state eligibility guide
Georgia CPA exam requirements
Georgia requires 24 accounting semester hours at a qualifying four-year institution; no completed degree required for CPA exam eligibility. NASBA CPA Examination Services (CPAES) makes the final eligibility decision.
Published by Kesler CPA Review, a commercial CPA exam preparation company. This page is educational, not legal advice. The Board or application authority makes the final eligibility decision.
- Minimum education to sit
- 24 accounting semester hours at a qualifying four-year institution; no completed degree required
- Degree rule
- No completed degree required to sit
- Passed-section credit window
- 30-month passed-section credit window
Education requirements to sit
- Degree: No completed degree required to sit
- Minimum education to sit: 24 accounting semester hours at a qualifying four-year institution; no completed degree required
- Accounting coursework: 24 semester hours
- Business coursework: Not confirmed in the current official sources
- Accreditation: The 24 accounting hours must be completed at a four-year accredited college or university that offers a baccalaureate degree.
Effective January 1, 2026, a degree and total-college-hour minimum are not required to sit. Community-college upper-level credit must be transferred to a four-year institution's transcript; no more than three internship hours count toward accounting.
Personal eligibility rules
- Citizenship: U.S. citizenship is not listed as an absolute requirement; review any lawful-presence rule
- U.S. residency: No U.S. residency requirement is listed
- Jurisdiction residency: No jurisdiction-residency requirement is listed
- Social Security number: An SSN is not required to apply
- Character review before sitting: A character requirement applies before sitting
How to apply
Apply through NASBA CPA Examination Services (CPAES) online through the NASBA CPA Portal.
Documents commonly required for this application
- Education evaluation application
- Official transcript from each school
- CPA Portal exam-section application
- NIES evaluation when applicable
Only one exam section may be selected per exam-section application.
Published exam fees
- Education evaluation application: $96.00 Charged once for a first-time candidate.
- Exam section application: $96.00 per section Charged for each exam section selected.
- CPA exam section fee: $268.59 per section Charged for each exam section selected.
Before you pay: These figures were verified on 2026-08-09, but fee schedules can change. Confirm the current official fee schedule.
Can you apply or sit before graduation?
- Apply before the degree is awarded: A completed degree is not part of this jurisdiction's sitting rule
- Sit before the degree is awarded: A completed degree is not part of this jurisdiction's sitting rule
A degree is not required to sit; all 24 qualifying accounting hours must be completed when the education evaluation is submitted.
Foreign education
- Foreign education accepted: Yes, with the jurisdiction's conditions
- Credential evaluation: A credential evaluation is required
- NIES: NASBA International Evaluation Services is required
- Certified translation: A certified translation is required when applicable
Published evaluation services
- NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES)
The NIES report must be submitted to CPAES.
NTS and passed-section credit
- NTS issuer: NASBA
- NTS validity: 6 months
- Passed-section credit: 30-month passed-section credit window
- Continuous testing: Available subject to current AICPA scheduling windows
- Only one section may be selected per exam-section application.
- The 30-month credit period begins on the score-release date.
- Discipline sections follow AICPA testing windows.
Apply only when ready to test within the NTS period.
Sitting for the exam is not the same as licensure
These examination rules answer whether you can apply and sit. A CPA license can require additional education, experience, ethics, and administrative steps.
- Experience: Experience is required
- Ethics exam: Not confirmed in the current official sources
- Alternative pathway: adopted and effective
Education and experience vary by route; the bachelor's-only route requires two years, while the 150-hour and master's routes require one year.
Special rules and recent changes
- education requirement: 24 semester hours of accounting at a qualifying four-year institution, with no degree or total-hour minimum to sit. Effective date: 2026-01-01. Read the official change source.
Official sources used
- Georgia CPA Exam — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-09)
- Georgia Board Rule Chapter 20-3 — Georgia State Board of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Georgia Licensing Requirements — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Implementing Candidate Fee Changes — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-09)
Before you apply: Confirm the current application, fees, NTS terms, and testing availability with the Board. This guide only includes details we could verify from published sources, and the licensing section is a starting point—not a complete licensing checklist.
Your application plan
Turn this page into a checklist
Check off each research step as you complete it. This is a planning aid; finishing the checklist does not mean the Board has approved your eligibility.