CPE – Continuing Professional Education


Required for all Louisiana Active Certificate Holders (Licensees) after initial year of license or reinstatement. 


 

ATTENTION: If you are short on 2024 CPE hours, please review and complete the form below; it includes instructions on how to submit it to the Board:

2024 CPE Extension Request

 

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2024 Ethics Requirement!  The vendors below have been approved to provide the 2024 Ethics course:

    1. Society of Louisiana CPAs (LCPA) 
    2. Surgent McCoy CPE, LLC / CPA Self Study 
    3. Checkpoint Learning 
    4. WebCE
    5. Becker Professional Education
    6. Beacon Hill Financial Educators 
    7. My CPE
    8. Master CPE

 

 

It’s finally here –  Online CPE Reporting! 

The Board transitioned to a new database in November of 2023 – one of the new features includes an online CPE reporting system.  CPAs can now input CPE online all year or all at once at renewal time!  

Please note, after you upload or enter your CPE online, there is not a “Submit” button; Board Staff will do that automatically each year on January 31st.  

If you have any questions regarding CPE, please send an email to: cpaboard.sitemaster@la.gov or call Jean Palmer, the Board’s CPE Coordinator, at 504-566-1244.  

 


CPE Reporting Period – 2024

CPE is summitted electronically via the Licensee Portal below:

Online Portal

 

 

CPE Hours Required

In general, the CPE hours that are required depends on the date of certificate (license) issuance.

  • For CPAs licensed (or reinstated) prior to 2023:

A minimum of 20 hours of CPE to be completed and reported for the year 2024, regardless of hours reported for 2023, AND

Must report at least 80 hours for 2024 MINUS the number of CPE hours
reported for 2023.  (Put another way, the sum of CPE reported for 2023 and 2024 must equal at least 80 hours.)

  • For CPAs first licensed in 2023, a minimum of 20 hours of CPE to be completed and reported for the year 2024.
  • For CPAs initially licensed in 2024, there is no CPE requirement for 2024.

 

CPAs who participate in attest engagements during the calendar year 2024 must earn and report at least 8 hours of CPE in Accounting and Auditing courses for 2024.

Participation includes being responsible for performing substantial portions of the procedures, or being responsible for planning, directing, or reporting an attest engagement.  Persons who “plan, direct and report” generally include the in-charge accountant, the supervisor or manager, and the firm partner (owner) who signs or authorizes someone to sign the attest engagement report on behalf of the firm.  [Board Rule §1301.A.1]

 

Other Annual Limits (hours in excess of annual limits cannot be carried over):

  • 10 hours:     Published Materials, Books, etc.
  • 20 hours:     Teacher, Speaker, Lecturer, etc.
  • 20 hours:     Completion of Credentialing Exam

 

The CPE requirement for the rolling two-year period beginning January 1, 2022 and ending December 31, 2023 must equal at least 80 hours.  The CPE requirement for the rolling two-year period beginning January 1, 2023 and ending December 31, 2024 must equal at least 80 hours.

Ideally, each CPA should earn 40 hours annually to remain current with the rapidly ever-changing professional standards and maintain professionally competency.

 

Acceptable CPE
CPE must consist of a formal program of learning, which contributes directly to a CPA’s professional knowledge and professional competence.

Chapter 13 of the Board Rules covers the CPE requirements that all licensed Louisiana CPAs and CPE sponsors must follow in order to have the CPE qualify for credit.  Sponsors and licensees should become familiar with these rules and requirements.

The Board does not have a “pre-approval” or “registration” process for sponsors and does not pre-approve CPE (with the exception of the required ethics course when required).  The CPE submitted by CPAs is subject to review or audit by the Board staff after the reporting period and may be disallowed if the requirements are not satisfied.  Sponsors are also subject to review.  Board personnel are knowledgeable with regard to CPE, but may not always be able to provide final conclusions in advance as to the acceptability of a CPE course or sponsor.

 

Accounting and Auditing CPE requirement
CPAs who participate anytime during the reporting year in attest engagement(s) (compilation, review, audit, and agreed-upon procedures) are required to complete at least 8 hours in Accounting and Auditing subjects.  [In public accounting, this can include all financial reporting, “A&A”, or attest engagement staff, managers, partners, and practitioners-in-charge of compilation(s), review(s), audit(s) or other attest engagement(s).  It excludes tax staff or personnel whose role is to assist the attest engagement staff or team in the tax computation, accrual and tax disclosure.]

 

CPE Credit for Published Books and Articles

Credit for published material may be awarded for CPE after publication and subsequent approval by the Board.  Requests for evaluation and credit should be submitted on the Checklist for Evaluations of Published Material for CPE Credit form.

Board Rule §1309 provides that credit for writing published articles, books, and CPE programs will be awarded in an amount determined by a board representative provided the writing contributes to the professional competence of the certificate holder. The board and author may choose to mutually approve a third party representative. CPAs requesting a third party representative will be charged a fee; the fee is to be negotiated and agreed upon prior to the engagement.

The maximum credit allowed for preparation of articles and books cannot exceed 10 hours of continuing professional education earned in a calendar year; excess hours in a calendar year cannot be used for CPE credit.

 

CPE Credit for Teaching College Courses (added April, 04)
Credit for services as a lecturer or speaker is awarded on the first presentation only, unless a program has been substantially revised. College courses at the junior, senior or graduate level according to the applicable accredited college or university’s degree program curriculum will be allowed for continuing professional education and may be claimed repetitively since these courses are considered to be “substantially revised” due to the continual changes that need to be incorporated in a course at this level.

Curriculum will be eligible for CPE on the first presentation only. Repeat presentations are not considered to be “substantially revised”.  A CPA would have to provide evidence of substantial revision for the Board to consider allowing a repeat presentation.

 

Personal Development CPE Limitation  (updated 09/20/15)
Personal Development CPE hours cannot exceed the annual limit of 20 hours. Personal development is the field of study that includes self-management and self-improvement both inside and outside of the business environment.

 

2024 CPE Ethics Course – specific requirement

An Ethics requirement is included for the 2024 CPE Report Year. Every licensed CPA who is subject to mandatory CPE for 2024 will have to complete an approved 3-hour Ethics course (unless the CPA meets the exception for out-of-state CPAs discussed below.)The below courses are also approved for those whose license expired in a prior year and now wish to reinstate their license. Louisiana licensed CPAs must take the 3-hour Professional Ethics course in 2024 from one of the vendors below:

  • Society of Louisiana CPAs (LCPA) 
  • Surgent McCoy CPE, LLC / CPA Self Study 
  • Checkpoint Learning 
  • WebCE
  • Becker Professional Education
  • Beacon Hill Financial Educators 
  • My CPE
  • Master CPE

 

OUT-OF-STATE ETHICS EXCEPTION If you are a CPA who meets all of the criteria below, then you may report your completion of an out-of-state ETHICS course earned in the same reporting year as required by Louisiana instead of one of the Louisiana specific Board-approved Professional Ethics courses:

  • You primarily practice or work outside of Louisiana, and
  • You have a valid active CPA license (to practice public accounting) issued by the state board in which you primary live or practice in outside of Louisiana, and
  • That state board has an ETHICS continuing education requirement during the same reporting year as required by Louisiana.

NOTE: Registrants who are registered in inactive or retired status are exempt from the board’s CPE requirements, and accordingly are exempt from any Ethics course requirement.

 

Individual study programs – commonly referred to as “self-study CPE  “The Board accepts only “interactive” self-study.  “Interactive” self-study programs simulate a classroom learning process by providing ongoing responses and evaluation to the learner. The program is required to:

  • Ask questions during the learning process to test the learner’s understanding;
  • Provide evaluative response to incorrectly answered questions; and
  • Provide reinforcement responses to correctly answered questions.

Example – On-line course that asks the learner questions throughout the program and the responses help the learner understand the material, by referring the reader back to the applicable section of the reading materials and explaining why the answer was incorrect. Interactive self-study credit hours are based on one-hour of credit for each 50 minutes of average completion time IF the sponsor meets the current AICPA/NASBA CPE standards.  Self-study courses offered by the AICPA, courses of providers that are registered with NASBA and indicate which of their courses are interactive, and those who are Quality Assurance Service (QAS) CPE sponsors are all acceptable as “interactive” programs. There is no limitation on the number of hours a Louisiana CPA can obtain through self-study. Of course, all CPE must consist of a formal program of learning, which contributes directly to their professional knowledge and professional competence. Therefore, magazines and reference materials do not qualify as CPE, because they are not designed as an educational program.

 

“Live Webcast” CPE (added Feb, 04)
Technology now allows a participant to attend a “webcast” live CPE presentation from their home or office. This type of CPE will be considered to be a “live” presentation if the program is broadcasted live and an appropriate method of attendance is determined by the vendor. The sponsor must verify the participant’s attendance throughout the course delivery in a manner acceptable to the Board. As formal live CPE programs qualify for one (1) CPE hour for each full 50 minutes of attendance, “Live Webcast CPE” may be credited in the same manner.

 

Inactive or Retired CPAs
CPAs who hold an inactive or retired certificate do not have any CPE requirement and may not practice as CPAs in Louisiana.  Although “CPA inactives” do not report CPE to this Board, CPE may be required of them by the AICPA to maintain membership in the association.

 

CPE Rule 1309(F)

This rule now encompasses a number of examinations by Board approval.  CPE credit is awarded at a rate of 5 times the length of the exam passed, but is limited to 20 hours annually.  The Board-approved list of exams appears below.  Please contact the Board office if you would like the Board to consider an exam that is not listed.

 

ABV Accredited in Business Valuation Exam (AICPA)
CMA Certified Management Accountant
CISA Certified Information Systems Auditor
CFP Certified Financial Planner
CFE Certified Fraud Examiner
CIA Certified Internal Auditor
CGFM Certified Governmental Financial Manager
CGMA Certified Global Management Accountant
CGFOMCP Certified Govtl Financial Officer (LA Govtl Fin Officers Assoc.)Microsoft Certified Professional
ChFC Chartered Financial Consultant
PFS Personal Financial Specialist
Series 6 Investment Co. Products/Variable Contracts Rep. Exam
Series 7 General Securities Registered Representative
Series 27 Financial Industry Regulation Authority / Financial and Operations Principal
Series 63 Uniform Securities Agent State Law Examination
Series 65 Investment Advisor
Series 66 Financial Advisor License
AIAF/FLMI Associate, Insurance Accounting and Finance / LOMA and IIA
Consists of 5 exams: FLMI 290, FLMI 371, AIAF 112, AIAF 113, AIAF 400.
FLMI 301 Insurance Administration
FLMI 361 Accounting and Financial Reporting in Life and Health Insurance
COPAS Exams / Modules (8 sections)
Notary Notary Public examination
CRC Credit Risk Certified (RMA – Risk Management Association)
CCIFP Certified Construction Industry Financial Professional
CRRA Certified Rate of Return Analyst
QKA Qualified 401(k) Administrator
SFO Certified Administrator of School Finance and Operations
CFF Certified in Financial Forensics
FPAC Certified Corporate Financial Planning & Analysis Professional