place for accountants. It has one of the most robust financial sectors in the nation and financial services are its fastest growing industry. Fintech has been growing rapidly in Utah in the last few years.

Affirm, SoFi and other big names have relocated to the state. Salt Lake City is home to many well-known businesses, including Discover and Cash App. Utah’s friendly business climate is ideal for accountants seeking entry-level or advanced positions.

The Utah CPA requirements include earning an accounting degree, passing exams and gaining professional experience. Utah CPA requirements consist of earning a degree in accounting, completing exams, and gaining experience. Learn about the Utah CPA requirements for licensure.

What are the education requirements to become a CPA?

Each candidate must have completed at least 120 credit hours in a bachelor’s degree or a master’s degree program. The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business or Accreditation council for Business Schools Programs (ACBSP) are usually accredited programs that qualify.

Institutional accreditation is acceptable as long as the program contains approved business and accounting courses. Utah requires that you have at least 150 credit hours to be licensed as a CPA. Bachelor’s degree programs typically include 120 credits.

Many candidates will pursue further education to meet the requirements, such as a master’s. An accelerated bachelor’s-to-master’s program can also help learners earn enough credits while saving time to obtain both degrees.

Concentrations, credits, and course acceptance

Utah requires that candidates with a business or accounting education earn 120 credits prior to taking the CPA examination. Utah does not accept credit transfers and requires official transcripts for each school attended. The upper division accounting courses must include at least 24 credits.

• 
  Auditing
  
• 
  Financial accounting
  
• 
  Management Accounting
  
• 
  Tax
  

Candidates must also complete 24 additional credits of non-accounting courses.

• Business Administration
• Business ethics
• Business law
• Business Statistics
• Communications
• Computers
• 
  Economics
  
• 
  Finance
  

To become a Utah CPA, all candidates must have at least 150 credits. Utah offers several educational paths for prospective CPAs who wish to fulfill its licensing requirements. The required number of credits in accounting and business varies depending on the path.

Students with master’s degree can choose the first option. Graduates with a Master of Business Administration degree (MBA), must have completed at least 24 upper division credits in accounting or 15 credits at the graduate level in these areas. Graduate students who have accounting or taxation degrees are exempt from these course requirements.

Second, graduates of the bachelor’s degree in accounting can sit the exam if they have completed the 24 credits in accounting subjects in graduate or upper division coursework. The students must also complete 30 hours of other graduate or upper-division accounting or business classes.

Students with a Bachelor’s Degree in a Subject Other Than Accounting must also complete 24 credits of the above-listed non-accounting courses. Students pursuing this path also need to take 24 courses at the graduate level or upper division in accounting.

• Auditing
• Financial accounting
• Cost accounting or managerial accounting
• Systeme
• Taxation

The remaining 30 credits can be taken from accounting or business courses at the graduate level.

Utah Experience Requirements

Utah’s CPA licensing requirements include professional experience. Utah’s Department of Commerce Division of Professional Licensing, DOPL, verifies and accepts work experience to be a CPA in the state.

Candidates must have completed at least 2,000 working hours in accounting under the supervision of a CPA. Utah doesn’t have strict rules about the work that can be done, but it does require all professionals to have accounting and auditing experience.

You can also earn hours by working multiple jobs , or doing internships. However, you must always verify your hours with each employer.

CPA candidates are required to complete their professional hours prior to applying for licensure. The license application requires experience verification. Applicants can earn professional hours either before or after passing the CPA examination.

CPA Exam Requirements

Utah requires that CPA applicants pass all four sections on the Uniform CPA Examination. These are auditing and attestation, business concepts and environment, financial accounting, reporting and regulation.

Each section consists of multiple-choice questions, simulations and a writing task. The Business Environment and Concepts section also includes a written task. Each section is four hours long.

Utah has specific requirements for the test, although the test is the same in all states.

Exam Eligibility

Candidates must complete the 120-credit education requirements, which includes all required accounting and business courses, before they can apply for the CPA examination in Utah. The CPA Examination Services of NASBA will then review your application and transcripts.

Utah does not require prospective CPAs take the Utah law and ethical exams before they are licensed. These exams don’t have to be taken before the Uniform CPA Exam.

Utah does not require applicants to be of a certain age or have a U.S. passport. Utah also participates in an international reciprocity program that allows Utah CPA candidates and international CPA candidates alike to take the exam in other countries.

Exam Schedule and Application

Utah CPA candidates may apply to take the CPA Exam through NASBA CPA Central. CPAES will review transcripts of each school attended by applicants. CPAES accepts paper transcripts sealed with the official seal from candidates. However, schools are required to send official transcripts electronically if they have been delivered.

CPAES will hold submitted transcripts up to one (1) year to allow applicants to submit their applications with all the required information. After one year, applicants must submit new transcripts to be approved for the exam.

CPAES will give approval for the CPA exam if an applicant meets Utah’s CPA requirements and submits all required documents. They will then provide a Notice of Schedule. Candidates must schedule their own exams once they are approved.

First-time applicants must pay $145 for the application and $238.15 per section. The test-takers may pay and apply for all four sections at once or separately. CPA candidates are advised to complete a section of the test within six months after applying.

A test taker must also pass all four sections in less than 18 months after passing the first section. Candidates can retake an exam section as many times as they want. NASBA will consider candidates as re-examination applications at any time following CPAES approval of the CPA examination.

After passing the Exam

Utah test takers who pass the Uniform CPA Examination can apply for licensure anytime after they have completed the experience, law examination, and ethics exam requirements. The results are not valid.

Candidates must submit verification of their education, law examination, and ethics exams with their application. The initial application fee in Utah for a CPA is $85.

A candidate might have already passed the exam at this stage and received 120 credits. To be eligible for licensure they must complete 150 credits and have 2,000 hours professional experience. This is the time that many prospective CPAs spend earning 30 additional credits and fulfilling their experience requirements.

Employers can perform a Utah CPA License Lookup by visiting Licencee Lookup System, entering the candidate’s information and clicking on the Accounting box to search.

Maintaining your Licensure

The license of every Utah CPA expires at midnight on December 31st in even-numbered years. DOPL sends out renewal notices 60 days after expiration to all CPAs. CPAs who have lapsed licenses can submit a reinstatement application within two years after expiration. The reinstatement fee is $20 for applications received within 30 days after expiration, and $50 for those submitted after that date.

If a CPA fails to renew their license within the grace period of two years, they must submit a new application for licensure and pay all applicable fees.

Utah requires CPAs obtain 80 credits of continuing professional education (CPE), every two years, to maintain their license. Utah requires that three CPE credits should be devoted to ethics and one CPE credit should focus on Utah laws and regulations. Most programs that grant CPE provide candidates with CPE verification certificates they can use to get approval.

The Utah Association of CPAs maintains a list of events, webinars and seminars that offer CPE. CPAs may also request CPE approval for events that they attend from the UACPA.

The DOPL requires that CPAs who move to Utah from another state take the Utah ethics and laws exam and then apply for license.

Utah CPA license requirements

How can I become a CPA?

Utah CPA requirements are at least 150 credits of education in accounting and business. They also include 2,000 hours professional experience and passing scores for the four CPA sections. Candidates must also pass an exam on Utah law and ethics.

How many hours are required to become a CPA?

Utah CPA candidates must have 120 credits in order to take the exam, and 150 credits for licensure. A prospective CPA is also required to have at least 2,000 working hours under the supervision a licensed CPA.

How long does it usually take to become a CPA?

Candidates should expect to finish the process in 5-7 years, depending on the amount of education they pursue and the professional experience they gain. The length of time will depend on the amount of education that a candidate completes, and if they have gained work experience while completing their education.

Who is responsible for granting CPA licenses to Utah residents?

The DOPL approves and verifies DOPL applications for Utah. To ensure timely approval, candidates should submit all documents required, including verification of experience and exam passed.

How can I renew my CPA in Utah?

The DOPL requires that CPAs renew their licenses by December 31 in even-numbered years. To renew their licenses, all CPAs in Utah must complete 80 CPEs before the expiration date.

The article Utah CPA requirements first appeared on Accounting.com.

Author: Emily Kelso