territory eligibility guide
U.S. Virgin Islands CPA exam requirements
U.S. Virgin Islands requires bachelor's degree and 120 semester hours, including 24 accounting hours for CPA exam eligibility. Virgin Islands Board of Public Accountancy 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
- bachelor's degree required to sit
- Passed-section credit window
- 18-month passed-section credit window
Education requirements to sit
- Degree: bachelor's degree required to sit
- Minimum education to sit: 120 semester hours
- Accounting coursework: 24 semester hours
- Business coursework: 24 semester hours
- Degree field: Accounting concentration or equivalent coursework
- Accreditation: Baccalaureate or higher degree from an accredited institution, with coursework meeting the Board's rules.
Required accounting subjects
- Auditing and attestation
- Financial accounting and reporting
- Cost or managerial accounting
- Taxation
Other required coursework
- 2 semester hours in accounting or business research and analysis
- 2 semester hours in communications
- 3 semester hours in ethics
Principles or introductory accounting does not count toward the 48-hour accounting-and-business total. No more than 6 semester hours of internship or independent-study credit may count, including no more than 3 hours 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 required
- Character review before sitting: A character requirement applies before sitting
- Professional and character references
- National criminal background check
The application asks whether the candidate is a Virgin Islands resident but does not make territorial residency a condition of exam eligibility.
How to apply
Apply through Virgin Islands Board of Public Accountancy Notarized paper application submitted to the Virgin Islands Board.
Documents commonly required for this application
- Notarized Board application
- Proof of identity
- Official transcripts sent directly by the institution
- Three 2-by-2 photographs
- Professional and character references
- National criminal background check
- Employment-eligibility verification
- Required fees
The Board's posted fee table lists $360 per Uniform CPA Exam section but is marked revised January 2022 and still includes BEC. Kesler uses that amount only as a planning estimate; confirm the current charge directly with the Board before paying.
Published exam fees
- Initial exam application: $150.00 Charged once for a first-time candidate.
- Published Uniform CPA Exam section estimate: approximately $360.00 per section Planning estimate from the Board fee table revised January 2022. The same table still lists BEC, so confirm the current invoice with the Virgin Islands Board before paying.
Why this is a partial estimate: This provisional first-time estimate uses the Board's published $150 application fee plus $360 per Uniform CPA Exam section. The fee table is marked revised January 2022 and still lists BEC, so it may not match the current invoice; confirm every amount with the Virgin Islands Board before paying. The separate $200 local regulatory examination is outside this Uniform CPA Exam signup estimate. Confirm the current official fee schedule.
Before you pay: These figures were verified on 2026-08-10, but fee schedules can change. Confirm the current official fee schedule.
Can you apply or sit before graduation?
- Apply before the degree is awarded: No; the education requirement must be completed first
- Sit before the degree is awarded: No; the education requirement must be completed first
The Board application requires proof that the candidate has already satisfied the examination education requirement.
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)
NASBA Licensing identifies NIES for applicants educated outside the United States.
NTS and passed-section credit
- NTS issuer: NASBA
- NTS validity: 6 months
- Passed-section credit: 18-month passed-section credit window
- Continuous testing: Available subject to current AICPA scheduling windows
- The U.S. Virgin Islands does not participate in international administration of the CPA Exam.
- Discipline sections follow AICPA testing windows.
The current Virgin Islands Board rules retain an 18-month rolling examination-credit period. The NTS validity period is not stated in the published Board materials; use the expiration printed on the NTS.
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 listed as required
- Alternative pathway: verified current requirements
Published licensure pathways
- Baccalaureate degree and 150 semester hours plus at least 2,000 hours of qualifying experience over no less than one year.
Licensure requires 150 semester hours, at least 2,000 hours of qualifying experience over no less than one year, and the Virgin Islands Regulatory Examination.
Special rules and recent changes
- Virgin Islands candidates cannot use Virgin Islands eligibility to register for international administration.
Official sources used
- Accountancy Board Certification Steps — Virgin Islands Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs (accessed 2026-08-09)
- Virgin Islands Public Accountancy Act of 2014 — Government of the Virgin Islands (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Board of Public Accountancy Rules and Regulations — Virgin Islands Board of Public Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Application for Examination and Initial Licensure — Virgin Islands Board of Public Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Virgin Islands Licensing Services — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Virgin Islands CPA Exam — National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (accessed 2026-08-07)
- CPA Exam Candidate Guide — 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.