For New Hampshire CPA Exam requirements, the State Board requires only 120 credit hours to sit for the exam AND getting the CPA qualification. Please note that after July 1, 2014, you’ll have to fulfill the full 150 credit hour requirement to be granted the CPA license – Another reason to get this done ASAP!
Please note that New Hampshire State Board recognizes strictly public (i.e. not private) accounting working experience.
New Hampshire CPA Exam Requirements
1. Education Requirements To Sit For The Exam:
- Bachelor degree or above
- 120 semester units from an accredited university or educational institution
- Course requirement:
- Accounting: 12 semester units
- Non-accounting Business: 12 semester units
Special note to international / overseas students:
- If you gain your degree outside the US, you will have to send your transcript to a foreign credential evaluation agency for evaluation.
- For New Hampshire, any agency that is a member of NACES (National Association of Credentials Evaluation Services) is accepted.
- While not mandatory, you may choose to request a “pre-evaluation” from NASBA (click nasba.org -> New Hampshire -> First time application -> Pre-evulation) for a fee.
2. Additional Requirements To Get CPA Certificate:
Education
- Same requirements for sitting for the CPA exam
- ** Special Note **: After July 1, 2014, you will need the full 150 credit hours to get the CPA license, including:
- 30 credit hours of accounting
- 24 credit hours of business
Work Experience
- It has to be public accounting (largely meaning audit and attestation services). Governmental experience is accepted but is very narrowly defined. Please contact the State Board for verification.
- Number of years required:
- 2 years with a bachelor’s degree
- 1 year with masters degree in business administration, accounting, finance or taxation
- The work experience has to be supervised and verified by a CPA or equivalent (i.e. CPA in Australia, or CA in Australia, Canada, Ireland and Mexico)
Ethics Qualification
- Passing of the CPA Ethics Exam administered by the AICPA.
3. Residency & Age Requirements:
- US citizenship not required
- New Hampshire residency not required
- Minimum age: 21
4. Fees:
- First-timers: $823 (4 CPA exam fees) + $220 (initial application fee) = $1,023
- Retakers: exam fees + $140-185, depending on the number of sections)
5. Other Useful Information:
6. Contact:
New Hampshire Board of Accountancy
78 Regional Dr. Bdg 2
Concord, NH 03301
- Email: cpaes-nh@nasba.org, boa@nh.gov
- Phone: 603-271-3286
- Fax: 603-271-8702
Can’t Qualified For New Hamphire?
Don’t give up, as you may well be qualified to register through other states and sit for the same CPA exam. With the recent Substantial Equivalency (CPA reciprocity) rule CPAs from most states can practice across the country.
- Check out the other states’ non-New Hampshire CPA Exam Requirements here.
Your Next Step
Now that you have begun the process of applying for the CPA exam, it’s time to compare the CPA Exam review courses. The earlier you start, the better you can get prepared and pass the exam. You can also drop me a note on Facebook here if you have specific questions regarding CPA exam requirements. Good luck!
* 1 semester = 1.5 quarters. Photographs courtesy of meantux
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{ 9 comments }
I am eligible to sit for the exam in New Hampshire. Could I sit and pass the exam in New Hampshire, gain my year of experience and practice in Minnesota? Would I be eligible to get a MN license as soon as I pass the NH test? Or is there a waiting period that I would have to wait to get reciprocity?
Hi Scrum,
You can certainly gain your experience in Minnesota as long as your experience can be supervised and verified by an active CPA licensee. But then you’ll need to fulfill the requirement from New Hampshire and not Minnesota, which include at least one year of public accounting.
I am not totally sure whether New Hamphire is substantially equivalent, but it will be in a few years when it phases out the currently “easier” requirements (i.e. the 120 credit hour vs 150). But once you are in the game you will be grandfathered, no worries.
Cheers, Stephanie
Hi Stephanie:
Almost done with the Uniform examination (took REG last week, awaiting result, crossing my fingers). In the meantime, I am checking what are the next steps.
A little background, I applied to the NH before realizing the 2 year experience requirement. I worked with E&Y (Assurance and Advisory) for 8 years before joined my current employer here in DC. Thus I legally reside and work in the US. I do not intend to practice public accounting in the US. Just looking for a certificate. ECE’s evaluation came up with a 128 hour semester.
Is there any advice on which state to tranfer my credit to and earn the CPA certificate?
Arizona seems to be OK, provided I meet the 150 hours. “Pursuant to A.A.C. R4-1-343(B)(1)(b), any person signing a Certificate Of Experience who is not a CPA must have the education and experience similar to that of a CPA. If the signer is not a CPA, they must attach a resume and a job description to verify they have the education and experience to oversee a potential CPA candidate”. If AZ is the only solution available, any advice on how to meet the 22 hours gap?
Many thanks in advance.
Hi Indomitable Lion,
So I guess the issue is that you didn’t work in public accounting. In fact, there are other states that recognize non-public accounting experience, e.g. Illinois. Maybe you can give it a try?
The states mentioned here can be a good candidate as well provided you have SSN (sounds like you have).
Good luck!
Stephanie
Hi Stephanie – I have done B.com from Delhi university and M.Com from Annamalai university. Both were done through correspondence course. Additionally I have passed the final exam of ICWAI. I would like to know if my qualification fullfills the eligibility requirement for joining CPA and which state board should I apply. I am told correspondence course does not fullfill the 120/150 hours requirements and one needs to have completed graduation/post graduation through full time course.
Kindly advise
Thanks so much for your help
Hi Anand,
I am afraid the ICWAI doesn’t give you advantage in terms of getting qualified to sit for the CPA exam. But then, some of the courses taken may be used to count towards the educational requirements.
You are right correspondence courses (outside of the US in particular) do not count. Other than that, you will have to consult the professional foreign credential evaluator to see how much you can get in terms of credits.
Good luck! Stephanie
Hi Steph,
I am getting a HTTP 500 internal server error which I click on the links for CPA review courses and Yaeger review.
Thanks, Pradeep
Hi Prad,
Sorry — occasionally the server decides to take a break — but usually it’s up and well after a few minutes.
Hope you can get it through now? Stephanie
Dear all,
I have set up a new comment box powered by Facebook to let me answer your questions more efficiently. It can be found right after each article. Thanks! Stephanie