CPA Exam Schedule and Dates

The Certified Public Accountant or CPA is a credential acquired by professionally skilled accountants across the globe. To attain this credential or license, candidates must qualify the CPA Exam and fulfil their state board's educational and experience requirements. As the CPA Exam is held at different locations in the US all year round, choosing a suitable schedule, date, and Prometric testing center is of paramount importance.

Applying for the CPA Examination is a complicated process. Especially for first-time candidates, it is difficult to understand how exactly to go about it and choose their dates considering the 18-month duration window, notice-to-schedule (NTS) expiry period, score release dates, and other determinants.  

Before discussing how to schedule the examination, hovering over to the sources supervising, conducting, and taking care of the CPA exams is highly recommended. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) collaborates with the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA), Prometric, and the state boards to administer the CPA Exam.

• Each of the 55 states has a State Board of Accountancy that licenses CPAs to practice in that particular state. 
• NASBA is an association of the State Boards of Accountancy in all 55 jurisdictions.
• AICPA identifies the profession globally and makes rules, and sets standards for the CPAs in the U.S. It is an institute where professionals grow as they get valuable resources on the latest developments in the field and get an opportunity to groom themselves. 
• It is the AICPA that develops and grades the Uniform CPA examination. 
• Prometric is a company with multiple testing centers worldwide. It is responsible for the smooth delivery of the CPA Exam.

A candidate schedules the CPA Exam through Prometric while pays the fees to and receives the Notice to Schedule (NTS) from either the State Board of Accountancy/Agent or NASBA, depending on the provisions of the jurisdiction. 

• Once you have completed the application process successfully and received the NTS from the concerned authority, the next step is to schedule your examination. The authorities have decided to conduct a computer-based Uniform CPA examination throughout the year. As a result, CPA seekers can schedule their tests as per their level of preparation and convenience at any time of the year.
• Continuous testing will also give a chance to candidates to reappear for an exam if they fail. They can take the re-examination shortly after the scores are received.

Choose the CPA Dates

• While scheduling the CPA examination, candidates have to choose three sets of their preferable dates and rank them as first, second, and third. Then, depending on the availability, the candidates are allotted one of them. So, before starting the scheduling process, plan the dates for taking each exam section.
• One thing to be kept in mind while fixing an examination schedule is that the candidates are not allowed to go for a walk-in appointment. Also, they should ensure scheduling the dates at least five days in advance of the desired exam date.

Schedule Early

A huge number of people rush to appear for the CPA examination from all around the world. As a result, scheduling the test on the desired dates could be difficult as the dates you may want are more likely to be pre-occupied. Thus, it is recommended to choose the dates and schedule the examination as early as possible, at least 45 days before the date you desire to schedule your exam.

Select Testing Center

The candidates can schedule the CPA Exam through any authorized Prometric test center (depending on their availability) in the US or selected international locations. It is not mandatory to choose the testing center in the jurisdiction they plan to get licensed.

Schedule with Prometric

Candidates can either visit the Prometric website or connect with Customer Service to schedule an examination appointment. Keep the following at hand while scheduling:

• Preferred dates, times, and locations for taking each exam section
• NTS

Accept Data Privacy Notice

While scheduling the examination, candidates would come across the Data Privacy Notice. They must accept the terms and conditions of the same. At Prometric, the data entered by candidates while registering and scheduling the examination are stored in the central U.S. database. This privacy policy guarantees the protection to all the data stored, confirming no sharing of information with third parties.

Reschedule or Cancel Exam

In case candidates want to reschedule their examination or cancel the same, they can do that online (Prometric CPA) or connect with Customer Service. If they reschedule within 30 business days of the examination appointment, they will be liable to pay a rescheduling fee. So far as the cancellation is concerned, no cancellations are allowed within 24 hours of the scheduled examination time.

If, in any case, the test center closes or the date is shifted from their end, it will instantly be intimated to candidates by the authorities.

Reapply

Candidates cannot reschedule or receive a refund of the fees paid in the event of failure to:

• Attend the scheduled appointment
• Cancel the exam appointment
• Schedule the appointment within the NTS expiry period

They must reapply within 5-7 days with the required application and examination fees to the concerned authority. If the inability to attend the appointment is due to extreme circumstances, a candidate can request the concerned state board for an exception.

The continuous testing schedules have allowed candidates to appear for the CPA Exam on their preferred dates throughout the year. However, to know the target CPA score release date as per the schedule fixed in 2021, the candidates can have a quick look at the list below.

Keep in mind the exam score release dates, as candidates who have failed an exam section can reapply to take the same exam within 24 hours of receiving their score. However, they must wait to receive the NTS before scheduling the CPA Exam section with Prometric on their preferred date.

From deciding on the dates and proper order to take the exam to schedule it, the CPA Examination is a demanding and exhaustive process. However, the resulting rewards are worth all the effort. So, lay aside all inhibitions and rise to the challenge.

This article is a guide to the CPA Exam Schedule and Dates. We discuss CPA Exam dates and CPA Exam 2021 score release dates & how to schedule the exam. You may also have a look at the below articles to compare CPA with other examinations –

• CPA Exam Questions
• FAR CPA Exam Tips
• BEC CPA Exam Tips
• CPA Exam in India