Illinois CPA Requirements 2027
Check the degree wording before counting experience. Build your 2027 application and study plan from dated official evidence.
Checkpoint 1
Can I take the exam?
120 credits
Illinois distinguishes admission to the exam, the CPA certificate, and professional licensing. The common bachelor’s exam option uses 120 credits with 24 accounting and 12 business credits.
Check exam entryCheckpoint 2
Can I obtain the license?
Illinois’s 2027 law adds degree and experience options beginning January 1, 2027. Current certificate education and the new law’s degree language need to be read separately.
Degree, concentration, qualifying experience, and any additional application conditions must be checked together.
Review license choicesYour 2027 application roadmap
Check the degree wording before counting experience
For 2027, compare the exact degree language and certificate requirements instead of assuming every 150-credit bachelor’s degree qualifies for one year of experience.
Before applying
Check Illinois exam entry and map your transcript. 120 credits
Before choosing classes
Choose a licensing route and record the remaining accepted subjects. Extra credits help only when they meet that route’s conditions.
Before booking a section
Coordinate your NTS, study readiness, published 2027 testing windows, and the July exam-interface transition.
Before counting experience
Confirm the work, duration, supervisor, and documentation accepted for your Illinois license path.
What this edition adds to your 2026 reference
Use this edition to organize a 2027 application, choose your next evidence check, and connect it to an exam preparation schedule. Unchanged state rules retain their actual review dates. A new guide year does not itself change eligibility.
Your state-specific decision: Exam admission and certificate completion are different decisions. A 2027 license plan must also account for the final new-path implementation. Keep separate exam and certificate transcript maps and obtain ILBOE guidance before selecting additional classes.
Open the dated 2026 reference| Decision | What to save | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Exam entry | Degree status, transcript, course descriptions, and the official exam checklist. | Illinois distinguishes admission to the exam, the CPA certificate, and professional licensing. The common bachelor’s exam option uses 120 credits with 24 accounting and 12 business credits. |
| License route | The chosen education and experience route, its effective date, and the authority’s instructions. | Illinois’s 2027 law adds degree and experience options beginning January 1, 2027. Current certificate education and the new law’s degree language need to be read separately. |
| Exceptions and transitions | Dated authority replies for disputed courses, foreign education, prior exam credit, or a new pathway. | Final 2027 course and degree implementation was not confirmed in the reviewed rules update. |
| Application budget | Separate evaluation, section application, exam, and later license charges. | Confirm the amount payable when you apply. Dated fees in this guide are not a guaranteed 2027 tariff. |
Choose a realistic testing window
Check the published schedule and July transition before setting a target appointment.
Read the guidePlan practice around the exam format
Use the reviewed specification and its stated coverage limits to balance MCQs and simulations.
Read the guideConnect your license and career plan
Compare wage benchmarks, offer conditions, experience supervision, and preparation support.
Read the guidePermission to sit
Illinois CPA Exam eligibility
Illinois distinguishes admission to the exam, the CPA certificate, and professional licensing. The common bachelor’s exam option uses 120 credits with 24 accounting and 12 business credits.
- The accounting coursework includes tax and audit; ILBOE also describes other qualifying education options.
- Certificate education is a separate, larger requirement. Do not use the exam-entry total as a complete licensing checklist.
Map your transcript
Illinois accounting and business coursework
Read each row as a separate checkpoint. Course level, required subjects, degree status, and exceptions can matter as much as the total. The board or designated evaluator determines which courses qualify.
| Checkpoint | Accounting | Business / related subjects | Degree and other conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Common exam option | 24 credits including tax and audit | 12 credits | Bachelor’s degree and 120 credits |
| Current certificate | 30 credits | 24 credits | Required communication and ethics coursework also applies |
| 2027 pathways | Final degree/concentration rules control | Final implementation controls | Do not replace the enacted degree language with a generic template |
Collect the evidence
Degree award, official transcript, course descriptions, and any required evaluation.
Map accepted subjects
Separate accounting, business, ethics, and other required subjects without assuming overlap.
Resolve the exact gap
Ask about the disputed course or condition before paying for another class or application.
Education plus experience
Illinois CPA license pathways
Illinois’s 2027 law adds degree and experience options beginning January 1, 2027. Current certificate education and the new law’s degree language need to be read separately.
| Route / availability | Education | Experience |
|---|---|---|
| Current certificate and license route | Current ILBOE certificate education and separate licensing conditions | Current licensing experience requirements |
| New bachelor’s route, January 1, 2027 | Qualifying accounting bachelor’s degree under the new law | 2 years |
| New advanced-education route, January 1, 2027 | Qualifying master’s or other specified degree/education combination | 1 year |
- Current certificate coursework includes 30 accounting and 24 business credits, with two communication and three ethics credits under ILBOE’s specified categories.
- The new law distinguishes a qualifying accounting bachelor’s/two-year route from qualifying advanced-education/one-year routes. It should not be summarized as a universal bachelor’s-plus-30 shortcut.
Dates that affect your decision
Planning for Illinois CPA requirements in 2027
For 2027, compare the exact degree language and certificate requirements instead of assuming every 150-credit bachelor’s degree qualifies for one year of experience.
January 1, 2027
EnactedNew licensing framework
Public Act 104-0228 establishes the new options. Final administrative implementation remains relevant to degree and course classification.
Worked planning example
Exam eligible, certificate education unfinished
Illustrative candidate scenario, not an eligibility determination.
Starting point
Your bachelor’s transcript meets the common 120-credit exam option but not all certificate subjects.
What the rules mean
Exam admission and certificate completion are different decisions. A 2027 license plan must also account for the final new-path implementation.
Next action
Keep separate exam and certificate transcript maps and obtain ILBOE guidance before selecting additional classes.
From education to an appointment
How to apply and prepare in Illinois
- 1
Confirm the application owner
Use the official exam instructions linked above to identify the board or designated exam service. Exam and license applications may go to different owners.
- 2
Prepare the education record
Arrange official transcripts and any required evaluation, degree evidence, course descriptions, identity, and state-specific records. Resolve the exact eligibility question before paying.
- 3
Apply for a section you can prepare for
After the responsible authority confirms eligibility, follow its section application and payment instructions. Keep the actual application and examination charges separate.
- 4
Use the Notice to Schedule
Check the authorized section, name, and expiration on the NTS. Book the testing appointment through the official scheduling process within that authorization.
- 5
Complete the exam and license file
Pass AUD, FAR, REG, and one Discipline, then complete the selected license route’s education, experience, ethics, and documentation requirements. Track each official deadline separately.
This sequence organizes your planning. The state-specific facts and exceptions in the sections above take priority; the official application instructions establish the required filing order.
Budget separate charges
Illinois CPA exam and application fees
These are individually sourced charges, not a complete licensing budget or an official 2027 fee schedule. Evaluation, section applications, testing, ethics, background checks, international testing, rescheduling, and licensing can be separate costs.
Confirm current charges before paying
This review did not establish current application and exam-section amounts for Illinois. Use the official application instructions below for the payment total and any additional licensing charges.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How should I plan for Illinois CPA requirements in 2027?
- For 2027, compare the exact degree language and certificate requirements instead of assuming every 150-credit bachelor’s degree qualifies for one year of experience.
- What education should a 2027 Illinois CPA Exam candidate check?
- Based on the September 15, 2026 source review: Illinois distinguishes admission to the exam, the CPA certificate, and professional licensing. The common bachelor’s exam option uses 120 credits with 24 accounting and 12 business credits. The accounting coursework includes tax and audit; ILBOE also describes other qualifying education options. Certificate education is a separate, larger requirement. Do not use the exam-entry total as a complete licensing checklist.
- Which Illinois CPA license paths should I compare for 2027?
- Illinois’s 2027 law adds degree and experience options beginning January 1, 2027. Current certificate education and the new law’s degree language need to be read separately. Review the route-specific effective dates and experience conditions before applying.
- What changed in this 2027 Illinois guide?
- This edition adds a candidate decision roadmap, application evidence checklist, study milestones, and links to the 2027 exam schedule. Its state-specific focus is: Check the degree wording before counting experience. Unchanged rules retain their source dates.
- Are the fees in this guide guaranteed for 2027?
- No. Each listed charge retains its actual source review date. Confirm evaluation, application, exam-section, and licensing charges before payment.
- What still needs confirmation for a Illinois application?
- Final 2027 course and degree implementation was not confirmed in the reviewed rules update.
- Does the guide guarantee that I qualify for a CPA license?
- No. The board or designated service decides eligibility. Use this guide to organize your evidence and prepare specific questions; CPAPass supports exam practice and study planning.
Evidence and review dates
Official Illinois requirements sources
Core research date: . Licensing review date: . Proposed rules, effective dates, and unresolved details remain labeled in the relevant sections. Official authorities decide eligibility; this guide helps you prepare the questions and records.