Accountant, Certified Public - Licensure by Endorsement

1. To receive an Accountant, Certified Public (CPA) license, you must establish substantial equivalence to the requirements for initial licensure. This sufficiency is judged by the Accounting Examining Board. For this reason, we collect the required documents for initial licensure from all applicants.

2. You must have earned a bachelor's or higher degree from a business program or college of business that is not international. (Foreign Education and experience require CPA Board review).

   1. That education must also meet the current Wisconsin 150-credit hour education requirement.

3. You must have 1 year of employment experience that is gained within the last five years, acquired after the applicant has graduated from a business program or college of business that is not international. The Accounting Examining Board has indicated that internships do not count towards experience.

4. You must pass the Uniform CPA Examination.

Below are some general instructions for applying for a credential on LicensE. 

1. Create or log into your LicensE account. Please visit LicensE account Information page for detailed guidance on selecting your account type.

2. Select "Apply for a License."

3. Select your Category.

4. Select your License Type.

5. Select your Application Method, then "Next."

6. Review your Personal Information.

7. Enter the requested Information on each page of the application. Information may include Examination, Education, or License History, depending on your profession.

8. If applicable, request a Veterans Fee Waiver or Initial Credential Fee Reduction.

9. Submit the requested Documents you may already have. You do not need to have all documents ready to submit.

   Note: Forms are now hosted on AccessGov. Visit AccessGov Forms Directory to choose your form.

10. Respond to the Attestation questions.

11. Provide Payment Information. Fees may be found Credential Fees.

12. Submit your application.  

Profession specific application requirements can be found in the "Application Information" section.

After logging into your LicensE account, select Apply for a License and choose:

• Category: Business

• License Type: Accountant, Certified Public

• Application Method: Licensure by Endorsement

Please Note: You are not required to provide all documents before initial application submission. You do not need to upload documents to every available category

Please have NASBA send your file through the secured network -or- upload a copy of your official transcripts to your application.

Use Form 3178 to submit evidence of your required course work. This course work must meet the current Wisconsin 150-credit hour education requirement.

At least one (1) course must be provided in each of the required subjects to meet 24 undergraduate or 15 graduate semester hours of the 150 required total hours. Additional courses may be listed in each subject to reach the minimum required.

Required subjects are:

•  Financial Accounting

•  Cost or Managerial Accounting

•  Taxation

•  Auditing

•  Accounting Information Systems

•  Accounting Electives (optional)

Courses are generally expected to be beyond the introductory level. Introductory courses can be listed if needed to demonstrate sufficient semester hours. Transcripts, course catalog descriptions, and/or syllabi may be requested in support of this form.

Use Form 127 and position description from your employment history to meet this requirement. Please upload this directly to your application.

• Use Form 128 to document your qualifying accounting experience as defined in Wisconsin Administrative Code.

• Make concise statements when describing your experience. Include enough detail such that a peer may judge the character of your work. Include magnitude and complexity of work on each engagement including your duties and degree of responsibility.

• University or college should be Engagement 1 on the form. Your first employment should be Engagement 2, with subsequent experience in chronological order. Your current engagement should be your last entry.

Complete Form 131 and send to the appropriate Registration Agency to complete and submit directly to DSPS.

A form letter from the State in which you are already licensed can also be submitted.

Exam scores need to be verified with the verification.

National CPA Exam Information

• Licensure as a Wisconsin CPA requires passing the National Association State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) Uniform CPA Examinations.

• Please have NASBA send your file through the secured network -or- upload the (4) NASBA examination score notices to your application.  For more information please go to the NASBA website.

• To transfer scores from Wisconsin to another state please go to NASBA Store website and look for NASBA Score Transfer under CPA Exam Services

Wisconsin Statutes and Rules Examination

• The exam is based on Wisconsin laws and administrative rules that govern the accounting profession. Its purpose is to help applicants become familiar with finding and using the statutes and administrative code that regulate professional practice.

How to Access the Exam

1. Go to the exam website.

2. Select "Test Launching."

3. Enter "dft" as the instructor.

4. If you cannot access the exam, refresh your browser or try again later.

Exam Details

• The exam is not timed.

• You may leave and return to the exam at any time within three months.

• To exit, click the "X" in the upper-right corner of the screen.

• When returning, log in the same way you did originally to continue where you left off.

• Do not click "Done" until you are ready to submit your exam.

• If you accidentally click "Done," you can restart the exam. Your previous score will be removed.

• Save or print a copy of your score report for your records.

Exam Content

The examination covers material from the following Wisconsin statutes and administrative code chapters:

• Chapter 440

• Chapter 442

• Chapters ACCY 1–6

• Chapters SPS 1–9

Passing Score

A score of 80% or higher is required to pass.

• If you score below 80%, you must retake the exam by submitting a Request to Retake Statutes and Rules or Ethics Examination (Form 2699) along with the required fee. Once approved, you will be assigned a new exam.

• Important: Each exam question has one best answer.

After you upload all required documents, submit your application, and pay the required fee(s):

1. Preliminary Application Reference Number (PAR)

   1. Your application will be assigned a Preliminary Application Reference number or PAR number. This number allows you and trusted parties to look up the status of your application without logging in. You can also reference this number in any support tickets you submit in regard to your application.

      • A trusted 3^rd party can look up your credential status by visiting LicensE, clicking “Application Status Lookup” and entering the PAR number you have provided to them.

2. Review Timeline

   1. Your materials will be reviewed within approximately 10 days by a member of the credentialing team.

      • Note: Some licenses do take longer to process due to complexity. You can see the performance data on our LicensE Dashboard to see what date we are reviewing for certain application types under "Application Review Times by Profession."

3. Pending Applicant Input Status

   1. After this review, if anything is missing or the credentialing team has any questions on your application, your application will go back into a status called “Pending Applicant Input.”  You will receive an email letting you know your application was moved into this status. You should then log into LicensE and check your application “Due Diligence.”

4. To check your "Due Diligence" 

   1. Your Due Diligence is a checklist of items required for your credential.

   2. The Due Diligence section is how DSPS staff will communicate with you regarding your credential requirements.

   3. Log in to your LicensE account

   4. Click on "Check Application Status" 

   5. Your credential application should be shown on this page. Under “Action” select the button that looks like an upside-down triangle. If you are on mobile, you will need to turn your phone into landscape view. Note: LicensE is best viewed on a desktop or laptop.

   6. After clicking the upside-down triangle, select “View Due Diligences.”

   7. The Due Diligence column lets you know what the requirement is.

   8. The “STATUS” column will you know if the item is “Met”, “Not Met”, or “Not Applicable.”

      • Items listed as “Not Met” are items that are needed by the Department.  

   9. The “NOTES” column of your Due Diligence will provide further written details or instructions about what is still needed.

5. To upload documents

   1. Some applications require additional document uploads.

   2. Log into your LicensE account

   3. Click on "Check Application Status"

   4. Your credential application should be shown on this page. Under "Action" select the button that looks like an upside-down triangle. If you are on mobile, you will need to turn your phone into landscape view. Note: LicensE is best viewed on a desktop or laptop. 

   5. After clicking the upside-down triangle, select "Upload Document."

   6. The document must be an allowable document type. 

   7. After uploading the document, click "submit." If you do not, it will not be sent to a reviewer. 

6. If you have any questions, you can submit a support ticket on LicensE by logging in and clicking "request support" at the top of the page.

LicensE statuses that require action from applicant:

LicensE statuses that indicate the application is with Department staff:

Support Ticket
Submit a support ticket on LicensE and click "request support." Please provide as much detail as possible regarding your concern so we can work to answer your question with a one touch resolution. 

Call
608-266-2112

Email
dsps@wisconsin.gov

Office Hours
7:45am-4:30pm
Department of Safety and Professional Services
4822 Madison Yards Way
Madison, WI, 53705

Note: The in-person office does not process same day.