Hawaii requires 150 credit hours to earn a CPA license, however you may sit for the CPA exam after earning a bachelor’s degree. The work experience requirements are 1500 billable attest hours or 2 years of public or non-public accounting.
To be eligible to sit for the CPA exam students must first fulfill these qualifications and requirements:
- Minimum age: 18
- U.S. Residency NOT Required
- State Residency NOT required
Education Requirements
- Bachelor degree or above
- Accounting degree from accredited school: automatically qualified
- Non-accounting degree from school may be accepted by the Board: 18 semester hours of accounting courses in intermediate/advanced level
*Special Note: Applicants are allowed to take the exam within 120 days from meeting the minimum educational requirements. This is defined by the printing of a Notice to Schedule (NTS) required to sit for the exam.
HI CPA License Requirements
Education
- 150 semester units
- Accounting courses: 24 semester units in intermediate/advanced level
- Business courses: 24 semester units
Education
- 1,500 chargeable hours in auditing, OR
- 2 years of relevant experience which include non-public accounting but should be substantially equivalent to that of public accounting
Ethics Exam
- 4 hours of CPE on Ethics is required
Hawaii Exam Fees
The cost to take all four sections of the CPA exam in Hawaii is $743 plus the initial $145 application fee. The re-examination registration fee varies depending on the number of sections you are signing up for.
| Auditing and Attestation (AUD) | $195.35 |
| Business Environment and Concepts (BEC) | $176.25 |
| Financial Accounting and Reporting (FAR) | $195.35 |
| Regulation (REG) | $176.25 |
| Application Fee: | $120 |
**Important Note: You should not apply and pay for exam sections that will not be taken within nine months because your Notice to Schedule (NTS) in Hawaii expires 9 months after issuance.
Additional CPA Requirements
- Pass all 4 sections of the CPA exam with a score of 75% or higher
- Complete verified accounting work experience
- Earn 4 CPA ethics credits
- Fill out and submit all required CPA license application paperwork
- Pay the CPA license application fee
HI Exam Information and Resources
For more details, please contact:
Department of Commerce & Consumer Affairs
PO Box 3469
Honolulu, HI 96801-3469
Email: [email protected], [email protected]
Phone: 808-586-3000
Fax: 808-586-2689
What’s Next?
Now that you have started the CPA exam application process, your next step is to find a CPA Review Course that fits your budget, learning style and schedule.
It can take several weeks for your application to be processed so don’t waste that valuable time waiting to hear back from your state board. If you start studying now you will get a nice jump start on the material and will be better prepared to Pass your first CPA exam!
Bryce Welker is a regular contributor to Forbes, Inc.com, YEC and Business Insider. After graduating from San Diego State University he went on to earn his Certified Public Accountant license and created CrushTheCPAexam.com to share his knowledge and experience to help other accountants become CPAs too. Bryce was named one of Accounting Today’s “Accountants To Watch” among other accolades. As Seen On Forbes
