CPA / Accounting License from Colorado to Florida: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Florida accept a Colorado CPA license?
Yes — Florida recognizes CPA licenses from all states, including Colorado. Apply to the Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) for a reciprocal license; you will not repeat the full exam or education.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Full reciprocity
Florida recognizes substantial equivalency, so your Colorado CPA license clears the bar on its own — the Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) cares that you are a CPA in good standing, not that your license came from Colorado. What remains is Florida-side: verification through CPAverify.org, the reciprocal application and fee, a background check, and any Florida ethics or rules-of-conduct exam. Do the mobility math first, though — if Florida is not becoming your principal place of business, practice privilege may let you work there without this application at all.
What's different between Colorado and Florida
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Florida. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Colorado to Florida (this page): Full reciprocity.
Florida to Colorado (the reverse move): Full reciprocity.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Colorado matter?
Coming from Colorado does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Florida.
- Application fee
Florida lists $300 for an out-of-state applicant and Colorado lists $195 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Education (semester hours)
Florida's first-time-applicant standard is 150 semester hours of education for initial licensure; Colorado's is 150.
The two standards are the same.
- Exam rules on record
Florida and Colorado carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Florida (this move): The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; the applicant files the DBPR CPA 5012-1 Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Examination and Licensure Information so Florida can confirm passage through the existing license. Florida requires no separate state ethics or law exam.
- Colorado (the reverse move): The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; passage is confirmed through your active out-of-state CPA license (national lookup at CPAverify.org). Colorado imposes no separate state law exam, but reciprocal applicants must have passed the 8-hour AICPA Professional Ethics comprehensive course and examination and must complete a 2-hour Colorado Rules and Regulations course within six months of licensure.
What changes, Colorado → Florida
| Colorado (current) | Florida (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Education (semester hours) | 150 | 150 |
| Application fee | $195 (reciprocal certificate application fee processed by NASBA/CPAES; the AICPA ethics course/exam is purchased separately) | $300 (non-refundable DBPR CPA 3 Licensure by Endorsement application fee; no fingerprint/background-check surcharge (Florida does not fingerprint CPA applicants)) |
| Processing time | No processing time is published; NASBA, which processes Colorado applications, states that the Colorado Board reviews and approves all licensure-eligible applications at its monthly board meeting and that eligible applications are sent to the Board three weeks before the meeting date | the Florida Board of Accountancy / DBPR does not publish a processing time for endorsement |
| Licensing authority | Colorado State Board of Accountancy (Division of Professions and Occupations, DORA) | Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Florida sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Florida's current requirements on the Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold a current, active CPA license issued by another US state or territory and keep it active until Florida issues the license.
- Qualify under one endorsement pathway: other-state requirements substantially equivalent to Florida's with one year of experience; OR licensed and in practice at least ten years; OR five years of experience after licensure.
- Submit the DBPR CPA 3 Application for Licensure by Endorsement and the DBPR CPA 5012-1 Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Examination and Licensure Information.
- Have good moral character.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Do I retake the CPA Exam moving from Colorado to Florida?
No — the Uniform CPA Exam transfers with your license.
Do I need a Florida license, or does mobility cover the move?
If Florida becomes your principal place of business, you apply to the Florida Board of Accountancy (Department of Business and Professional Regulation) for a reciprocal license. If you are only serving Florida clients from Colorado, practice privilege usually covers you with no Florida license, notice, or fee.
Can I keep my Colorado CPA license after licensing in Florida?
Yes — CPA licenses stack, and many CPAs hold more than one. Keep the Colorado license active (its renewal and CPE run separately) and mobility covers the states where you hold none.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified Colorado 2026-10-29, Florida 2026-07-21.
- Florida DBPR — CPA Licensure by Endorsement (experience pathways, other-state license issued on/after 8/15/2014, $300 fee, 150 hours) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Florida DBPR — CPA Initial Licensure Requirements (150 semester hours with accounting and business hour breakdown) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NASBA/CPAES — Colorado Application for CPA Certificate Reciprocity (active out-of-state license, AICPA ethics exam, Colorado Rules and Regulations course) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NASBA Licensing — Colorado (reciprocal certificate fee $195; reciprocity requires an active license from a substantially-equivalent jurisdiction, CPE attestation, and the AICPA ethics exam; applications approved at the monthly Board meeting) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado DPO — Accountancy Applications and Forms (the Board has authorized NASBA's CPA Examination Services to process CPA license applications) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado General Assembly — SB26-076 Certification & Practice of Certified Public Accountants (signed May 4, 2026; effective Aug 12, 2026; new pathways available to applicants from Jan 1, 2027; individual practice privilege with no notice or fee) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado DPO — Accountancy homepage (Permanent Rulemaking Hearing October 21, 2026 on rule revisions to implement SB26-076) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources Colorado 2026-10-29, Florida 2026-07-21
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