Looking to become a CPA in Michigan? If so, you've come to the right place! Keep reading for a detailed look at everything you need to know about the CPA Exam and license requirements in Michigan.
Michigan CPA Requirements
To earn your CPA license in Michigan, you must meet certain criteria. Here is a list of requirements you must fulfill to get a CPA license in Michigan:
| Social Security Requirement | Yes |
| Age, Citizenship, and Residency Requirements |
|
| Good Moral Character | Yes |
| Education Requirement for Licensure | 150 hours (including a bachelor’s degree) |
| Exam Passing Requirements | Score at least 75 in each section to pass |
| Work Experience | 2,000 hours of work experience |
| Ethics Exam Requirements | No ethics exam is required. |
| International CPA Examination Program | Michigan participates in the International CPA Exam Program. |
To sit for the CPA Exam, you must complete a bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 120 semester hours with a concentration in accounting from an accredited U.S. educational institution. This must include:
- 3 semester hours in Auditing (internal Auditing does not count)
- 21 semester hours in accounting that include the following subject areas:
- Governmental/Fund Accounting
- Financial Accounting and Accounting Theory
- U.S. Federal Taxation
- Accounting Systems and Controls
- Managerial Accounting, including Cost Accounting
- 24 semester hours in business subjects
To obtain a CPA license in Michigan, you must complete a total of 150 semester hours.
Work Experience Requirements
You must have 2,000 hours of qualifying work experience that was earned during a time frame of 1 to 5 calendar years. This experience should be in the government, business, education, or public sector, and verified by a CPA.
Your experience should involve the following fields:
- Financial statement audits, reviews, and compilations in compliance with the applicable standards at the time of engagement
- Attestation engagements and other auditing-related works, such as:
- Operational audits
- Compliance audits
- Expressions of opinion regarding financial projections and forecasts
- Implementation of an independent internal audit
- Income and nonprofit tax return preparation for any taxing jurisdiction
- Tax research
- Audits conducted on behalf of a government audit agency that result in the production of an opinion or report are called government audits
- Compliance audits of government contracts undertaken on behalf of a government agency and resulting in a statement or report
- Representation of a client in a tax matter before a government agency
- Forecasts, analysis, and projections of the economy
- Accounting-related work performed at a public accounting firm
Michigan CPA Exam & Licensing: Cost and Fees
According to the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), candidates must pay an education evaluation application fee of $96, an exam application fee of $96, and a fee of $262.64 for each exam section. Fees are submitted at the time of application and are non-refundable.
| Michigan CPA Exam Fees | |
|---|---|
| Education Evaluation Application Fee | $96 |
| Exam Application Fee | $96 |
| Auditing and Attestation (AUD) | $262.64 |
| Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) | $262.64 |
| Regulation (REG) | $262.64 |
| ISC/BAR/ TCP | $262.64 |
| Total: | $1,242.56 |
Pass the 3 core sections, AUD, FAR, and REG, and 1 discipline section: Information Systems and Controls (ISC), Business Analysis and Reporting (BAR), or Tax Compliance and Planning (TCP).
The application fee for a new CPA license is $300. When renewing your license, you will need to pay an additional $200 as a renewal fee. Furthermore, for a re-licensure application, the cost is $320.
| Michigan CPA License Fees | |
|---|---|
| New CPA License | $300 |
| Relicensure Application | $320 |
| Renewal Fee | $200 |
Michigan CPA License Renewal Requirements
All CPA licenses in Michigan must be renewed every 2 years. Also, you must report your Continuing Professional Education (CPE) to the board on every license renewal period.
Michigan CPA Continuing Education Requirements
CPE Requirement for Michigan Residents:
- Total 80 hours CPE with 40 hours in each year of the license cycle
- 8 hours of CPE in auditing and accounting
- 2 hours in professional ethics
CPE Requirement for Out-of-State Residents:
- You must fulfill the CPE requirements of the state where your primary business is situated.
- If the state where your place of business is located does not have continuing education standards, you must comply with Michigan’s.
Michigan CPA Exam: Exam Dates, Score Release, and Scheduling
To sit for the Michigan CPA Exam you need to be well aware of the exam and score release dates and also get a detailed idea about the exam scheduling procedure.
Exam Dates & Score Release
The CPA Exam is offered at certain windows, and the target score release dates for the CPA Exam are the same for all states. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA®) announces all CPA Exam score release dates. In addition to the dates for score release, you must be aware of the CPA Exam scheduling procedure.
Exam Section Scheduling
Here is a comprehensive summary of the CPA Exam application and scheduling procedure:
Start the Michigan CPA Exam application process by creating an Okta account. You will get access to the CPA portal. You can select either “New Candidate” or “Existing Candidate” as per your status. You can apply for your exam, make payments, submit documents, and receive Notice To Schedule(NTS) through this centralized portal.
After getting the portal access, apply for the education evaluation process, an important step to verify your eligibility for the Michigan CPA Exam. All of your educational transcripts must be sent directly from your institutions to CPA Exam Services. When the evaluation is completed, your homepage will display an eligible evaluation status. Those who completed their education outside the United States can opt for services such as:
- NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES)
- Foreign Academic Credential Service, Inc. (FACS)
- Educational Records Evaluation Service, Inc. (ERES)
If you are eligible for the Michigan CPA Exam, initiate the exam section application process by paying both the section fee and the exam application fee. Remember that you are only allowed to apply for 1 exam section for each application. You will receive an NTS under your name soon after the application. Additionally, a Candidate Exam Section ID (CES ID) is visible on your portal homepage. Note that there will be a separate NTS for each section exam after you finish the application procedure.
You can schedule your exam through the Prometric website. You will need the NTS number and CES ID to schedule your exam. Choose the testing center of your choice and schedule the exam on whichever date is most convenient for you. Note that your NTS is only valid for 6 months, so you must take the already-registered exam during the validity period.
The scoring scale for each section of the Michigan CPA Exam is 0–99, but you must score 75 or higher in each section to pass. Additionally, you have only 30 months to complete all the sections.
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