How to Become a CPA in North Carolina: Pathways, Exam, and Experience

To become a CPA in North Carolina, you need to complete an accounting-focused education, pass the Uniform CPA Examination, put in supervised work experience under a licensed CPA, finish the state’s eight-hour accountancy law and ethics course, and submit a license application to the North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners. The Board recognizes three pathways to licensure, and as of January 1, 2026, one of them lets you qualify with a bachelor’s degree alone if you’re willing to work an extra year under supervision.

Pick Your Pathway First

Your pathway determines how much college coursework you need and how many years of experience the Board expects in exchange. Every applicant, regardless of route, needs at least a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university and a concentration in accounting.¹

Pathway 1: 150 Semester Hours Plus One Year of Experience

The traditional route. A bachelor’s degree in any subject, enough additional coursework to reach 150 semester hours total, and 24 semester hours spread across at least 8 of 10 Board-defined Fields of Study: communications, computer technology, economics, ethics, finance, humanities or social science, international environment, law, management, and statistics. You need at least one three-credit course in each of the eight fields you pick. Add one year of supervised experience and you’re eligible to apply.¹

Pathway 2: Master’s Degree Plus One Year of Experience

If you hold a master’s or more advanced degree in accounting, tax law, economics, finance, or business administration, or a law degree, you skip the Fields of Study requirement. One year of supervised experience still applies.¹

Pathway 3: Bachelor’s Degree Plus Two Years of Experience

Available starting January 1, 2026. A bachelor’s degree with 24 semester hours across at least 8 of the 10 Fields of Study, no 150-hour requirement, and two years of supervised experience. This pathway helps candidates who already have several years of accounting work but never accumulated the extra credit hours.¹

The Accounting Concentration Every Applicant Needs

All three pathways require a concentration in accounting as defined by 21 NCAC 08A .0309. That means at least 30 semester hours of undergraduate accounting courses, with no more than six of those hours in accounting principles and no more than three in business law. You can also satisfy the concentration with at least 20 semester hours of graduate accounting courses open only to graduate students, or with an equivalent combination of undergraduate and graduate work.²

Acceptable courses include introductory, intermediate, and advanced accounting, managerial accounting, cost accounting, fund accounting, auditing, taxation, and business law. If the Board decides two of your courses substantially overlap in content, only one counts toward the 30 hours.¹

Passing the Uniform CPA Exam

You don’t have to finish 150 hours before you sit. North Carolina lets you apply for the exam once you hold a bachelor’s degree, or expect to finish one within 120 days, and have completed or nearly completed the accounting concentration. You also need to be a U.S. citizen, have declared your intent to become one, or be a resident alien. Foreign citizens can qualify if their home country extends similar exam privileges to Americans. Every applicant provides a Social Security number.³

The exam has three Core sections everyone takes and one Discipline section you pick. Core: Auditing and Attestation (AUD), Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR), and Taxation and Regulation (REG). Discipline options: Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR), Information Systems and Controls (ISC), or Tax Compliance and Planning (TCP).⁴

You need a 75 on each section. When you pass your first section, a 30-month clock starts. Any remaining section not passed within that window expires, and you retake it.³

Costs: $230 for the initial exam application, plus $265.57 per section, which puts a full four-section sit around $1,292 in section fees. If you need to reapply for additional sections later, the re-exam application fee is $75.⁵

Getting Your Supervised Work Experience

One year of full-time work means 52 weeks with an employer that expects you to work at least 30 hours per week. Part-time hours count too. The Board excludes time spent on sick leave, vacation, continuing education, or anything other than performing accounting work. Pathway 3 candidates need two full years on the same terms.⁶

All of your experience must be under the direct supervision of a CPA who holds an active license in any U.S. jurisdiction. The work needs to involve applying accounting skills, such as preparing financial statements, performing audits, doing tax work, or providing similar professional services. Hours in public practice, private industry, government, and academia all qualify.⁶

You’ll document your experience through affidavits from each employer on Board-provided forms. If your experience wasn’t gained at a CPA firm, the Board also requires a detailed breakdown of the work you performed and the supervision you received.⁶

The North Carolina Accountancy Law Course

Within one year before applying for your license, you must complete an eight-hour course covering the state’s accountancy statutes and rules, including the Rules of Professional Ethics and Conduct. The only course the Board accepts is offered by the North Carolina Association of CPAs (NCACPA): “NC Accountancy Law: Ethics, Principles, & Professional Responsibilities.” The course ends with an exam you must pass before applying for licensure.²

Watch the timing. Because the course expires one year after you complete it, taking it too early can force a retake if your application is delayed. Most candidates are better off saving it until their experience hours and transcripts are ready.

Character Certificates and Background Check

Your license application must include three certificates of good moral character, each completed by a CPA on a Board-provided form. The Board runs its own background check, including a review of criminal records.⁷

Any criminal history requires a written explanation and a certified copy of the final disposition for each offense. Arrests or charges that have been expunged by a court don’t need to be disclosed. The Board won’t consider an application while the applicant is still serving a sentence, and that includes probation, parole, and conditionally suspended sentences.⁷

Submitting the License Application

Once education, exam, experience, and the accountancy law course are done, you file the Original Certificate Application with the Board. The package includes:

The Board’s application form for an original NC CPA license.
Experience affidavits from each qualifying employer.
Three character certificates completed by CPAs.
Proof of completing the NCACPA accountancy law course within the past year.
Official transcripts showing your degree, accounting concentration, and, for Pathway 1, the full 150 semester hours.
The Board’s educational requirements worksheet mapping your courses.
The Employee Fair Classification Act statement and Ethnicity/Gender questionnaire.
A 2×2 photo meeting Board specifications.

The application fee is $100, payable by check, Mastercard, Visa, or American Express.² If you passed any exam sections in another state before finishing all four, you can transfer those credits to North Carolina for $75.⁵

What Comes After Licensure

Active North Carolina CPAs complete 2,000 CPE minutes (40 CPE credit hours) each calendar year, with at least 50 of those minutes covering regulatory or behavioral professional ethics and conduct. If the Board approves your license partway through the year, your first-year requirement is prorated based on the quarter of approval.⁸

You renew every year before July 1 and report your CPE at the same time. The renewal fee is $60.⁹ Inactive status is free to apply for; reactivating later costs $100. While inactive, you can’t practice public accountancy or call yourself a CPA without the “inactive” designation.⁵

If You’re Already Licensed in Another State

If you already hold a CPA license from another U.S. jurisdiction, you don’t have to start over. You can apply for a reciprocal North Carolina license for $100. The Board also offers a reciprocal license with a temporary practice permit for the same fee, which lets you begin working in the state while the full application is processed.⁵

1
North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners. Pathways to Original NC CPA Licensure
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North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners. CPA License Applicants
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North Carolina State Board of Certified Public Accountant Examiners. CPA Exam Applicants
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National Association of State Boards of Accountancy. What is the Uniform CPA Examination?
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North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners. Fee Schedule
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Cornell Law School. 21 NC Admin Code 08F 0401 – Work Experience Required of Candidates for CPA Certification
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North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners. NCAC Subchapter 08F – Requirements for Certified Public Accountant Examination and Certificate Applicants
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North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners. Subchapter 08G – Section 0400 – CPE Requirements
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North Carolina State Board of CPA Examiners. NC CPAs