Certified Public Accountant
Relevant to US accounting, reporting and audit work.
- Issued by
- A US state or jurisdiction
- Route
- Education → CPA Exam → experience and licensing
- In Germany
- Can support US-facing career opportunities.
THE GERMANY CANDIDATE GUIDE
Your US CPA journey,
from Germany.
Apply through a US state. Take the exam in Germany. Build a clear path to your license.
Your eligibility, dates, documents and next steps, explained visually.
ONE JOURNEY. TWO COUNTRIES.
YOUR STARTING POINTYour German education
Evaluated against your chosen state’s rules.
YOUR APPROVING AUTHORITYA US state board
Approves exam eligibility and the license.
YOUR EXAM LOCATIONGermany
At an available CPA Prometric test center.
You do not need a German “CPA state.”
US CPA and Wirtschaftsprüfer: what’s the difference?
Wirtschaftsprüfer (WP)
The German statutory-audit qualification.
- Issued through
- The German professional system
- Route
- German admission, examination and appointment rules
- In Germany
- German audit rights depend on the required status and registration.
A US CPA license does not automatically make you a WP or grant German statutory-audit signing rights. Choose the qualification for the work you want to do. German audit rules · WP qualification
01
Can I apply from Germany?
Yes, if you meet the state’s requirements. Living in Germany is compatible with applying through a participating US jurisdiction. Check the full route to a license before choosing a state.
Education
Get your degree and subject credits evaluated for your chosen board.
State eligibility
Check residence, identity and international-testing rules.
Future license
Confirm the experience and verification requirements are achievable.
ONE CONCRETE EXAMPLE
Washington is a route to investigate.
Its CPA Exam application has no state-residency or Social Security number requirement. It requires qualifying degree education and an accounting concentration: 24 US semester hours in accounting and 24 in business. NIES evaluates foreign education.
Check Washington’s current rulesThis example does not establish your eligibility. Other states differ; a German degree title alone cannot tell you which route fits.
02
Application dates and testing dates are different.
No national German intake
Start through your US board when you are ready. Document deadlines and processing times still apply.
Book within your NTS dates
Your Notice to Schedule (NTS) authorizes a section for a limited period. Use the expiry printed on it.
Your 2026 testing calendar
Subject to available seatsTake all three Core sections + choose one Discipline.
Core: AUD · FAR · REG Discipline: BAR, ISC or TCP
JanCoreDiscipline
FebCoreCore only
MarCoreCore only
AprCoreDiscipline
MayCoreCore only
JunCoreCore only
JulCoreDiscipline
AugCoreCore only
SepCoreCore only
OctCoreDiscipline
NovCoreCore only
DecCoreCore only
CORE EXAMPLEFile received by 30 Sep 2026Score target: 9 Oct 2026
DISCIPLINE EXAMPLETest 1-31 Oct 2026Score target: 15 Dec 2026
A score cutoff is when AICPA receives your exam file, not an application deadline. Dates are targets. The schedule changes from July 2027, so recheck it if planning further ahead. Official calendar
For Washington, NASBA advises applying only for sections you are ready to take within six months. Application and NTS guidance
03
Yes, Germany is a CPA testing country.
TEST LOCALLY, SUBJECT TO SEATS
Start your search in Germany.
NASBA lists Germany for international CPA testing. You do not have to choose London or fly to the US.
Confirm the testing-country list- 1
Check seats
Open Prometric’s CPA page, choose Locate and search Germany with your section and date range. No Exam Section ID is needed to check availability.
- 2
Get authorized
Receive your NTS from the participating US jurisdiction, then register for international testing and pay the additional fee.
- 3
Book your center
Wait at least 24 hours after international registration. Schedule using your Exam Section ID and confirm the center address and appointment.
$390 additional international fee per section$1,560 for four first attempts
USD, as listed by NASBA at review. This surcharge is additional to evaluation, application and exam fees; retakes add cost. Official fees
04
Your US state sets the rules. Germany is your location.
There is no German pool of US CPA credits. Keep these three meanings separate:
1. Education credits
Your university coursework. An approved evaluator assesses German ECTS, degrees and subject coverage in US terms. Do not assume an ECTS total automatically meets a state’s semester-hour requirements.
German records → evaluation → US state review2. Exam credits
Your passed CPA sections. Testing in Germany does not change the board holding your exam record. Credit expiry and transfers depend on the board’s rules.
German testing center → exam score → your US board3. Your CPA license
The credential a US state issues after you meet its full requirements. It does not convert into a German WP license.
Education + exam + experience + state approval → licenseCan I use credits from any US state?
You may be able to transfer exam scores, but the receiving board decides what it accepts. Washington, for example, requires official scores and a Washington-specific education review; a NIES report for another state needs a change-of-jurisdiction evaluation.
Choose a coherent exam-to-license route at the start. Do not assume you can mix states to bypass a requirement.
Washington transfer example · How NIES handles a state change05
Your Germany application checklist.
Use this to prepare for an education evaluation and board application. The exact submission list follows your evaluator and state.
Get your documents ready
Germany-specific NIES list · Delivery and translation rules
Separate exam-day checklist
Bring your NTS and a valid, unexpired passport meeting international-test ID rules. If your passport is unsigned, check the required secondary ID. Make sure your booking name matches.
Read the current candidate guide before test day06
Passed the exam? Now complete your license.
Passing four sections does not automatically issue a license. Your selected US board approves the final application.
- 1
Finish the exam
Pass AUD, FAR, REG and one Discipline while your credits remain valid under your board’s rules.
- 2
Complete qualifying education and experience
Close any education gaps. Document work, dates, hours and competencies, and arrange an eligible verifier. Experience can overlap with study if the board permits it.
- 3
Complete the remaining state requirements
Meet ethics, good-character and any other licensing conditions; submit evidence and the license application with its fee.
- 4
Receive and maintain your license
Wait for board approval before claiming licensed status. Follow renewal, continuing education (CPE) and applicable practice rules.
WASHINGTON EXAMPLE · CURRENT PATHWAYS
Education changes the experience requirement.
| Qualifying education | Minimum experience |
|---|---|
| Bachelor’s + accounting concentration | 24 months / 4,000 hours |
| Master’s or higher + accounting concentration | 12 months / 2,000 hours |
| Bachelor’s + concentration + 30 semester hours | 12 months / 2,000 hours |
The third route expires 31 December 2035. Foreign education needs evaluation. Full licensing requirements
Can my work in Germany count toward experience?
Have the board assess the work and its verification requirements. A German job title or WP supervisor alone does not establish eligibility. Washington evaluates the work’s competencies, hours and recency; its verifying CPA must hold qualifying US CPA status for at least five years, including the verification date.
Before choosing the route, identify who can verify your actual work. Washington also requires a qualifying AICPA ethics course/exam with at least 90%, its CPA Essentials video, and additional CPE if more than four years have passed since the CPA Exam.
Experience rules · Verifier rules · Remaining licensing stepsThese are Washington examples. A different board may use different education, experience, ethics and timing rules.
What does the German jobs market show?
US-facing work exists. Evaluate the credential against actual roles and the wider hiring market.
BROADER MARKET · NOT CPA-ONLY
Q2 2026German finance hiring demand
Hays Finance Index · percentage above the Q1 2015 baseline
Demand fell after the Q1 rebound. The 62% index value means demand was 62% above the 2015 baseline, not 62% quarterly growth.
Source and methodology: HaysView chart data and scope
| Quarter | Above Q1 2015 |
|---|---|
| Q1 2025 | 121% |
| Q2 2025 | 98% |
| Q3 2025 | 69% |
| Q4 2025 | 58% |
| Q1 2026 | 93% |
| Q2 2026 | 62% |
Hays uses a quarterly analysis of job ads from online boards, newspapers and Xing. These are published index levels, not vacancy counts, US CPA requirements or a forecast.
DIRECT EMPLOYER EVIDENCE
Reviewed snapshotWhere the US CPA appears in a German role
1verified open posting
in this small sample
in this small sample
Alternatives acceptedThe posting does not require
US CPA exclusively.
US CPA exclusively.
| Employer & role | Germany locations | What the employer asks for |
|---|---|---|
| EY Germany(Senior) Manager - Capital Markets | Munich, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Berlin, Hamburg or Stuttgart | US CPA or an equivalent qualificationAlso asks for US public-company audit experience and PCAOB / SEC reporting knowledge. |
How many US CPA jobs are there across Germany? A reliable nationwide total is not established by this research. This is one verified posting, counted once across its six locations. It is not a census or six separate vacancies.
How we checked the jobs evidence
We counted a distinct employer posting only when its job description and application link remained available, its work location was in Germany, and its requirements explicitly mentioned US CPA. The EY role accepts an equivalent qualification.
We excluded a closed EY US Tax posting, a removed BDO PCAOB posting and a CFGI Germany listing located in Zurich. Search-result totals and duplicate city listings were not counted. This snapshot cannot show a trend in US CPA-specific hiring; the Hays chart supplies broader market context only.
Turn your next step into a study plan.
Get familiar with CPA questions and worked explanations while you check your eligibility.
Explore free CPA questionsBuild your study scheduleA few final questions
Do I need to travel to the US to take the CPA Exam?
No. Germany is on NASBA’s international testing-country list. Find a CPA appointment in Germany through Prometric after meeting a participating US jurisdiction’s eligibility and international-registration requirements.
Are there fixed German application deadlines?
There is no national German CPA intake. Apply through your chosen US jurisdiction. Its document deadlines and your Notice to Schedule expiry still apply. In 2026, Core sections are available throughout the year and Discipline sections in January, April, July and October, subject to seats.
Is my German Bachelor automatically worth 120 US credits?
No automatic equivalence is promised. A board-approved evaluator assesses the degree, courses and US semester-hour equivalents against the selected state’s requirements. ECTS totals alone do not establish CPA eligibility.
Can I combine exam credits from different US states?
A receiving board may accept transferred exam scores, but it applies its own eligibility, education and credit-validity rules. Request an official transfer and any required evaluation. You cannot assume that choosing different states for different sections creates automatic eligibility.
Does a US CPA license make me a Wirtschaftsprüfer?
No. A US state issues the US CPA license. German statutory-audit eligibility and the Wirtschaftsprüfer qualification follow German requirements. A US CPA license alone does not grant those German practice rights.
Sources you can check
Application rules, appointment availability and job postings can change.
- NASBA: international testing and fees
- Prometric: CPA locations and seat availability
- AICPA: testing windows and score dates
- NASBA: Washington exam eligibility
- NIES: document delivery and translations
- NIES: Germany document list, page 11
- NIES: evaluation and changing jurisdictions
- NASBA: candidate guide and identification
- Washington: licensing and transferring exam scores
- Washington: qualifying experience
- Washington: who can verify experience
- German law: statutory auditor eligibility, HGB § 319
- German law: Wirtschaftsprüfer qualification, WPO
- Hays: German finance hiring index, Q2 2026 and archive
Prepared by the CPAPass Editorial Team. Read our editorial methodology.