territory eligibility guide
Puerto Rico CPA exam requirements
Puerto Rico requires 120 semester hours, including 24 accounting hours 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
- 120 semester hours
- 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: 120 semester hours
- Accounting coursework: 24 semester hours
- Business coursework: 24 semester hours
- Accreditation: The 120 general college-level credits must be earned from an accredited college or university.
Every accounting course must carry a grade of C or higher. The 24-hour general-business block must have an average grade of C or higher. Online, correspondence, and CLEP credit must appear on an official transcript from an accredited university.
Personal eligibility rules
- Minimum age: 18
- 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: Jurisdiction residency is required
- Social Security number: An SSN is not required to apply
- Character review before sitting: A character requirement applies before sitting
- Applicant must be a resident of Puerto Rico or have a place of business in Puerto Rico.
- An applicant who is not a U.S. citizen must submit a statement of intention to become a U.S. citizen.
U.S. citizenship is not an absolute requirement to apply, but the declaration-of-intent rule applies to noncitizens. The residency or place-of-business requirement applies to both initial and re-examination candidates.
How to apply
Apply through NASBA CPA Examination Services (CPAES) online through NASBA CPA Portal.
Documents commonly required for this application
- Official transcripts
- Completed CPA Portal application
- NIES evaluation when education was earned outside the United States
- Evidence of Puerto Rico residence or a place of business in Puerto Rico
- Statement of intent to become a U.S. citizen when the applicant is not a U.S. citizen
CPAES processes the examination application. The Puerto Rico Board's official government page directs exam candidates to NASBA.
Published exam fees
- Education evaluation application: $96.00 Charged once for a first-time candidate.
- Exam section application: $146.00 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 120 hours and both 24-hour subject blocks must be complete at application; there is no provisional route for unfinished exam education.
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 completed original evaluation must be sent directly from NIES to CPAES; photocopies are not accepted.
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 window begins on the score-release date of the first passed section.
- Written hardship or good-cause exception requests are discretionary with the Board.
Apply only for a section you are prepared to take within the next six months; application and examination fees are generally nonrefundable.
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.
- Education for licensure: 150 semester hours under the current pathway
- Experience: 1 year required under the current pathway
- Ethics exam: Not confirmed in the current official sources
- Alternative pathway: verified current requirements
Published licensure pathways
- Current Puerto Rico education and qualifying-experience route.
Licensure generally requires a bachelor's degree, 150 hours, 32 accounting hours, 32 business hours, and Board-defined experience.
Official sources used
- Contadores Públicos Autorizados — Government of Puerto Rico Department of State (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Puerto Rico CPA Exam — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-09)
- Puerto Rico Licensing Requirements — NASBA Licensing Services (accessed 2026-08-09)
- 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.