CPA / Accounting License from New York to Connecticut: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Connecticut accept a New York CPA license?
A CPA license transfers from New York to Connecticut by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection), verify your New York license, and meet Connecticut's endorsement requirements. The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; all four sections must already have been passed with grades of 75 or better and are confirmed through a license verification from your current board. Connecticut also requires passage of a professional ethics examination, unless the applicant qualifies under the five-years-experience-in-ten alternative, which exempts both the education and the ethics requirement.
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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Connecticut does not grant the automatic substantial-equivalency license to every out-of-state CPA, so moving from New York means an individual review by the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection) — often against an experience test counted in years of recent practice rather than a straight credential match. Nothing about coming from New York speeds it up or slows it down; you keep your CPA Exam passage and your existing license as the basis of the review, and the requirements below are Connecticut's own.
What's different between New York and Connecticut
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Connecticut. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
New York to Connecticut (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Connecticut to New York (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from New York matter?
Coming from New York does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Connecticut.
- Application fee
Connecticut lists $150 for an out-of-state applicant and New York lists $427 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Education (semester hours)
Connecticut's first-time-applicant standard is 150 semester hours of education for initial licensure; New York's is 150.
The two standards are the same.
- Exam rules on record
Connecticut and New York carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Connecticut (this move): The Uniform CPA Examination is not retaken; all four sections must already have been passed with grades of 75 or better and are confirmed through a license verification from your current board. Connecticut also requires passage of a professional ethics examination, unless the applicant qualifies under the five-years-experience-in-ten alternative, which exempts both the education and the ethics requirement.
- New York (the reverse move): The Uniform CPA Examination is never retaken; your initial-licensure state (and your current principal-place-of-business state, if different) verifies your licensure, either through an online license-verification printout or on Form 3 (Certification of Out-of-State Licensure and Examination Grades) (national lookup at CPAverify.org). New York requires no separate ethics examination for licensure.
What changes, New York → Connecticut
| New York (current) | Connecticut (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Education (semester hours) | 150 | 150 |
| Application fee | $427 ($427 Form 1 licensure and first-registration fee) | $150 ($150 initial fee for a CPA License (needed to practice; renews at $565 per year); a CPA Certificate Registration, which allows use of the CPA title but not practice, is $40 initial and $40 per year) |
| Processing time | The Office of the Professions does not publish a fixed processing time; review begins once all forms and out-of-state verification are received | the Department of Consumer Protection does not publish a processing time for the reciprocal certificate |
| Licensing authority | New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Public Accountancy) | Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Connecticut sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Connecticut's current requirements on the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold a CPA certificate/license in good standing from another US state and submit a license verification from that board.
- Either meet Connecticut's current education, experience, and ethics requirements (DCP routes reciprocal applicants without five-in-ten experience to the Initial CT application), show you met Connecticut's requirements in force when your other-state certificate was issued, or document at least five years of public-accountancy experience within the immediately preceding ten years (which exempts education and ethics).
- Experience must be verified by a CPA who has held a license or practice privilege for at least three years.
- Pass the professional ethics examination unless exempt under the five-in-ten experience test.
- 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 New York to Connecticut?
No — the Uniform CPA Exam transfers with your license.
Do I need a Connecticut license, or does mobility cover the move?
If Connecticut becomes your principal place of business, you apply to the Connecticut State Board of Accountancy (Department of Consumer Protection) for a reciprocal license. If you are only serving Connecticut clients from New York, practice privilege usually covers you with no Connecticut license, notice, or fee.
Can I keep my New York CPA license after licensing in Connecticut?
Yes — CPA licenses stack, and many CPAs hold more than one. Keep the New York 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 2026-10-29.
- CT DCP — Certified Public Accountant Reciprocal Candidate application (hold out-of-state license, five-in-ten experience test, license verification, exam not retaken; credential types and fees; Public Act 25-36 pathways and practice-privilege change eff. Oct 1, 2025) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- CT DCP — CPA Certificate by Reciprocity (statutory criteria, $150 issuance fee, professional ethics examination) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- CT DCP — Certified Public Accountant Initial CT Applicant (also for reciprocal applicants who have not attained 5 years of experience in the last 10: education, experience, AICPA ethics, SBA-007 license/exam verification) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NYSED Office of the Professions - Licensure by Endorsement for CPAs ($427 fee; 4 years post-licensure experience within last 10; significantly-comparable-state requirement; 40 CE credits (or 24 in one area) in the past 12 months; Forms 1/3/4B or online license-verification printout) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NYSED - Information for Endorsement Applicants and CPAs Practicing under Practice Privilege (effective Nov. 21, 2026: 120-hour + 2-year or 150-hour + 1-year pathway licensees eligible; active license required; two-tier certificate-only holders ineligible until licensed) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NYSED - Initial License Requirements for CPAs (150 semester hours; one-year experience baseline; good moral character) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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