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Reciprocal Application
Overview
If you are a CPA, but were not certified in Texas, you may apply for reciprocity in Texas. Texas offers a reciprocal pathway for out-of-state CPAs to become licensed, rather than standard reciprocity. To transfer your license, you must apply for a reciprocal license through the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy (TSBPA), provide a letter of good standing from your current state, fulfill Texas’s specific continuing professional education (CPE) requirements, and pass the Texas Ethics exam.
Requirements & Fees
If you would like to apply for reciprocity, all documents must be submitted for processing.
- Reciprocal Application
- $100 Application fee
- Oath of Office
- Continuing Professional Education Report Form for Certification by Reciprocity:
- No CPE required if initial license has been issued less than 12 months,
- 40 credits are required after one year of licensure
- 80 credits are required after two years of licensure, and
- 120 credits are required after three or more years of licensure.
- Completion Certificate of the Texas board-approved 4 credit ethics course – taken within the last six months
- Letter of “Good Standing” issued by the U.S. Board of Accountancy where you are currently licensed
In addition to submitting this information you are required to take an open-book examination on the Texas Rules of Professional Conduct and to complete the fingerprint process. The examination on the Texas Rules of Professional Conduct will be sent to you electronically when your Application for Reciprocity is received by the Board. Information about the fingerprint process is provided below.
Fingerprinting
The Board has a statutory obligation (Section 901.169) to determine that each person awarded a Texas CPA certificate passes a background investigation.
To meet this responsibility, the Board will access the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) database and the Texas Department of Public Safety – Crime Records Division files using an established fingerprint process for each person who submits a reciprocal application. The fingerprint process allows the Board to receive information on all arrests, charges, convictions, probations and deferred adjudications of misdemeanor and felony offenses that occur in any U.S. state or territory. Records of these activities are reported to the Board for further investigation. If an applicant was 17 years of age or older at the time of the arrest, it should be reported to the Board. You are not required to report criminal records that have been expunged or sealed by an order of the court. You are required to report criminal records subject to a non-disclosure order. After fingerprinting, the Board will automatically be advised of any subsequent arrest and further investigation will occur.
Applications cannot be finally approved by the Board until the fingerprint process is complete and the Board has received the results.
Information about the fingerprinting process and applications will be included in the communication confirming receipt of your Application for Reciprocity. It is the responsibility of the applicant to pay all fees to the service provider at the time that the appointment for fingerprinting is made. The fees are not collected by the Board and cannot be waived.
Forms
Application Disclaimer
By submitting this application, you acknowledge that you are subject to the Public Accountancy Act (Chapter 901 of the Occupations Code), the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy Rules of Professional Conduct, and all other rules promulgated by the Board. Any violations of the Act or its rules prior to licensure could be cause by the Board to take disciplinary action against you as an applicant, candidate, certificate holder, or deny the issuance of a CPA certificate.
Confidentiality Disclaimer
Section 551.11765 of the Texas Government Code, a subsection of the Public Information Act, directs a state agency to maintain all information in a license application in confidence and excepted from public disclosure. There are three exceptions; the applicant’s name, and the license number and status of any subsequently issued license. Therefore, the required contents of your initial license application and any future license renewal will not be disclosed to the public. This includes the information provided to NASBA as a part of the application’s evaluation. The Board takes seriously the safeguarding of private information about its applicants.