NC CPA Exam Candidate Bulletin
December 2023
Credit Relief Initiative
At its November 20, 2023, meeting, the Board approved the implementation of the Credit Relief Initiative (CRI). The CRI reinstates CPA Exam credits that expired between January 30, 2020, and May 11, 2023, the official pandemic period. The Executive Staff is reviewing impacted candidate files and will notify each candidate of their restored section credits. The Board encourages all affected candidates to use this opportunity to complete the CPA Exam.
The New Uniform CPA Exam
The 2024 CPA Exam is a Core + Discipline model. A candidate must pass each of the three Core sections: Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Financial Accounting & Reporting (FAR), and Regulation (REG), and one of three Discipline sections: Business Analysis & Reporting (BAR), Information Systems & Controls (ISC), or Tax Compliance and Planning (TCP). Regardless of your chosen discipline, the Core + Discipline model leads to a full CPA license, with the rights and privileges consistent with any other CPA. The Discipline section selected for testing does not mean the CPA is limited to that practice area.
We encourage you to review the 2024 Uniform CPA Exam Blueprints as part of your Exam preparation. The Blueprints not only detail the minimum level of knowledge and skills you must have to qualify for initial CPA licensure but also include:
- Content organized by Area, Group, and Topic, along with score weighting,
- Sample task statements that represent what you may be asked to do when testing,
- Skill levels at which tasks are tested,
- Reference materials that support the sample task statements,
- Number of item types you must complete, and
- Score weighting of each item type
Technology knowledge and skills will be tested in all sections.
Core + Discipline CPA Exam Applications
We updated the CPA Exam applications in late November to include the Discipline sections; the revised applications are available for download from the Board’s website. Make sure you use a current application when applying for the Exam.
Exam Transition Policy
Reminder: If you have credit for AUD, FAR, or REG on the current Exam, you do not need to take the corresponding new Core section of AUD, FAR, or REG on the 2024 Exam. If you have credit for BEC on the current Exam, you do not need to take a Discipline section (BAR, ISC, or TCP).
If you do not have credit for AUD, FAR, or REG as of December 31, 2023, you must take the corresponding Core section of AUD, FAR, or REG on the 2024 CPA Exam. If you do not have credit for BEC as of December 31, 2023, you must take one of the three Discipline sections on the 2024 Exam.
The last day of testing for all current CPA Exam sections (AUD, BEC, FAR, and REG) is December 15, 2023. No CPA Exam sections will be administered from December 16, 2023, through January 9, 2024.
Credit Extension for Exam Sections Passed as of January 1, 2024
If you are a current North Carolina candidate with unexpired section credits on January 1, 2024, the Board will extend those credit expiration dates to June 30, 2025. This is an automatic extension; you do not need to take any action. Although the Board anticipates that NASBA will update score sheets, the Board’s official records will show the modified expiration date.
Remember, the Board maintains the official records for each NC CPA Exam candidate, from initial CPA Exam application to CPA licensure and beyond. Communications from NASBA, such as score reports, may not reflect changes made at the Board level. Please direct your questions about section credits and score expiration dates to the Board.
30-Month Exam Credit Window
On November 20, 2023, the Board held a public rulemaking hearing to make the 30-month Exam credit window official. If the Office of Administrative Hearings approves the rule, credit awarded by the Board for passing an Exam section will be valid for 30 months from the date the AICPA and NASBA release the passing scores. The proposed rule is expected to be effective May 1, 2024.
2024 Test Administration Schedule/Score Release Timeline
Contact Us
Phyllis Elliott, Exam Specialist | (919) 733-4224
S. Lynne Sanders, CPA, Deputy Director | (919) 733-4222
David R. Nance, CPA, Executive Director | (919) 733-4222
Visit our website at https://nccpaboard.gov/.