How to Become a CPA in Missouri 2026

To meet the Missouri requirements to sit for the CPA exam, the Missouri CPA education requirements must be attained first. For Missouri applicants, you’ll need to have at least 120 semester hours. 24 semester hours in accounting subjects and 24 semester hours in general business subjects.

Missouri has passed 2026 licensure-pathway legislation that would allow applicants using a bachelor’s-degree / 120-hour pathway to qualify with two years of experience, while applicants using the 150-hour or post-baccalaureate pathway qualify with one year of experience. Candidates should check the Missouri Board’s current forms and rules before applying

The first step to determining your eligibility is to register an account at NASBA’s CPA Portal.

Then submit the necessary educational requirements at NASBA’s CPA Portal and pay the NASBA fees, which include a $96 education evaluation application fee, a $100 exam application fee, and a $262.64 exam section fee.

You would need to have your college or university send your official transcripts through mail at:

Missouri Coordinator
CPA Examination Services
PO Box 198469
Nashville, Tennessee 37219-8469

Or email it at etranscript@nasba.org

Once your educational requirements have been approved by NASBA advisory evaluation, NASBA will then send you an email notifying you that your payment coupon is ready for payment. You have 90 days to pay the fee.

Click here to see a breakdown of the Missouri CPA exam costs.

Upon payment for the examination fees, you will receive a receipt of your NTS. Make sure that everything is correct as it will be used at the testing centers. If the names do not match, immediately contact the Board to request a correction. You will not be allowed to test if the name on the identification documents does not exactly match the name on the NTS.

With the NTS, then you can schedule your actual exam on the Prometric website at www.prometric.com.

Candidates should apply for a section only if they are ready to take it, because the Notice to Schedule is valid for a limited time and fees are forfeited if the section is not taken within that window.

The CPA exam consists of the three core sections and candidates would need to select one of the three discipline to demonstrate deeper skills and knowledge, allowing candidates to choose a specialization. There is no set order in which the exam portions must be completed.

You must pass all four CPA exam sections with a score of 75 or higher within a rolling 30-month period beginning on the score-release date of the first passed section.

To meet the Missouri CPA experience requirements, Missouri generally requires 2,000 hours, or one year, of accounting-specific work experience. Candidates who want to sign audit reports or supervise attest services need 4,000 hours, or two years, including 2,000 hours in an auditing-specific role. Experience must be affirmed by a licensed CPA.

After passing the CPA exam, the candidate must also meet the Missouri CPA ethics exam requirements by taking one additional test to take: the AICPA’s Ethics exam. The association offers an 11-hour self-study course, after which you can take the open-book test. The Ethics Examination is not expected to be particularly tough, but you must pass with a minimum score of 90 to get your license.

Do take note that if you join MOCPA, you can get the online ethics exam for free.

After you have completed your professional education, passed the exams, and retain the necessary work experience, you have fulfilled a majority of the CPA exam requirements. You’ll need to go to the Missouri Division of Professional Registration website and complete the 375-0129 Initial Application form.

The initial CPA license fee is $90.

Now that you have completed all the necessary steps to be a Certified Public Accountant in Missouri. You will be notified by Missouri’s Board of Accountancy of any missing documents in your application. If the application is complete, you’ll be issued a license allowing you to practice. Your certificate will be sent to you through the mail.

Missouri CPA licenses renew biennially. The biennial CPA license renewal fee is $80 and Missouri CPAs must complete 40 CPE hours each year, including 2 hours of ethics.