For those holding an Active status CPA license or a RAP license, statutes require that you participate in a program of learning designed to maintain professional competency. The program must meet the minimum standards of quality of development, presentation, measurement, and reporting of credits in the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programs (Revised December 2019) jointly approved by NASBA and AICPA or other standards acceptable to the Board.
Before selecting CPE courses and when recording new hours in Online Renewal, consult the NASBA Fields of Study document. You are required to complete a minimum of 60 technical hours each rolling three-year period. Be sure the field of study designated by the CPE sponsor on your certificate/transcript is "technical," if you need that course to count as such.
Technical fields of study include, but are not limited to:
Please avail yourself of these resources. Remember that it is your responsibility as a licensee to understand and comply with the rules as written.
The CPE reporting (or "fiscal") year runs from July 1 to June 30. CPE must be earned by June 30 and reported by December 31 each year. Nonresidents seeking exemption from Minnesota CPE requirements must claim that exemption every year by December 31.
You do not need to wait until December 31 to report your CPE (or claim exemption). Once you have completed all your CPE, report it through Online Renewal.
Online RenewalYou are only able to enter your CPE for the year once via Online Renewal. Have all your information gathered prior to beginning. Should you subsequently need to modify your hours, contact the Board office for assistance.
Note: If you did not complete your required CPE by June 30 of the reporting year, you'll need to complete the necessary carryback CPE and send the associated certificates of completion along with all accrued noncompliance fees to the Board office as soon as possible. There is no required Board form; simply send the items requested above. Fees continue to accrue until you submit the certificates of completion and correct fees to the Board office. See "CPE Non-Compliance" section below and the CPE section of the FAQs.
Do NOT include CPE certificates earned during the current period with your carryback hours. It is your responsibility to record hours earned during the current period either online prior to renewal or as part of your renewal. Submitting unrecorded, noncarryback hours along with carryback hours may result in your entire submission being returned to you.
If you are newly licensed, when you must begin reporting depends upon when in the year you were licensed.
RAPs: See MN Rules 1105.7000 for differences in your requirements and limitations.
CPAs: See below. For additional information, see MN Rules 1105.3000-1105.3350.
On or After July 1: If you held an Active license after June 30 of a CPE reporting year then you have incurred a CPE reporting obligation (MN Rules 1105.3200[D]). An exception to this is new licensees who have not yet held their license for a first full CPE reporting year—see description above. To request status change to any other status (Inactive, Exempt, or Retired), you are first required to be in good standing with that prior obligation: You must complete and report the required CPE and pay any fees.
For example:
Prior to July 1: An Active licensee seeking status change to Exempt or Retired whose license is in good standing and who has not yet incurred the CPE obligation (the current CPE period has not concluded as it is not yet July 1) may request status change to Exempt or Retire without reporting any additional CPE.
For example:
Request for reactivation (status change to Active) may be made at any time of the year and is made using the Status Change to Active Request form. It is effective upon approval. An exception is that Inactive status holders in good standing may use the current year's Renewal form to request a status change that would be effective on January 1 of that renewal year (or as of the date the renewal is accepted, if the renewal request is late).
To reactivate from Retired, Exempt or Inactive to Active, the applicant must document 120 hours of CPE complying with MN Rules 1105.3000.E earned within three calendar (not fiscal) years of the date the Board receives your application. Qualifying CPE previously reported to the Board as well as any new CPE needed to meet requirements may be used; however, the applicant has the obligation to submit the detail as requested on the application form for all CPE reported. Complete the CPE reporting forms; do not submit your own spreadsheets or lists. Incorrectly completed applications/forms will be returned. CPE certificates of completion are not required unless the Board explicitly requests them from you.
If you held an Active license after June 30 of a CPE reporting year then you have incurred a CPE reporting obligation. An exception to this is new licensees who have not yet held their license for a first full CPE reporting year—see description above. To request status change to any other status (Inactive, Exempt, or Retired), you are first required to be in good standing with that prior obligation: You must complete and report the required CPE and pay any fees.
For example:
The following hour limitations apply during the rolling three-year CPE period:
Instructors, discussion leaders, or speakers who present a learning activity for the first time may receive CPE credit for actual preparation time up to two times the number of CPE credits to which participants would be entitled, in addition to the time for presentation, subject to regulations and maximums established by the Board.
For example, for learning activities in which participants could receive 8 CPE credits, instructors may receive up to 24 CPE credits (16 for preparation plus 8 for presentation). For repeat presentations, CPE credit can be claimed only if it can be demonstrated that the learning activity content was substantially changed and such change required significant additional study or research. See Standard 20.
Documentation for teaching/presenting credits must include the following:
If you submit teaching/speaking credits as "Approved," be sure to include the NASBA registry number or otherwise note the approved sponsor (see list of approved CPE sponsors below) in your records.
Writers of published articles, books, or CPE programs may receive CPE credit for their research and writing time to the extent it maintains or improves their professional competence. For the writer to receive CPE credit, the article, book, or CPE program must be formally reviewed by an independent party. CPE credits can be claimed only upon publication. CPE credits cannot be claimed for both authoring and presenting the same program or authoring and reviewing or presenting. See Standard 20 and 21.
Documentation for authoring/writing/reviewing credits must include the following:
If you submit writing credits as "Approved," be sure to include the NASBA registry number or otherwise note the approved sponsor (see list of approved CPE sponsors below) in your records.
NOTE: Independent study is not self study. It is "an educational process designed to teach a participant a given subject using a learning contract with a continuing professional education program sponsor." (MN Rule 1105.0100 Subp. 9d)
The "learning contract" and the sponsor/instructor must meet the criteria defined in the CPE Standards (see Article 2.5). Some required outcomes include a written report and a presentation to the instructor/sponsor. The sponsor must certify the credits earned and provide their sponsor number (if applicable), name, and contact information.
Independent study can be taken from approved or nonapproved sponsors, as long as it meets the requirements of the Standards. For participants to claim the CPE, they must document the course as specified in MN Rule 1105.3200.
No self-study, nano learning or blended learning courses may be taken from any sponsor other than one approved for that method on the NASBA Registry. (MN Rule 1105.3100 Subp.2)
Group (Live or Internet-based), Self-study, Nano, Blended:
Group (Live or Internet-based):
Note to CPE providers not listed above: In order to be considered an approved CPE provider, you must be registered with NASBA's CPE Registry. Please visit NASBA's website for more information.
CPAs are allowed to take group internet-based and group live programs from non-NASBA CPE Registry/non-approved sponsors, provided the program contributes to the professional knowledge and competence of the individual CPA (keeping in mind that at least 72 CPE hours must be obtained through approved CPE sponsors). The program must meet the minimum standards of quality of development, presentation, measurement, and reporting of credits in the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programs jointly approved by NASBA and AICPA or such other standards acceptable to the board.
Note: Self-study, nano learning and blended learning courses cannot be taken from non-approved sponsors. Those courses must be provided by a sponsor listed on the NASBA Registry as approved for the specific delivery method.
Documentation for non-registry programs must consist of the following:
MN Rules 1105.3300(B) states that "The [B]oard may, in particular cases, make exceptions to the [CPE] requirements ... for reasons of individual hardship including health, military service, foreign residence, or other good cause." Individuals may submit to the Board in writing a CPE exception request, which the Board will review and determine whether to grant. The request, with any supporting documents, should be submitted to the Board by mail or email two weeks prior to a Board meeting date.
MN Rules 1105.3000(E) states "Failure to report CPE, failure to obtain CPE required by this part, reporting of an amount less than that required, or fraudulently reporting CPE is a basis for disciplinary action under MN Statutes 326A.08. A licensee not in compliance with this part shall be assessed a late processing fee of $50 for the first month, or partial month, of noncompliance and $25 per month, or partial month, of noncompliance thereafter until the date the licensee is in compliance with this part and provides: (1) documentation of compliance in writing; and (2) payment of the required late processing fee to the board."
Current CPE Fees ChartRemember: If you are not in compliance with the CPE requirements by June 30th and you need to use "carryback" hours from the subsequent fiscal year, the CPE non-compliance fees continue to accrue until the date you submit your certificates of completion for carryback hours along with payment of the CPE non-compliance fees to the Board.
Each year a percentage of CPAs will be contacted by the Board and required to submit a complete record of CPE for the previous three-year reporting period as part of an ongoing audit process. In cases where the board determines that the hour information supplied by the licensee is not supported by the documentation supplied by the licensee or the hours do not meet the requirements of this chapter, the board may grant an additional period of time in which the deficiencies can be cured or the board may take disciplinary action. Licensees determined not in compliance must pay a late processing fee (see MN Rule 1105.3000(E). Fraudulent reporting is a basis for disciplinary action.
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