Louisiana CPA Requirements 2027
Work backward from residency, references, and experience. Build your 2027 application and study plan from dated official evidence.
Checkpoint 1
Can I take the exam?
Degree + courses
Louisiana’s exam instructions require qualifying degree and subject education, generally 24 accounting and 24 business credits, with a specified graduate-accounting alternative.
Check exam entryCheckpoint 2
Can I obtain the license?
Louisiana’s board currently lists three combinations: bachelor’s-plus-30 or qualifying post-bachelor’s education with one year, and bachelor’s education with two years.
Degree, concentration, qualifying experience, and any additional application conditions must be checked together.
Review license choicesYour 2027 application roadmap
Work backward from residency, references, and experience
For 2027, work backward from application records, residency/reference timing, and the experience lookback rather than the credit total alone.
Before applying
Check Louisiana exam entry and map your transcript. Degree + courses
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 Louisiana 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: Education alone does not settle the application. The state-presence and reference conditions need their own evidence. Confirm the timing of your presence and three references before paying, and use the waiting period to prepare for the first section.
Open the dated 2026 reference| Decision | What to save | Question to resolve |
|---|---|---|
| Exam entry | Degree status, transcript, course descriptions, and the official exam checklist. | Louisiana’s exam instructions require qualifying degree and subject education, generally 24 accounting and 24 business credits, with a specified graduate-accounting alternative. |
| License route | The chosen education and experience route, its effective date, and the authority’s instructions. | Louisiana’s board currently lists three combinations: bachelor’s-plus-30 or qualifying post-bachelor’s education with one year, and bachelor’s education with two years. |
| Exceptions and transitions | Dated authority replies for disputed courses, foreign education, prior exam credit, or a new pathway. | The board lists these paths currently, but their precise commencement date was not established in this review. |
| 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
Louisiana CPA Exam eligibility
Louisiana’s exam instructions require qualifying degree and subject education, generally 24 accounting and 24 business credits, with a specified graduate-accounting alternative.
- NASBA describes the 21-credit graduate accounting variation; use the exact option for your transcript.
- Louisiana’s application rules include 120 days of state presence within one year and three qualifying Louisiana references who have known the candidate for 12 months.
Map your transcript
Louisiana 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 | 24 credits | Qualifying degree |
| Graduate accounting variation | 21 qualifying graduate accounting credits | Check the selected education option | NASBA’s graduate-course conditions apply |
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
Louisiana CPA license pathways
Louisiana’s board currently lists three combinations: bachelor’s-plus-30 or qualifying post-bachelor’s education with one year, and bachelor’s education with two years.
| Route / availability | Education | Experience |
|---|---|---|
| Additional-30 route | Qualifying bachelor’s degree plus 30 credits | 1 year within the applicable lookback |
| Post-bachelor’s route | Qualifying post-bachelor’s degree | 1 year within the applicable lookback |
| Bachelor’s route | Qualifying bachelor’s degree | 2 years within the applicable lookback |
- The qualifying experience must fit the board’s four-year lookback.
- Older NASBA 150-only licensing wording does not override the current board pathway instructions.
Dates that affect your decision
Planning for Louisiana CPA requirements in 2027
For 2027, work backward from application records, residency/reference timing, and the experience lookback rather than the credit total alone.
Worked planning example
Education is ready, Louisiana references are not
Illustrative candidate scenario, not an eligibility determination.
Starting point
Your degree and course counts appear sufficient, but you recently moved to Louisiana.
What the rules mean
Education alone does not settle the application. The state-presence and reference conditions need their own evidence.
Next action
Confirm the timing of your presence and three references before paying, and use the waiting period to prepare for the first section.
From education to an appointment
How to apply and prepare in Louisiana
- 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
Louisiana 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.
| Charge | Published amount | What it covers | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Education evaluation | $96.00 | Evaluation charge listed by NASBA. Foreign-education evaluation may be separate. | Verify this charge |
| Exam section application | $96.00 | Follow the jurisdiction’s section-application rules. Do not assume one application charge covers all four sections. | Verify this charge |
| Each exam section | $268.59 | One section’s examination charge, separate from its application charge. | Verify this charge |
Frequently Asked Questions
- How should I plan for Louisiana CPA requirements in 2027?
- For 2027, work backward from application records, residency/reference timing, and the experience lookback rather than the credit total alone.
- What education should a 2027 Louisiana CPA Exam candidate check?
- Based on the September 15, 2026 source review: Louisiana’s exam instructions require qualifying degree and subject education, generally 24 accounting and 24 business credits, with a specified graduate-accounting alternative. NASBA describes the 21-credit graduate accounting variation; use the exact option for your transcript. Louisiana’s application rules include 120 days of state presence within one year and three qualifying Louisiana references who have known the candidate for 12 months.
- Which Louisiana CPA license paths should I compare for 2027?
- Louisiana’s board currently lists three combinations: bachelor’s-plus-30 or qualifying post-bachelor’s education with one year, and bachelor’s education with two years. Review the route-specific effective dates and experience conditions before applying.
- What changed in this 2027 Louisiana 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: Work backward from residency, references, and 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 Louisiana application?
- The board lists these paths currently, but their precise commencement date was not established in this review.
- 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 Louisiana 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.