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This website publishes administrative rules on their effective dates, as designated by the adopting state agencies, colleges, and universities.

Chapter 4701-5 | CPA Examination Procedure

 
 
 
Rule
Rule 4701-5-01 | CPA examination administration definitions.
 

(A) "American Institute of Certified Public Accountants" is the national professional organization of certified public acccountants in the United States that develops and grades the CPA examination.

(B) "CPA Examination Services (CPAES)," a division of the "National Association of State Boards of Accountancy," is the board's authorized agent for the performance of administrative services related to the CPA examination pursuant to division (A)(5) of section 4701.06 of the Revised Code.

(C) "Prometric" is the board's authorized delivery vendor for the CPA examination.

(D) "Notice to schedule" is the document issued by CPAES to a candidate whose CPA examination application has been approved. The notice to schedule enables the candidate to schedule any or all parts of the CPA examination with prometric.

(E) "Military" has the same meaning as "armed forces" defined in section 5903.01 of the Revised Code. Military spouses are included in the board's definition.

(F) "Veteran" has the same meaning as in section 5903.01 of the Revised Code. Spouses of veterans are included in the board's definition.

(G) "Service member" means a person who is serving in the armed forces of the United States or a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States and their spouses.

Last updated May 16, 2021 at 3:33 PM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06, 5903.01
Amplifies: 4701.06, 5903.01
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 7/5/1984, 11/7/2003, 9/14/2007, 7/16/2009
Rule 4701-5-02 | CPA examination applications.
 

(A) A CPA examination candidate must complete an examination application approved by the board. All questions on the examination application must be answered and all documents requested must be submitted to CPAES, defined in paragraph (A) of rule 4701-5-01 of the Administrative Code, before the application will be considered complete. The documentation must verify that the candidate meets the requirements outlined in Chapter 4701-3 of the Administrative Code. All applicable fees must be paid before a candidate can be approved for admission to the examination, unless the applicant qualifies for military assistance.

(B) The CPA examination will be offered at test centers approved by the board that are administered by prometric, as defined in paragraph (B) of rule 4701-5-01 of the Administrative Code. A list of approved Ohio test centers will be posted on the board's website.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06, 5903.03
Amplifies: 4701.06, 5903.03
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 12/9/1997
Rule 4701-5-03 | CPA examination subjects.
 

(A) The CPA examination shall cover subjects determined by the "American Institute of Certified Public Accountants."

(B) The CPA examination subjects may be taken in any order.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06
Amplifies: 4701.06
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 1/17/1975, 1/1/2000, 11/7/2003, 7/16/2009
Rule 4701-5-04 | CPA examination scheduling.
 

(A) After CPAES approves a candidate's CPA examination application, the candidate will be issued a notice to schedule. The notice to schedule will be valid for six months from the date of issuance. In the event that a service member is called to active duty, an extension shall be made for the length of their deployment.

(B) Specific policies concerning CPA examination scheduling, including the scheduling of preferred test centers and fees for rescheduling, are subject to change. These policies will be posted on the CPAES website and made available upon request.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06, 5903.03
Amplifies: 4701.06, 5903.03
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Rule 4701-5-05 | Conduct during the CPA examination.
 

(A) Prior to the CPA examination each candidate will receive instructions pertaining to examination procedure and conduct. A candidate who fails to abide by any instructions may be expelled from the examination.

(B) A candidate shall not engage in any misconduct during the CPA examination. The staff of Prometric is authorized to report all instances of candidate misconduct during the examination directly to the board. A review by the board of such evidence may result in the suspension of a candidate's privilege to take the examination for a period of time, the cancellation of any examination score earned during the day of the misconduct, or the candidate's permanent exclusion from the examination.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06
Amplifies: 4701.06
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 12/9/1997, 1/1/2000
Rule 4701-5-06 | Passing score; conditional credit.
 

(A) The passing grade for each subject of the CPA examination is seventy-five. A candidate who passes any subject of the CPA examination will earn conditional credit for that subject.

(B) As of January 1, 2024, a candidate who earns initial conditional credit for one or more subjects of the CPA examination must complete the remaining subject or subjects of the examination by the last day of the thirtieth month from the date the candidate earns a passing grade on the first CPA examination subject. Any candidate who earned conditional credit for one or more subjects of the CPA examination between July 1, 2022 and December 31, 2022 will have the credit or credits extended to June 30, 2025. Any candidate who received conditional credit for one or more subjects of the CPA examination between January 1, 2023 and December 29, 2023 will have the credit or credits reset to thirty months from the date the candidate earned a passing grade on the first CPA examination subject.

(C) If the candidate does not pass the CPA examination during the period specified in paragraph (B) of this rule, then the candidate will lose all conditional credit older than the period specified in paragraph (B) of this rule.

(D) Extensions and waivers shall be granted to a service member and their spouse if the service member is called to active duty during the CPA exam taking process.

Last updated January 2, 2024 at 8:26 AM

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06
Amplifies: 4701.06
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 7/5/1984, 9/7/2019
Rule 4701-5-07 | Non-disclosed examination; grade procedures.
 

(A) The board shall give no information to any candidate subsequent to the administration of the CPA examination concerning examination questions or answers.

(B) The only CPA examination result that will be disclosed by the board to the public is the fact that a candidate was successful in passing the entire examination. The board will not disclose any other information concerning examination results except to the candidate.

(C) A candidate may request a review of the candidate's CPA examination score if the candidate received a failing score. The candidate shall pay the cost of the review.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06
Amplifies: 4701.06
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 11/7/2003
Rule 4701-5-09 | Transfer of CPA examination credit from other states.
 

(A) The board may accept credit on the CPA examination that a candidate of another state desires to transfer to Ohio.

(B) The following will be considered in accepting transfer credit:

(1) Whether the candidate meets the legal requirements in Ohio to take the CPA examination, or met those requirements at the time the candidate first took the CPA examination in the other state.

(2) Whether conditional credit is still valid in the other state.

(C) The board will not extend conditional credit past the term set by the other state or by Ohio, whichever is less.

Supplemental Information

Authorized By: 4701.06
Amplifies: 4701.06
Five Year Review Date: 9/1/2024
Prior Effective Dates: 12/9/1997