West Virginia - Become a CPA

The demand for CPAs is growing across the country. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the national need for accountants will rise by 10% between 2016 and 2026. Demand is slightly smaller in West Virginia but is still trending in a positive direction. In 2014 the state had 4,800 accountants, and by 2024 that total will grow by 2% to 4,900. The median salary in 2016 was projected at $59,110, but that is likely to increase as companies recruit more accountants. If this sounds like a promising career path, the following guide illustrates exactly how to become a CPA in West Virginia. It all starts with obtaining a higher education (Associates in Accounting, then a Bachelor's in Accounting) from an accredited college.

Earn a Bachelor's Degree

The West Virginia Board of Accountancy (WVBOA) issues CPA licenses and requires all license holders to meet minimum standards for education:

All CPAs must have a bachelor's degree with at least 150 semester hours or 225 quarter hours. The degree must be earned from an accredited four-year institution. It must also include the following coursework:

At least 27 semester hours of accounting coursework focused on specific topics:

• • 6 hours on financial or intermediate accounting

  • 6 hours on auditing and financial information systems

  • 3 hours on taxation

  • 3 hours on managerial, non-profit, government, or cost accounting

  • 9 hours of elective accounting courses

At least 27 semester hours of business or business-related coursework focused on specific topics:

• • 3 hours on economics

  • 3 hours on finance

  • 3 hours on marketing

  • 3 hours on statistics

  • 3 hours on management

  • 12 hours on business-related electives

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Complete the Uniform CPA Exam

The Uniform CPA Exam is a standardized test administered to almost all CPA candidates to determine basic skills and aptitude. The exam is administered by the National Association of States Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) through the CPA Examination Services (CPAES).

Follow these steps for success:

Complete the initial application packet from the WVBOA. The packet is available for download online. Applicants may also call the office at (304) 558-3557 with questions and requests.

Mail the completed application to the West Virginia Board of Accountancy, 106 Capitol Street, Suite 100, Charleston, WV 25301-2610.

Include the following documents along with the application:

• • An official college transcript from whatever institution awarded you a bachelor's degree

  • Character witness statements from two non-relatives as well as one CPA

  • A 2" x 2" photograph of your face and shoulders

  • A completed Letter of Intent to sit for the Uniform CPA Exam

  • Any exam fees

  • Allow the WVBOA some time to review your application and approve your request. You should receive a Notification to Schedule (NTS) from the NASBA within five days of submitting your application. If you do not receive notification within this window, contact the state's exam coordinator at 304-558-3557.

  • Schedule the time and location you want to take the Uniform CPA Exam. There are testing sites in Charleston and Morgantown. There are testing windows offered in the first two months of each quarter. You are allowed to take as few or any many test sections as you would like during any test session, but you must complete all four within 18 months.

  • Make special accommodations if necessary. They are available if you can demonstrate a disability or another obstacle that could inhibit test taking. There is a special section on the exam application to make this request. It's also possible to contact the state's exam coordinator directly.

  • Prepare for the exam and arrive at the testing facility at least an hour before the exam begins.

  • Expect the NASBA to issue your score to the WVBOA, which will then issue it to you in the mail. If you passed the exam your name will also appear on a list posted on the WVBOA website.

Meet the Experience Requirement

At this point you are well on the way to becoming a CPA. Before granting a license, however, the WVBOA requires all candidates to earn extensive on-the-job experience:

• • Work for one year in an accounting position. This experience must occur within four years of applying for a CPA license. It can take place in a government office, private accounting practice, non-profit organization, academia, or public accounting firm.

  • Develop core competencies. The WVBOA expects all CPA candidates to have experience and aptitude in the following subjects:

  • Accounting

  • Management advisory

  • Auditing, compiling, and reviewing financial statements

  • Preparing tax returns

  • Performing tax research

  • Offering financial advisory

  • Consulting

  • Keeping books and records

  • Attest

  • Track the experience under the supervision of a licensed CPA. Their CPA license must be granted by West Virginia or by any other state with the exception of Colorado, Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands.

  • Complete the Experience Verification Form. The form is available for download from the WVBOA.

  • Ask the supervising CPA to complete his or her section of the form. That person must state the dates when you worked and list the kinds of responsibilities you performed. Finally, they must sign the document in the presence of a notary.

Apply for a CPA License in West Virginia

After you have met the requirements for education, examination, and experience in West Virginia you are eligible for a CPA license. Until that license is granted it is illegal to call yourself a CPA or offer the services of a CPA. Follow these steps to complete the final step:

• • Download the Application for Initial Certification/License from the WVBOA website. Complete the application, then submit it to 106 Capitol Street, Suite 100, Charleston, West Virginia 25301. Applicants must also submit these supplemental documents:

  • An official transcript from the institution that awarded you a bachelor's degree

  • The Experience Verification Form signed by the supervising CPA

  • If you have a CPA license from another state it's possible to expedite the licensure process in West Virginia. File an Application for Reciprocal License with the WVBOA. Also include a 2" x 2" photo, official college transcripts, and any applicable fees. It may also be necessary to file and Experience Verification Form. Call the board office at (304) 558-3557 to check.

  • If you have a CPA license from another country it may also be possible to expedite the licensure process. West Virginia follows guidelines established by the NASBA, which recognizes licenses from these international jurisdictions:

  • Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia

  • Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants

  • Instituto Mexican de Contadores Publicos

  • Chartered Accountants in Ireland

  • New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants

  • Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants

Candidates must pass the NASBA’s International Qualification Examination (IQEX) to demonstrate they have equivalent CPA skills. After passing they are able to apply for licensure in West Virginia. Applicants from non-approved jurisdictions must have their education evaluated by the NASBA International Evaluation Services and also pass the Uniform CPA Exam.

Keep Up With Continuing Education

A CPA must complete specific requirements for continuing professional education (CPE) in order for the WVBOA to renew their CPA license:

All CPAs are required to complete 40 hours of CPE every year. The only exemption is CPAs in their first year of licensure. They are not required to complete any CPE.

CPAs must complete 4 hours of ethics training in every three-year period. That includes training in ethical reasoning and professional conduct. The WVBOA has authorized several entities to provide this training:

• • West Virginia Society of CPAs

  • West Virginia Public Accountants Association

  • West Virginia Tax Institute

  • Local CPA societies

  • It is up to you to verify that all CPE hours meet the state's standards. They will not verify programs in advance. Those standards include:

  • You cannot claim hours for any activity in which you provided a service, accounting or otherwise, to clients.

  • You cannot claim hours spent giving presentations to groups of non-accounting professionals.

  • Time spent writing informal reviews of professional journals or other accounting publications does not count.

  • All CPE hours claimed must meet the standards set out in the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education

(CPE) Programs issued jointly by AICPA and NASBA.

• • Self-study courses count as long as you receive a certificate of completion.

  • Published articles and books count as long as you are listed as a writer and have a statement from the publisher.

CPE hours are reported to the WVBOA using an online reporting tool. You are required to supply the name of the program, the dates of attendance, completion certificates, and any supplemental documents. CPAs must maintain their own records of CPE hours for at least 4 years in case of audit.

In this write-up, we'll talk about the difference between an Accountant as well as a CPA. We'll additionally contrast the CPA path to come to be an Accountant to an Associates or MBA degree course. In other words, we'll review the advantages of becoming a CPA as well as how it differs from being an Accountant.

Accounting is the process of taking information as well as placing it in a layout that enables interpretation. Accountants after that examine the data and record on the economic condition of companies, firms, as well as various other entities. There are a variety of various accounting areas, yet all of them share some common components.

As an example, auditors and also stockbrokers regularly examine earnings tax records. They evaluate them for precision, worth, and also possibly validity. This is just one of the many areas where Accountants as well as CPA's work. Some Accounts are tasked with reporting the accounting details to shareholders and the general public also.

Along with evaluating monetary details, accountants are likewise in charge of making suggestions for tax obligation preparation. These recommendations are planned to supply higher tax financial savings for individuals, organizations, and organisations. The results of these referrals are additionally used by the Internal Revenue Service in its evaluation of a service's tax obligation commitments.

The distinction in between Accountants as well as CPA's is essential because you may not understand it. In many cases, accountants will think functions as CPA's; nonetheless, these two are generally unconnected.

As an example, when an individual, firm, or organisation has a tax return submitted, they will frequently work with a CPA to examine as well as process their return. Nevertheless, this is not like becoming a CPA. A CPA can come to be an Accountant, yet accountants can not come to be Certified public accountants.

One method to contrast Accountants and CPA's is by checking out both careers as the exact same occupation option. In the United States, accountants generally take some sort of Masters or Associates level in accounting. Due to this, many Accountants, like the majority of accountants, are well versed in the principles of accounting.

As you begin your career as an Accountant, you will start to find out about concerns of taxation. As you obtain more seasoned knowledge, you will eventually end up being a lot more educated concerning tax legislation and also whether a certain tax proposal will certainly benefit you and also your organization. You will certainly also begin to create skills in budgeting, reporting, and also financial monitoring.

In most cases, when a business starts trying to find Accountants, the company will certainly want Accountants that are capable of managing tax preparation. Considering that accountants make financial decisions, one of the most common areas of focus for accountants are tax obligation preparation, economic preparation, budgeting, accounting, as well as management.

Although Accountants help organisations, and specifically their company's accounts, they commonly report to a Chief Financial Officer or CEO. Accountants typically act as the Accountant's "eyes as well as ears" that see the business's internal funds, report the information to the Chief Executive Officer, and aid the CEO choose about which programs and campaigns must be taken next.

CPA's, on the other hand, usually report to a CEO and/or CFO. Their primary task is to supervise the accounting features of the company, normally operating in an office with a committed CPA.

As a CPA, you will certainly be functioning under the Executives. Their main focus is their firm's capital. Therefore, they tend to concentrate much more on tax obligation preparation, financing and company management than accounting.

With many different professions readily available to grads of book-keeping programs, trainees regularly pick to concentrate their competence on a particular area, such as bookkeeping, taxes or possibly forensic accounting. The listed right here will definitely provide prospective trainees a base for thinking about areas of specific enthusiasm within the area of accounting.

Examining The globe of accounting is fascinating in addition to a diverse branch of bookkeeping that allows those that concentrate on it to work with numerous different types of projects. Running as a display of service honesty and also principles, accounting has an interest in making sure businesses are held to monetary criteria. Particular topics pupils can anticipate to concentrate on include company regulation, accounting research methods, as well as also forensic accounting.

Accounting Supervisor Rather than operating in daily bookkeeping jobs, supervisors around look after numerous other auditors and likewise normally invest even more time focused on bigger image problems; similarly uses management to bookkeeping team and also could take care of several of the advanced tasks every now and then. Frauds Examiner Professionals in this occupation have a fascination in addition to varied collection of opportunities.

Specialists looking for a company environment are commonly caused to finish inner examinations. By focusing on recognizing tax obligations as well as application, students will obtain a diverse experience of methods and likewise therapies connected with preparing tax obligations for people as well as likewise lots of types of companies. In enhancement to accountancy training courses covering crucial skills, pupils will absolutely develop an audio understanding of innovative tax subjects, such as federal government taxation of firms as well as collaborations, estate along with present tax, tax commitment research study techniques, as well as also various other one-of-a-kind subjects in tax.