[ipasscpa]

Hello all,

I just wanted to share my experience quickly because I know a lot of people are or will be in this boat.

I took the CPA exam for New York Jurisdiction, but at the last moment, my superior told me that her license is not active to sign off on the experience requirement. Luckily, Virginia does not require active CPA signatures on the experience form, and no residency is required. The process is quick and simple.

Steps to follow for the Initial CPA license application;

1) Apply online at https://www.boa.virginia.gov/cpalicense/initiallicense.shtml

2) Transfer your CPA exam score from NASBA to VA board. NASBA charge $25 for this.

3) Send all the official college transcripts.

4) You do need to pass AICPA ethics exam with 90 or above and Virginia Ethics Exam.

5) Experience Verification Form: NON-CPA supervisor can sign it.

The board was very helpful to answer my questions over the phone or the email.

Hope this helps!

CPA- VA

[Modaz]

Does Virginia accept international candidates?

I'm from Egypt, will soon be finishing all parts and I have the same issue with getting an active CPA to sign off my experience (I'm in an Oil&Gas Joint Venture, working as a cost and managerial accountant)

Thanks everyone for sharing their experiences.

BEC 88 (Taken Nov 23, 2015)
REG 87 (Taken Jan 13, 2016)
FAR ?? (Taken Apr 18, 2016)
AUD -- (Sched May 30, 2016)

[Anonymous]

Her goal is to open a tax business on the side while she's in New York. She just wanted to make sure she could sign returns as “Jill Doe, CPA” without any issues. Would it be OK and ethical if she volunteered under me for 3 months and I sign off on her remaining months?

[Anonymous]

@bullandre You can't sign off on a year of her experience if she only works under you for 3 months, and most states (can check NY for sure, but NY is big/progressive enough I would guess it's one of them) require that you be licensed in-state to offer tax services. That being said, the federal part of the taxes it doesn't matter, but the state it does. So, she couldn't hand out business cards as Jill Doe, CPA, Tax Services in NY without potentially getting in trouble with the NY CPA Board. Unless NY is one of the states that only restricts audit services, not tax, but I think more restrict all public practice (audit and tax), not just one or the other. So…sounds like she'll need to volunteer for you full-time for a year, or get another job, or find out how long she has to have a VA license before she can transfer it in to NY.

@Modaz From looking at an old thread here, it looks like Virginia requires a US Social Security number, which I'm assuming you don't have: https://www.another71.com/cpa-exam-forum/topic/what-states-can-i-transfer-my-credits-to-as-an-international-candidate If you have that, but are currently located internationally, then Virginia would be an option (I don't see anything about a residency requirement), but if you don't have one and don't have a way to get one (not sure if there's any way to if you don't live here and aren't moving here?), then looks like Virginia is out unfortunately. 🙁

[Anonymous]

@Lilla: She has already accumulated 9 months of the required experience and was asking me if she could volunteer under me for the remaining 3 months. From what I understand with NYS licensing, experience can be prorated but the rules surrounding volunteer work remains unaddressed. I know that I would have to certify whether she works full-time or part-time (2 weeks work experience count as only one). I would have to sign off on her work (reports, research etc.). I'm just worried about the appearance of such arrangement and don't want to jeopardize my license. I've consulted other CPAs in my office and they said that since the rules are silent there shouldn't be any issues as long as I maintain good records of the work she does under me.

Anyways, here is part of the response she sent to me from the NYS board reggards to licensing in VA, the transferring to NY:

“Dear Samantha:

Licensure by endorsement is a streamlined application process that is available to individuals who have at least 4 years of acceptable accounting, tax, financial or management advisory experience since their initial license was issued and within the last 10 years.”

[KJ]

@ ipasscpa and bullandre….My question is probably off topic but since you guys are CPA, I would like to ask……I have just started to study for my first CPA exam (Going for FAR first)!! What CPA book have you been using for exams or material? What has been your game plan to pass all these exams? Any advise/input would be greatly appreciated!!

FAR - August 2016
AUD - September 2016
REG - October 2016
BEC - November 2016

Remember: "Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler." - Albert Einstein

[Anonymous]

this is a great thread by the way!

I live in WI but don't work where there is someone with a CPA license. How do you find out what you will need?

[Anonymous]

@bullandre I thought you were asking if she could volunteer for you for 3 months, then have you sign off on her whole 12 months (9 months not under a CPA and 3 months under you). Now I understand what you're saying better. 🙂 As long as she's doing the work, whether she's compensated or not shouldn't be an issue for the NYS CPA board, so from that perspective it should be fine. I'd probably email the board, though, to get an email approval back to have a paper trail.

However, presuming that you're working at a for-profit company (sounds like you're in public accounting), then the Dept of Labor has some issues with a volunteer employee. Put simply, from my research, I don't think they allow it. The only way they allow it in any way shape form or fashion is an unpaid intern, but then the rules on what they can and can't do are very strict (my “tell it to my like I'm 5 years old” summary is “the intern can't do any real work” – it's something like “they can't do any work that contributes to the work needed for the company's work” or something like that). To keep the DOL happy, would your employer be willing to pay her minimum wage for the work that she does under you for 3 months? I'm guessing minimum wage is less than they pay the other employees that would be doing the work (yourself, first-year's that would be doing it if she wasn't, etc.), so hopefully it'd be a good deal for them and they might consider it, again presuming you're in public accounting which it sounds like from you talking about talking to other CPAs in your office. Now granted, this is an issue with the DOL and therefore your employer's issue, not an issue with the NYS CPA Board and therefore not “your” issue, but if you're the one bringing her in then it's kinda your issue still…and if your HR department is good, they'll probably stop an unpaid employee. Of course there might be some exception I'm not aware of that would allow this, but from my research when I'd looked into it before (I'd been worried when I was a college student about if/how I would be able to get experience, so had considered if I could volunteer somewhere!), I don't think a for-profit company can have an unpaid person doing work for them. Non-profits can, but it still has to meet certain criteria and be properly documented as volunteer.

@kanwal78 I would suggest that you start a new thread to ask your question, as it's not likely to get many answers buried in the middle of this discussion. 🙂

@akduran07 I'm not sure what you're asking – how do you find out what you will need for what?

[TheHoundThatRides]

Tip of the hat to Lilla for putting in overtime helping us noobs out. And ipasscpa for this helpful topic.

BEC - 78 (August 2015)
FAR - 80 (November 2015)
AUD - 73, 67. (Ok I gotta confess I was even more lazy this time around)
REG - August 27th, 2016

[Author]

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