Transfer Your CPA / Accounting License to Kentucky: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)
Last verified: 2026-07-21 · source: Kentucky State Board of Accountancy ↗
Kentucky is a substantial-equivalency state — hold a good-standing CPA license anywhere in the US and the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy will issue a reciprocal license without retesting. The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; you request transfer of your exam scores and verification of your active licensure from your current state board or NASBA (via an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information form). The Board does not list a separate state ethics examination among its reciprocal-license requirements.. Expect $100 (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order)) in application fees.
Moving to Kentucky from a specific state?
Pick your current state — the checker returns your exact pathway.
Verdict
Full reciprocity — honors all states
Because Kentucky recognizes substantial equivalency, the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy looks at your standing, not your origin: a CPA in good standing from any state qualifies for a reciprocal license, and the Uniform CPA Exam does not come back. Read the requirements below as the destination's own layer — a background check, a state ethics or rules-of-conduct exam where one applies, and proof your CPE is current — rather than a re-credentialing.
Settle the mobility question before you file. If Kentucky is not becoming your principal place of business — you are serving Kentucky clients from elsewhere, or the work is temporary — practice privilege usually lets you work there with no Kentucky license at all. Apply for the reciprocal license when Kentucky is where you will actually be based.
Kentucky issues a reciprocal license to any active out-of-state CPA who meets the experience requirement, so reciprocity runs on the national substantial-equivalency framework rather than a partner list. Separately, Kentucky's 'incidental practice' / mobility rule lets an out-of-state CPA serve Kentucky clients with no Kentucky license when not employed by a business with a Kentucky office (a separate concept from this license transfer). Baseline education is 150 semester hours; reciprocal applicants normally satisfy education through their existing license.
Kentucky requirements at a glance
| Exam | The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; you request transfer of your exam scores and verification of your active licensure from your current state board or NASBA (via an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information form). The Board does not list a separate state ethics examination among its reciprocal-license requirements. |
|---|---|
| Training hours | 150 hours |
| Additional requirements |
|
| Fees | $100 (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order)) |
| Processing time | no published turnaround; applications are approved at the Board's next scheduled meeting and must be received at least one week beforehand |
Step by step
- Confirm Kentucky's current requirements on the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy website — rules change.
- Submit the reciprocity/endorsement application to the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy (application linked on this page).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active CPA license in good standing from another US jurisdiction.
- Submit a Certificate of Experience documenting at least 1 year / 2,000 hours of accounting or attest experience.
- Submit an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information verifying exam passage and active licensure.
- Application must be received at least one week before the Board meeting at which it will be considered.
- Pay the fees ($100 (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order))) and allow no published turnaround; applications are approved at the Board's next scheduled meeting and must be received at least one week beforehand.
Official links
Coming from a specific state?
Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into Kentucky:
Frequently asked questions
Does my CPA license transfer to Kentucky?
Kentucky is a substantial-equivalency state — hold a good-standing CPA license anywhere in the US and the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy will issue a reciprocal license without retesting. The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; you request transfer of your exam scores and verification of your active licensure from your current state board or NASBA (via an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information form). The Board does not list a separate state ethics examination among its reciprocal-license requirements.. Expect $100 (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order)) in application fees.
Do I have to retake the CPA Exam to get licensed in Kentucky?
No. The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; you request transfer of your exam scores and verification of your active licensure from your current state board or NASBA (via an Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information form). The Board does not list a separate state ethics examination among its reciprocal-license requirements..
Do I even need a Kentucky CPA license, or does mobility cover me?
If Kentucky is not your principal place of business, practice privilege (mobility) usually lets you serve Kentucky clients with no Kentucky license, notice, or fee. You apply to the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy for a reciprocal license when Kentucky becomes where you are principally based.
What does a Kentucky reciprocal CPA license cost?
$100 (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order)) (reciprocal license application fee (check or money order)).
How long does the Kentucky reciprocity process take?
no published turnaround; applications are approved at the Board's next scheduled meeting and must be received at least one week beforehand — no published turnaround; applications are approved at the Board's next scheduled meeting and must be received at least one week beforehand.
How does Kentucky's education requirement affect a reciprocal CPA license?
Kentucky's initial-licensure baseline is 150 semester hours. Reciprocal applicants normally satisfy education through the license they already hold rather than a fresh transcript review; if you were licensed before your state raised its education requirement, confirm your route with the Kentucky State Board of Accountancy.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- Kentucky State Board of Accountancy — Reciprocal License ($100 fee, Certificate of Experience 1 yr/2,000 hrs, Authorization for Interstate Exchange of Information, board-meeting cadence) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Kentucky State Board of Accountancy — Initial License requirements (Bachelor's + 30 hrs = 150 semester hours, 27 accounting hrs; 1 yr/2,000 hrs experience) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]