ARTICLE 5. Certificates, Information and Records [5080. - 5095.]

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC 5.
in effect

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5080. Section 5080.

The “certified public accountant” license shall be granted by the board to any person who meets the requirements of this article, has not committed acts or crimes constituting grounds for denial of a license under Section 480, and files an application for licensure on a form provided by the board.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5080.1. Section 5080.1.

The board may require an applicant for a certified public accountant license to appear in person to determine if the applicant’s qualifications are as prescribed in this chapter and in rules adopted by the board.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5081. Section 5081.

An applicant for an authorization to be admitted to the examination for a certified public accountant license shall: (a) Not have committed acts or crimes constituting grounds for denial of a license under Section 480. (b) File the application prescribed by the board. This application shall not be considered filed unless all required supporting documents, fees, and the fully completed board-approved application form are received in the board office or submitted via a board-provided electronic application or filed by mail. (c) Meet one of the educational requirements specified in this article.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5082. Section 5082.

An applicant for a certified public accountant license shall have successfully passed an examination in subjects the board deems appropriate, and in the form and manner that the board deems appropriate. The board may, by regulation, prescribe the methods for applying for and conducting the examination, including methods for grading and determining a passing grade.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5082.1. Section 5082.1.

(a) The examination required by the board for the granting of a license as a certified public accountant may be conducted by the board or by a public or private organization specified by the board. The examination may be conducted under a uniform examination system. (b) The board may make arrangements with a public or private organization for the conduct of the examination, as deemed necessary by the board. The board may contract with a public or private organization for materials or services related to the examination.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5082.3. Section 5082.3.

An applicant for a license as a certified public accountant may be deemed by the board to have met the examination requirements of Section 5082 if the applicant satisfies all of the following requirements: (a) The applicant is licensed or has comparable authority under the laws of any country to engage in the practice of public accountancy. (b) The International Qualifications Appraisal Board jointly established by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants has determined that the standards under which the applicant was licensed or under which the applicant secured comparable authority meet its standards for admission to the International Uniform Certified Public Accountant Qualification Examination. (c) The applicant has successfully passed the International Uniform Certified Public Accountant Qualification Examination referenced in subdivision (b).

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5082.4. Section 5082.4.

A Canadian Chartered Accountant in good standing may be deemed by the board to have met the examination requirements of Section 5082 if they have successfully passed the Canadian Chartered Accountant Uniform Certified Public Accountant Qualification Examination of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants or the International Uniform Certified Public Accountant Qualification Examination referenced in subdivision (b) Section 5082.3.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5082.5. Section 5082.5.

The board may give credit to a candidate who has passed all or part of the examination in another state if the members of the board determine that the standards under which the examination was held are as high as the standards established for the examination in this chapter.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5087. Section 5087.

(a) The board may issue a certified public accountant license to any applicant who is a holder of a current, active, and unrestricted certified public accountant license issued under the laws of any state with comparable licensure requirements and who has not committed acts or crimes constituting grounds for denial under Section 480. To be authorized to sign reports on attest engagements, the applicant shall meet the requirements of Section 5095. (b) The board may in particular cases waive any of the requirements regarding the circumstances in which the various parts of the examination were to be passed for an applicant from another state.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5088. Section 5088.

Any individual who is the holder of a current, active, and unrestricted license as a certified public accountant issued under the laws of any state and who applies to the board for a license as a certified public accountant under the provisions of Section 5087 may, until the time the application for a license is granted or denied, practice public accountancy in this state only under a practice privilege pursuant to the provisions of Article 5.1 (commencing with Section 5096), except that, for purposes of this section, the individual is not disqualified from a practice privilege during the period the application is pending by virtue of maintaining an office or principal place of business, or both, in this state. The board may by regulation provide for exemption, credit, or proration of fees to avoid duplication of fees.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5093. Section 5093.

(a) To qualify for the certified public accountant license, an applicant who is applying under this section shall meet the education, examination, and experience requirements specified in subdivisions (b), (c), and (d), or otherwise prescribed pursuant to this article. The board may adopt regulations as necessary to implement this section. (b) (1) An applicant for admission to the certified public accountant examination under this section shall present satisfactory evidence that the applicant has completed a baccalaureate or higher degree conferred by a degree-granting university, college, or other institution of learning accredited by an accrediting agency included in a list of these agencies published by the United States Secretary of Education under the requirements of the federal Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1001 et seq.), or meeting, at a minimum, the standards described in Section 5094. The total educational program shall include a minimum of 24 semester units in accounting subjects and 24 semester units in business-related subjects. This evidence shall be provided at the time of application for admission to the examination, except that an applicant who applied, qualified, and sat for at least two subjects of the examination for the certified public accountant license before May 15, 2002, may provide this evidence at the time of application for licensure. (A) An applicant enrolled in a program at an institution as described in this paragraph that grants conferral of a baccalaureate degree upon completion of the 150 semester units required by paragraph (2) of this subdivision may satisfy the requirements of this paragraph if the applicant’s institution sends electronically or delivers the applicant’s official transcript or its equivalent together or separately with a letter signed by the institution’s registrar, or its equivalent, directly to the board pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 5094. The letter shall include all of the following: (i) A statement that the applicant is enrolled and in good standing in a program that will result in the conferral of a baccalaureate degree upon completion of either a master’s degree or the 150 semester units required by paragraph (2) of this subdivision. (ii) A statement that the applicant has completed all requirements, including general education and elective requirements, for a baccalaureate degree and the only reason the college or university has yet to confer the degree is because the applicant is enrolled in a program that confers a baccalaureate degree upon completion of either a master’s degree or the 150 semester units required by paragraph (2) of this subdivision. (iii) The date on which the applicant met all of the college’s or university’s requirements for conferral of a baccalaureate degree. (B) The total educational program for an applicant described in subparagraph (A) shall include a minimum of 24 semester units in accounting subjects and 24 semester units in business-related subjects. This evidence shall be provided at the time of application for admission to the examination, except that an applicant who applied, qualified, and sat for at least two subjects of the examination for the certified public accountant license before May 15, 2002, may provide this evidence at the time of application for licensure. (2) An applicant for issuance of the certified public accountant license under this section shall present satisfactory evidence that the applicant has completed at least 150 semester units of college education, including a baccalaureate or higher degree conferred by a college or university, meeting, at a minimum, the standards described in Section 5094, the total educational program to include a minimum of 24 semester units in accounting subjects, 24 semester units in business-related subjects, and, after December 31, 2013, shall also include a minimum of 10 units of ethics study consistent with the requirements set forth in Section 5094.3 and 20 units of accounting study consistent with the regulations promulgated under subdivision (c) of Section 5094.6. This evidence shall be presented at the time of application for the certified public accountant license. Nothing in this paragraph shall be deemed inconsistent with Section 5094 or 5094.6. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to be inconsistent with prevailing academic practice regarding the completion of units. (c) An applicant for the certified public accountant license shall pass an examination prescribed by the board. (d) (1) The applicant shall show, to the satisfaction of the board, that the applicant has had one year of qualifying experience. This experience may include providing any type of service or advice involving the use of accounting, attest, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax, or consulting skills. (2) To be qualifying under this section, experience shall have been performed in accordance with applicable professional standards. Experience in public accounting shall be completed under the supervision or in the employ of a person licensed or otherwise having comparable authority under the laws of any state or country to engage in the practice of public accountancy. Experience in private or governmental accounting or auditing shall be completed under the supervision of an individual licensed by a state to engage in the practice of public accountancy. (3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), the board may, by regulation, allow experience in academia to be qualifying under this section. (e) Applicants completing education at a college or university located outside of this state, meeting, at a minimum, the standards described in Section 5094, shall be deemed to meet the educational requirements of this section if the board determines that the education is substantially equivalent to the standards of education specified under this chapter. (f) An applicant who has successfully passed the examination requirement specified under Section 5082 on or before December 31, 2013, may qualify for the certified public accountant license without satisfying the 10 semester units of study set forth in Section 5094.3 or 20 semester units of accounting study consistent with the regulations promulgated under Section 5094.6, if the applicant completes all other requirements for the issuance of a license on or before December 31, 2015. (g) The education and experience requirements of this section are notwithstanding Sections 5093.2 and 5093.3 and pertain to applicants who submit an application for licensure by December 31, 2028, inclusive of qualifying experience and satisfactory evidence of meeting the education requirements of this section. (h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5093.2. Section 5093.2.

(a) An applicant for admission to the certified public accountant examination under Section 5082 shall meet the educational requirements by presenting satisfactory evidence that the applicant has completed one of the following: (1) The applicant was conferred a board-recognized baccalaureate or advanced accounting degree. The board may recognize accounting degrees conferred by United States institutions of higher education that require the completion of an accounting concentration of courses pursuant to regulations established pursuant to subparagraph (B) of paragraph (2). (2) (A) The applicant was conferred a baccalaureate or advanced degree not recognized by the board and completed an accounting concentration of courses. (B) The board shall establish by regulation an accounting concentration of courses required to be completed to satisfy the requirements of this section. (3) The applicant is enrolled in a dual degree program at an institution of higher education that confers a baccalaureate degree, as described in paragraph (1) or (2), upon conferral of a master’s degree. Satisfactory evidence shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following: (A) A statement that the applicant is enrolled and in good standing in a dual degree program at an institution of higher education that will result in the conferral of a baccalaureate degree, as described in paragraph (1) or (2), upon conferral of a master’s degree. (B) The date the applicant completed all educational requirements for a baccalaureate degree at their enrolled institution of higher education. (C) Degrees to be conferred. (4) (A) The applicant is enrolled in an institution of higher education and is within 180 days of completing the education requirements set forth in paragraph (1) or (2). (B) Within 240 days of submitting an application to qualify for the examination, the applicant shall provide the board with satisfactory evidence that they have completed the educational requirement set forth in paragraph (1) or (2). Failure to comply with this subparagraph may result in the loss of any credit received for passage of any part of the examination before the requirement described in paragraph (1) or (2) was met. (b) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2027.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5093.3. Section 5093.3.

(a) An applicant seeking certified public accountant licensure shall show, to the satisfaction of the board, completion of two years of qualifying experience and passage of the certified public accountant examination under Section 5082. This experience may include providing any type of service or advice involving the use of accounting, attest, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax, or consulting skills. The board may also, by regulation, require the completion of specified job tasks associated with minimum competencies of entry-level practice. (b) To the satisfaction of the board, an advanced degree in an accounting-related subject may be substituted for one year of experience. (c) The board may, by regulation, accept the completion of board-recognized certificate or training programs as a substitute for a portion of the otherwise required amount of experience. (d) An applicant may only receive credit for substitution of the experience requirement under either subdivision (b) or (c), but not both. (e) To be qualifying under this section, experience shall have been performed in accordance with applicable professional standards. Experience in public accounting shall be completed under the supervision or in the employ of a person certified under the laws of any state or country to engage in the practice of public accountancy. Experience outside of public accounting shall be completed under the supervision of an individual licensed by a state to engage in the practice of public accountancy. (f) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (e), the board may, by regulation, allow experience in academia to be qualifying under this section. (g) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2027.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5093.5. Section 5093.5.

(a) Notwithstanding subdivision (b) of Section 5093, the board may admit an applicant to the certified public accountant examination before the applicant completes the education requirements set forth in Section 5093, if the applicant is enrolled in a degree-granting university, college, or other institution of learning, as defined in Section 5094, and is within 180 days of completing the educational requirements set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 5093. (b) Within 240 days of submitting an application pursuant to subdivision (a), the applicant shall provide the board with satisfactory evidence that they have completed the educational requirements set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 5093. (c) Failure to comply with subdivision (b) may result in the loss of any credit received for passage of any part of the certified public accountant examination before the requirement described in subdivision (b) was met. (d) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5094. Section 5094.

(a) In order for education to be qualifying, it shall meet the standards described in subdivision (b) or (c) of this section. (b) At a minimum, education shall be from a degree-granting university, college, or other institution of learning accredited by an accrediting agency included in a list of these agencies published by the United States Secretary of Education under the requirements of the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1001 et seq.). (c) Education from a degree-granting college, university, or other institution of learning located outside the United States may be qualifying provided it is deemed by the board to be equivalent to education obtained under subdivision (b). The board may require an applicant to submit documentation of their education to a credential evaluation service approved by the board for evaluation and to cause the results of this evaluation to be reported to the board in order to assess educational equivalency. (d) The board shall adopt regulations specifying the criteria and procedures for approval of credential evaluation services. These regulations shall, at a minimum, require that the credential evaluation service (1) furnish evaluations directly to the board, (2) furnish evaluations written in English, (3) be a member of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers, NAFSA: Association of International Educators, or the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services, (4) be used by accredited colleges and universities, (5) be reevaluated by the board every five years, (6) maintain a complete set of reference materials as specified by the board, (7) base evaluations only upon authentic, original transcripts and degrees and have a written procedure for identifying fraudulent transcripts, (8) include in the evaluation report, for each degree held by the applicant, the equivalent degree offered in the United States, the date the degree was granted, the institution granting the degree, an English translation of the course titles, and the semester unit equivalence for each of the courses, (9) have an appeal procedure for applicants, and (10) furnish the board with information concerning the credential evaluation service that includes biographical information on evaluators and translators, three letters of references from public or private agencies, statistical information on the number of applications processed annually for the past five years, and any additional information the board may require in order to ascertain that the credential evaluation service meets the standards set forth in this subdivision and in any regulations adopted by the board. (e) Colleges, universities, or other institutions of learning that provide qualifying education as described in subdivisions (b) and (c) shall be referenced as “institutions of higher education” in this chapter.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5094.3. Section 5094.3.

(a) An applicant for licensure as a certified public accountant shall, to the satisfaction of the board, provide documentation of the completion of 10 semester units or 15 quarter units of ethics study, as set forth in paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 5093, in the manner prescribed in this section. (b) Beginning January 1, 2017, an applicant shall complete 10 semester units or 15 quarter units in courses described in subdivisions (c), (d), (e), and (f). (c) A minimum of three semester units or four quarter units in courses at an upper division level or higher devoted to accounting ethics, accountants’ professional responsibilities, auditing, or fraud unless the course was completed at a community college, in which case it need not be completed at the upper division level or higher. (d) A maximum of 7 semester units or 11 quarter units, in the following subjects relating to ethics: (1) Business, government, and society. (2) Business law. (3) Corporate governance. (4) Corporate social responsibility. (5) Ethics. (6) Fraud. (7) Human resources management. (8) Business leadership. (9) Legal environment of business. (10) Management of organizations. (11) Morals. (12) Organizational behavior. (13) Professional responsibilities. (14) Auditing. (e) (1) A maximum of three semester units or four quarter units in courses taken in the following disciplines: (A) Philosophy. (B) Religion. (C) Theology. (2) To qualify under this subdivision, the course title shall contain one or more of the terms “introduction,” “introductory,” “general,” “fundamentals of,” “principles,” “foundation of,” or “survey of,” or have the name of the discipline as the sole name of the course title. (f) A maximum of one semester unit of ethics study for completion of a course specific to financial statement audits. (g) An applicant who has successfully passed the examination requirement specified under Section 5082 on or before December 31, 2013, is exempt from this section unless the applicant fails to obtain the qualifying experience as specified in Section 5092 or 5093 on or before December 31, 2015. (h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5094.6. Section 5094.6.

(a) The board shall, by regulation, adopt guidelines for accounting study to be included as part of the education required under Section 5093. (b) For purposes of this section, “accounting study” means independent study or other academic work in accounting, business, ethics, business law, or other academic work relevant to accounting and business, so as to enhance the competency of students as practitioners. (c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2029, and as of that date is repealed.

Cal. Business and Professions Code - BPC § 5095. Section 5095.

(a) To be authorized to sign reports on attest engagements, a licensee shall complete a minimum of 500 hours of experience, satisfactory to the board, in attest services. The board may, by regulation, also require the completion of specified job tasks associated with performing attest services. (b) To qualify under this section, verified attest experience shall have been performed in accordance with applicable professional standards. Experience in public accounting shall be completed under the supervision or in the employ of a person licensed or otherwise having comparable authority under the laws of any state or country to engage in the practice of public accountancy and provide attest services. Experience outside of public accounting shall be completed under the supervision of an individual licensed by a state to engage in the practice of public accountancy and perform attest services. An applicant may be required to present work papers or other evidence substantiating that the applicant has met the requirements of this section and any applicable regulations. (c) The board shall adopt regulations to implement this section, including, but not limited to, a procedure for applicants under Section 5092 or 5093 to qualify under this section.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026

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