Missouri CPA Exam Requirements 2024: 7 Exclusive Steps

Missouri CPA Exam Requirements

The Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certification is the gold standard for anyone interested in a career in public accounting. The minimal academic, exam, and practice standards for this designation are set by state law. An accounting professional will be issued a CPA license after passing all of the CPA exam components and completing a minimum number of years of supervised practice.

Do you have any idea what are the following requirements are needed to take a CPA exam in Missouri? Please be guided by this article and be updated with any recent information with Missouri Board of Accountancy. The following below are the CPA exam requirements in Missouri to be eligible of taking the CPA exam.

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How to Save Yourself MONTHS of Time and Frustration
Keep in mind that the CPA exam is the one part of getting your CPA license that you can control how long it takes. The education and experience requirements take as long as they take, but the CPA exams can take you as little as 6 months, or as long as multiple years… depending on how effective your study process is from the beginning.
Learn how to study strategically so you can save yourself tons of time and retake fees with this free training…

Summary of Missouri CPA Requirements

Credit Hours to sit for CPA Exams	120
Must present themselves with Good Moral Character to sit for CPA Exams	Yes
Missouri Residency to sit for CPA Exams	Yes
Credit Hours in Accounting courses sit for CPA Exams	24
Credit Hours in Business courses to sit for CPA Exams	24
Bachelor’s Required for CPA License?	Yes
Credit Hours to receive CPA License	150
Credit Hours in Accounting courses sit for the CPA license	30
Credit Hours in Business courses sit for the CPA license	30
Maximum Credit Hours in formal, supervised internships, or independent study in the areas of Accounting or Business in undergraduate and/or graduate-level courses	9
Ethics Exam Required?	Yes
Work Experience Required	1 Year
Required CPE Hours Each Three-year Period	120

Residency Qualifications

Missouri CPA exam requirements includes residency requirements unlike other states, which means that you must be a resident of, a regular employee of, or have a place of business in Missouri to be able to take the Uniform CPA exam and become a licensed CPA.

In Missouri, all CPA candidates must meet one of the following residency requirements:

• The individual has a permanent address in Missouri and actually dwells in Missouri.
• The individual is a full-time student at a state-accredited institution or university.
• Individuals who have graduated from a Missouri college or university and had a Missouri address at the time of graduation are considered residents of this state for six months from the date of graduation.
• The individual is regularly employed full-time in the state of Missouri.
• The individual is a permanent resident of Missouri who is serving on active duty in the armed forces, or the individual is a permanent resident of Missouri who is the spouse of someone who is serving on active duty in the armed forces.

Employment in Missouri does not have to be in public accounting to meet the requirements of residency in Missouri.

Good Moral Character

Each state has distinct prerequisites for taking the CPA Exam in order to become a CPA. In order to be qualified for the CPA Exam, candidates must complete certain CPA Exam requirements in Missouri, which include candidates presenting themselves as having a decent moral character.

Educational Requirements

To meet the Missouri CPA education requirements, applicants must meet the 150-semester-hour requirement with a bachelor’s degree that includes 30 semester hours in accounting and 30 semester hours in general business.

For the CPA Exam:

Candidates are able to apply for the CPA exam with 120 credit hours. The requirements will depend on the date of your application. See as follows:

For candidates whose applications for the initial examination are or were received prior to June 30, 2021.

The concentration or major in accounting, or the equivalent of a concentration in accounting shall be 60 semester hours of accounting and other related courses.

• At least 33 semester hours shall be accounting courses with at least 1 course in auditing.
• At least 18 semester hours of accounting courses taken at the upper-division level.
• The remaining 27 semester hours shall be in accounting or other areas of business administration such as business law, statistics, economics, finance, marketing, management, information technology and business communications.

For candidates whose applications for initial examination are received on or after June 30, 2021.

The concentration in accounting shall include a total of at least 48 semester hours, including a minimum of 24 semester hours of accounting and 24 semester hours of business courses.

For Licensure:

Candidates are able to apply their CPA licensure with 150 credit hours. The requirements will depend on the date of your application. See as follows:

For candidates whose applications for the CPA license are or were received prior to June 30, 2021.

The concentration or major in accounting, or the equivalent of a concentration in accounting shall be 60 semester hours of accounting and other related courses.

• At least 33 semester hours shall be accounting courses with at least 1 course in auditing.
• At least 18 semester hours of accounting courses taken at the upper-division level.
• The remaining 27 semester hours shall be in accounting or other areas of business administration such as business law, statistics, economics, finance, marketing, management, information technology and business communications.

For candidates whose applications for the CPA license are received on or after June 30, 2021.

In Missouri, candidates for the Missouri CPA Licensure must have a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution or university, with a specialization or major in accounting and the academic requirement is 150 credit hours of college education.

• At least 30 semester hours in accounting and 30 semester hours in business in undergraduate and/or graduate-level courses.
• A maximum of 9 semester credit hours may be from formal, supervised internships, or independent study in the areas of accounting or business in undergraduate and/or graduate-level courses.

Although Missouri law does not need a master’s degree to take the exam, it is suggested that candidates pursue the Master of Accountancy in order to achieve the minimum 150 credit hours.

If you are still in college or have already graduated, check to see if the Missouri State Board of Accountancy will accept your college credits. In the case of school accreditation, the Missouri Board of Accountancy defers to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA).

If you graduated from a foreign institution or university, you must have your credits evaluated by one of the organizations listed below. Obtain evaluation forms from the agency and send them to CPA Examination Services, Missouri Coordinator, P.O. Box 198469, Nashville, TN 37219-8469:

• Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc.
• Foreign Academic Credentials Service, Inc.
• Josef Silny & Associates, Inc.
• NASBA International Evaluation Services

The NASBA Advisory Evaluation is available as an optional service in Missouri. Before you apply for the Exam for the first time, an Advisory Evaluation will detect any academic inadequacies in your education. For additional information about submitting an Advisory Evaluation in this jurisdiction, please visit CPA Central. To begin the Advisory Evaluation process, you must first create a CPA Central user account.

CPA Exam Application Process in Missouri

Before applying for the Uniform CPA Exam through CPA Examination Services (CPAES), please review the educational criteria for this jurisdiction to see if you are eligible to apply as a first-time candidate. Before submitting your application online, you should also read The Candidate Bulletin. You may apply for one or more sections of the test at the same time; however, it is recommended that you only apply for a section of the examination if you are prepared to take it within the next six months.

Submission of Transcripts

If, at the time of application, you have completed the following educational requirements:

Each school you attended must provide you with an authentic transcript. Transfer credits are not accepted; instead, a transcript from each institution must be submitted. Official transcripts are those that have been issued by the Registrar’s Office of the institution and bear the official seal of the Registrar.

If the transcripts are official, they may be sent electronically. This service is not available at all schools. For more information, contact your local Registrar’s office. If an email address is required for electronic distribution, please send it to etranscript@nasba.org. Transcripts must be submitted directly from the institution if they are delivered electronically (s). Transcript photocopies are not authentic and will not be accepted.

Please keep in mind that if you have not yet applied when you send your transcripts, they will be kept on file for one year. After that period, the documents will be destroyed, and you will need to resubmit new education documents when you apply. If you attended classes at a campus outside the United States for a school in the United States, the official transcript must be provided by the registrar from the U.S. campus. Transcripts issued by the registrar for a campus located outside the United States will not be accepted.

After you have completed all of your educational prerequisites, you must:

• Request that the academic institution(s) send an official transcript to CPAES to confirm satisfactory completion of the relevant courses.
• The official transcript(s) must be provided directly from your school to CPA Examination Services.

Please be reminded that you will not be able to take any more exams until CPAES obtains the final official transcript. Failure to successfully complete the courses as specified on the Certificate of Enrollment will result in the examination score(s) being annulled.

Credentials Evaluation for CPA Exam Application

If you finished your education requirements at a college or university outside the United States, you must:

• Submit your educational qualifications to NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES)
  • NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES) is a non-profit organization that provides international evaluation services
• Obtain the NIES service request form
• Please provide a translated copy of each international transcript utilized for the review.
• Compel the agency to conduct the following evaluation:
  • An equivalency summary indicating the academic degrees you hold in the United States that are equivalent;
  • A credential evaluation that includes the following criteria:
    • a country’s name;
    • The diploma;
    • The year the degree was conferred, as well as
    • the organization that bestowed the degree;
  • A course-by-course breakdown; and
  • An examination of course credit that includes:
    • Total number of credits achieved toward a degree, as reflected on transcripts filed;
    • Accounting credits obtained in total; and
    • Total number of earned business credits

Completed original assessments must be received by CPAES directly from NIES at the time of your application. Photocopies are not acceptable.

A copy of the international transcript must be provided with the report sent by NIES. Without these documents, your application will be considered incomplete, and the processing of your application will be halted until transcripts are produced.

Please keep in mind that if you have not yet applied, any educational documents received will be kept on file for one year. After that time, these documents will be destroyed, and you will be required to resubmit new educational documents at the time of application.

CPA Examination Fees

The Missouri CPA exam cost consists of four main fees: the education evaluation application of $90, a $348.80 per CPA exam section totaling $1,395.20 for all four sections, the initial license to practice fee of $90, and the renewal fee of $80.

Education Evaluation Application Fee	$90.00
Auditing and Attestation (AUD)	$348.80
Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR)	$348.80
Regulation (REG)	$348.80
Disciplines (ISC, TCP, or BAR)	$348.80
Total for all 4 CPA Exam Sections	$1,395.20
Initial Individual License to Practice Fee	$90.00
Biennial Renewal of Individual License to Practice Fee	$80.00
Individual Delinquent Fees Fee ($25.00 per month not to exceed $100.00)	$ 25.00 – $100.00

There are no provisions for withdrawing from the examination or requesting an extension of your present Notices to Schedule (NTS). Fees for applications and/or exams are non-refundable. If you have an exceptional circumstance, you may use the Exception to Policy Form to obtain an NTS extension or a partial refund of your exam fees.

You can pay for your registration online using a credit card. When you first use the CPA Central online application tool to apply for the CPA exam, you will be required to create a user account. If you previously applied for the CPA exam using a method other than the online application tool (by paper application or another manner), you will need to import your previous application information.

To do so, you will need to know the jurisdiction in which you took the exam for the first time as a first-time candidate, as well as your Jurisdiction ID Number. By creating a user account, you will be able to apply for the exam, keep your current information up to date, monitor your results, check your application status, and reprint your Notice To Schedule.

Uniform CPA Examination in Missouri

You can apply to take the Uniform CPA Exam once you have achieved 150 semester hours of college credit and a bachelor’s degree.

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. The components of the CPA test are as follows:

• Auditing and Attestation. This exam section covers the basics of financial and attest services, such as audits, reviews, compilations, and preparing agreements.
• Financial Accounting and Reporting. This exam section covers financial accounting topics for all business entities, including the government and nonprofits.
• Regulation. This exam section covers federal taxation, tax services, professional ethics, and business law for individuals and business entities.
• Disciplines
  • Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR): Focused on financial reporting, data analytics, and performance management. This area is suitable for those who are interested in financial analysis and reporting. An extension of FAR core.
  • Information Systems and Controls (ISC): Concentrates on IT governance, data security, and system controls. Ideal for individuals who wish to specialize in IT audits and information security. An extension of AUD core.
  • Tax Compliance and Planning (TCP): Centers on personal financial planning and tax compliance for individuals, businesses, and other entities. Suitable for those with a strong interest in taxation and financial planning. An extension of REG core.

You may take the required test sections in any order, but you must pass all four sections of the Uniform CPA Examination within an 18-month period beginning on the date the first examination section completed was taken. All components must be passed within the 18-month term. Any exam taken outside of the 18-month timeframe will result in a loss of credit.

Because the CPA test is always changing, be sure to read the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy’s CPA Candidates Bulletin: Roadmap to Success (NASBA).

When a candidate anticipates testing during a testing window, an application with fees is submitted to the state board. The candidate is subsequently given a Notice to Schedule (NTS). With the NTS, a candidate can book an exam with Prometric, an agent with testing sites that administer the exam.

To arrange an exam at a Missouri testing center, go to the Prometric website. Arrive prepared to test at your preferred Prometric testing location on your preferred exam day. Call the Missouri Coordinator of CPAES at 800-CPA-EXAM if you need to coordinate special testing accommodations or if you need further information.

Prometric Center includes:

• Lees Summit
• Jefferson City
• Springfield
• St Louis
• Kansas City

Missouri CPA Ethics Exam Requirements

To meet the Missouri CPA ethics exam requirements, candidates should complete the self-study ethics course and pass the exam administered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) named Professional Ethics: The AICPA’s Comprehensive Course (For Licensure). By the end of the course and exam, candidates must pass with a score of 90 percent or higher to qualify.

Missouri CPA Experience Requirements

To meet the Missouri CPA experience requirements, candidates must have 2,000 hours (one year) of accounting-related work experience. The criteria for future auditors is 4,000 hours (two years), of which 2,000 hours (one year) must be spent in an auditing-specific capacity. Remember that as part of your licensure application, your job experience must be verified by a certified CPA.

The following competencies and skills must be present in the candidate’s experience:

• Accounting
• Attest
• Review
• Compilation
• Management Advisory
• Tax
• Consulting
• Governmental accounting, budgeting or auditing

Complete the Experience portion of the Application for Initial License to Practice Public Accounting with the assistance of your supervising CPA (known as the Endorser). The Endorser-Experience Addendum must also be signed by the endorser in the presence of a Notary Public.

When submitting your completed application to the Missouri State Board of Accountancy, 3605 Missouri Blvd., P.O. Box 613, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0613, please include the Endorser-Experience Addendum.

Missouri CPA License Requirements

After meeting educational criteria, passing the Uniform CPA exam, and meeting experience requirements set by the Missouri State Board of Accountancy, you are ready to apply for a CPA license. Check that you have performed each of the following steps:

• Fill out the Application for an Initial License to Practice Public Accounting.
• Indicate the date you passed the AICPA Ethics Exam.
• List your experience and then provide the application to your Endorser to complete.
• Give your endorser the Endorser-Experience Addendum to complete in the presence of a Notary Public.
• Include a $90 application fee payable to the Missouri State Board of Accountancy.
• Return the completed form, paperwork, and fee to the Missouri State Board of Accountancy, 3605 Missouri Blvd., P.O. Box 613, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0613.

Continuing Professional Education Requirements (CPE)

To keep their license, CPAs in Missouri must complete continuing professional education (CPE) hours. Continuing professional education (CPE) hours must be completed within the three calendar years before the year in which a license is to be renewed. The three calendar years preceding renewal are referred to as the “reporting period,” and all CPAs must complete at least 120 hours of CPE credits that conform with Missouri Board of Accountancy requirements during the three-year period preceding renewal, including:

• Each calendar year, a minimum of 20 hours is required.
• A minimum of six hours of the required 120 hours in the three-year period preceding renewal must be in the subject of ethics.

Now that you’re a CPA in Missouri,

You’re now a CPA in Missouri.

Your dedication and years of study have resulted in the awarding of a Missouri CPA license! It’s time to think about joining some professional groups.

The American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) offers members professional development and continuing education opportunities, as well as assistance and advocacy. The Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants offers similar opportunities on a state level.

Consider focusing in forensic accounting, financial planning, information systems accounting, or external auditing.

Missouri CPA Exam F.A.Q.s

Here are some commonly asked questions regarding Missouri’s CPA exam and CPA licensure requirements.