Nevada is a strict 150-credit rule state that requires a bachelor’s degree including 150 semester hours in order to sit for the CPA exam. It is also one of the strictest states when it comes to work experience, personal qualifications, and specific course work.
All applicants undergo a criminal background check and must work for at least 2 years before a CPA license is issued.
Let’s take a look at what you need to do to take the exam and get licensed.
Nevada CPA Exam Requirements
Contents
In order to be eligible to sit for the exam in Nevada, candidates must meet the following personal qualifications and educational requirements.
- No minimum age limit
- Not Required to be a US citizen
- Must be a NV resident
- Valid Social Security Number Required
- NV does participate in the International Examination Program
Educational Requirements to Sit
Nevada requires that you graduate with a bachelor’s degree or higher AND complete 150 college credit hours in order to sit for the exam. Most students accomplish this by either getting a master’s degree after their undergraduate or by double majoring in two related fields like accounting and finance. Here’s what you will need to do:
Bachelor’s Degree or higher (at least 150 semester hours) including:
- 30 credit hours of upper level Accounting including:
- 3 hours of Financial Accounting I
- 3 hours of Financial Accounting II
- 3 hours of Financial Accounting III
- 3 hours of Cost Accounting
- 3 hours of Auditing
- 3 hours of Taxation
- 12 hours of General Accounting Courses
- 24 credit hours of General Business courses including: Management, Finance, Business Law, and Economics
As you can see, NV has one of the most specific curriculum requirements out of any state. Make sure you meet with your college advisor to ensure your current courses will meet the requirements. You can also contact the state board for more information about the CPA exam education requirements.
Exam Fees
The total cost to take the CPA exam in Nevada is $829.08 including an initial one-time $100 application fee. The cost for each section is listed below.
| AUD – Audit | $192.03 |
| FAR – Financial Accounting and Reporting | $192.03 |
| BEC – Business Environment and Concepts | $172.51 |
| REG – Regulation | $172.51 |
The CPA exam registration fees do not include the cost of a CPA review study material course to prepare for the exam. Don’t worry though. Many colleges have courses that help you study for the exam and CPA firms also help cover your exam costs once you pass the CPA exam.
CPA Tip – Don’t try to get ahead of yourself and register for all four sections at once. Your notice to schedule (NTS) will expire if you don’t take the exam in 6 months and you will have to re-register. The bummer is you will have to pay again in order to register. Re-registration application fees are $50, so only sign up for the exams that you are ready to sit for in the next 6 months.
CPA License Requirements
The entire exam process can be overwhelming when you first start looking into it. It’s okay! You can make it. Applying for the test is just the first step in becoming a CPA in NV. Once you pass the exam, there are just a few simple things you have to do before you can legally call yourself a Certified Public Accountant and start working as one. Here is the basic process.
Pass the Exam
You’ll have to pass all four sections of the exam with a score of at least 75 in an 18-month period.
Paperwork
Submit all the required paperwork to the state board usually includes transcripts, license application, and proof of CPA work experience qualification completion.
Fees
Pay the license/certification fees with your application.
Ethics Exam
Take and pass the AICPA Professional Ethics exam (found on the AICPA website)
Additional Education
No additional requirements are necessary because you had to fulfill the 150-credit limit in order to sit for your first section.
Work Experience Requirements
Nevada has one of the most extensive work experience requirements out of all the states. Not only do you have to work in public accounting, you also have to perform attest and audit services during that time. Here are the details.
2-years or 4,000 hours of general accounting and auditing skills in Public Accounting supervised and verified by a CPA in good standing.
Must include at least 1,000 hours of attest services including at least 700 hours of auditing.
There are few provisions for private industry accountants or governmental accountants. The only provisions outside of public accounting are for IRS employees or agents who perform specific tasks and internal auditors who work with public auditors who perform audit engagements.
More Nevada CPA Exam Resources
Gathering your paperwork, applying to sit, and actually taking the exam can be pretty involved. I know. It can be even worse if you transferred to multiple colleges during your undergraduate program. This is something not a lot of applicants think about. Yes, the Nevada state board needs proof of all of your education. You will have to send in transcripts from every college you’ve attended. This can be a pain depending on your school.
This is why I think it’s always a good idea to contact the state board directly. You can find out what they already have on file and more importantly what they need to complete your application. Nothing is worse than finding out they need something after the fact.
For instance, states don’t always receive your test scores from Prometrics. Things can get lost or forgotten about. Unfortunately, most state boards rarely notify you that something is missing. Directly contacting the board is the fastest way to confirm that they have everything they need before you get too far along in the process.
Here is the contact info for the state board.
