CPA

Welcome

The Board of Accountancy is the state agency responsible for licensing and regulating certified public accountants and certified public accounting firms. The Board is funded solely through fees charged to obtain and renew a license to practice public accounting and to sit for the CPA exam.

The Board office is located at 332 West Broadway Suite 310, Louisville KY 40202. Our phone number is (502) 595-3037 and our fax number is (502) 595-4500. You can also reach us at our email address cpa@ky.gov.

Notice of Filing Proposed Amendment to Existing Administrative Regulation

On February 4, 2021, the Board of Accountancy filed, with the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission, (“LRC”), a proposed amendment to “201 KAR 1:100. Continuing professional education requirements.” Notably, the proposal makes no substantive change to any of the existing continuing professional education requirements (“CPE”) currently affecting licensees. Instead, the amendment seeks only to clarify the original intent behind the existing regulation and more clearly define the subset of CPAs required to complete, as part of their 80 required CPE hours per reporting period, 16 hours of CPE in the subject matter area of auditing or accounting.

The full text of the proposed amendment can be accessed through this link to the LRC’s main page of administrative regulations: https://legislature.ky.gov/Law/kar/Pages/default.aspx.

Should any individuals desire to be heard, a public hearing on this administrative regulation shall be held on April 22, 2021 at 1:00 p.m. EST at the office of the Board located at 332 W. Broadway, Suite 310 Louisville, Kentucky 40202. Such individuals shall notify this agency in writing, by five workdays prior to the hearing, of their intent to attend. If you do not wish to be heard at the public hearing, you may submit written comments on the proposed administrative regulation until the end of the day (11:59 p.m.) April 30, 2021. Send written notification of intent to be heard at the public hearing or written comments on the proposed administrative regulation to:

Joseph P. Donohue, Executive Director, Kentucky State Board of Accountancy, 332 W. Broadway, Suite 310, Louisville, Kentucky 40202, phone (502) 595-3037, fax (502) 595-4281, email joep.donohue@ky.gov.

Individual and Firm License Renewals

Under state law, any even numbered license, and all firm licenses, not renewed by September 1, 2020 automatically expire, and the holders of the expired licenses shall be prohibited from practicing public accounting or holding themselves out as certified public accountants or firms. To reinstitute an expired license, an individual must complete the "reinstatement" requirements set forth on this site. Firms that have failed to timely renew must contact the state board office to seek reinstatement.

Odd numbered individual licenses will renew in July of 2021. Continuing Professional Education ("CPE") hours must be completed in the two calendar years prior to the year a license is to be renewed. These two calendar years are referred to as the "reporting period." For those renewing their CPA licenses in 2021, this means all CPE hours must be completed beginning January 1, 2019 and ending December 31, 2020. For even numbered licenses renewing in 2022, all CPE hours must be completed beginning January 1, 2020 and ending December 31, 2021.

Reinstatement Requirements

Out of State License Renewal Change

As of July 14, 2018, a firm that does not operate an office in this state, holds a license in good standing from the state where their main office is located, and if applicable complies with the peer review requirements [KRS 325.301(10)] of this state is not required to obtain a license to provide public accounting services to a KY based client.
See KRS 325.301(11) for details.

Score Release Update

As of April 1, 2020 Kentucky exam candidate scores will be posted online at the NASBA portal. Candidates should be able to log into the NASBA portal to receive their grade as well as print their score report.

CPA Exam Score Release Dates
January 1 - July 30, 2021

If you took a section of the exam during January 1 - June 30, 2021, your target score release dates are as follows: