Florida Board of Accountancy · Rule 61H1-33.003, F.A.C.
Florida CPAs must complete 80 hours of continuing professional education during each two-year re-establishment period, which runs July 1 through June 30 two years later. Those 80 hours must include at least 8 hours in accounting and auditing and at least 4 hours in an ethics course specifically approved by the Florida Board of Accountancy. No more than 20 of the 80 hours may be earned in behavioral subjects.
CPE must be completed by June 30 of the renewal year. The license itself is renewed separately, by December 31 of that same year. Missing June 30 does not end the cycle — Florida grants automatic extensions that carry penalty hours in accounting and auditing.
One square equals one CPE hour in a two-year period.
| Total CPE hours | 80 hours per two-year re-establishment period |
|---|---|
| Reporting period | July 1 through June 30, two years later (biennial) |
| CPE completion deadline | June 30 of the renewal year |
| License renewal deadline | December 31 of the renewal year |
| Ethics requirement | 4 hours in a Florida Board-approved ethics course covering Chapters 455 and 473, Florida Statutes, and the related administrative rules. All 4 hours must come from a single provider. |
| Accounting & auditing minimum | 8 hours |
| Behavioral subjects cap | 20 hours maximum |
| Governmental (Yellow Book) | 24 hours if performing audits under Government Auditing Standards or the Rules of the Auditor General, Chapter 10.550 |
| Self-study | Accepted. Sponsors of self-study in accounting, auditing, and technical business subjects must be NASBA QAS approved. |
| Carryover | Not permitted. Hours beyond 80 do not roll into the next period. |
| Partial credit | Half credits accepted |
| Not accepted | Elementary accounting, basic mathematics, business meetings, social functions, committee service, published materials |
| Late extensions | To September 15 with 8 extra A&A hours (88 total); to December 31 with 16 extra A&A hours (96 total) |
Florida does not accept an ethics course approved by another state board, even if that course satisfies the other state's ethics requirement. The course must carry a Florida Board of Accountancy provider number and course approval number.
Satisfies all 4 hours of Florida's Board-approved ethics requirement in a single course from a single provider, including the required review of Chapters 455 and 473, Florida Statutes, and the related administrative rules.
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Florida splits education and renewal into two separate dates six months apart. This is where licensees most often get caught.
The two-year clock starts. Hours earned before this date do not count toward the new period.
Coursework has to be finished, not merely started. Report completion through DBPR Online Services.
Available if you missed June 30. Requires an additional 8 hours in accounting and auditing — 88 hours total.
Renew and pay the fee through DBPR Online Services.
Requires an additional 16 hours in accounting and auditing — 96 hours total. A license not renewed by December 31 becomes delinquent on January 1.
Florida's 4-hour ethics requirement is the most tightly controlled part of the state's CPE rules, and it is the one requirement a general-purpose ethics course will not satisfy.
| Instruction | Two times presentation time for a first presentation; one times presentation time for a second; no credit for a third or later presentation. Repeat instruction of substantially changed material counts as a first presentation. |
|---|---|
| Partial credit | Half credits are accepted. |
| University / college | One semester hour equals 15 CPE hours. One quarter hour equals 10 CPE hours. Each classroom hour of a non-credit course equals one qualifying hour. |
| Fields of study | Florida places limits on certain subject areas. See the NASBA Registry Florida Fields of Study analysis, effective September 1, 2016. |
Florida CPAs need 80 CPE hours per two-year re-establishment period.
There is no annual minimum, so the hours can be spread across the two years in any pattern. Within the 80 hours, at least 8 must be in accounting and auditing, at least 4 must be in Florida Board-approved ethics, and no more than 20 may be in behavioral subjects.
The Florida CPA CPE reporting period runs from July 1 to June 30 two years later.
The Board calls this the re-establishment period. Your specific period depends on when your license was issued or reactivated, and periods are staggered across licensees rather than shared statewide. Confirm your own period in DBPR Online Services.
Florida CPA licenses are renewed by December 31 of the renewal year, six months after the June 30 CPE deadline.
The renewal window opens October 1. A license not renewed by December 31 becomes delinquent on January 1. Completing CPE and renewing the license are two separate actions with two separate dates.
Florida requires 4 hours of ethics CPE per two-year period, in a course approved by the Florida Board of Accountancy.
The course must review Chapters 455 and 473, Florida Statutes, and the related administrative rules. If the 4 hours are split into two modules, both must be taken from the same provider.
No. Florida does not grant ethics credit for a course that has not been approved by the Florida Board of Accountancy, even if another state board accepts it.
This applies to non-resident licensees as well. A CPA licensed in Florida but practicing elsewhere still needs Florida-specific ethics.
Florida requires a minimum of 8 hours in accounting and auditing subjects per two-year period.
Accounting and auditing hours also serve as the penalty currency for late CPE: the September 15 extension requires 8 additional A&A hours and the December 31 extension requires 16 additional A&A hours.
Yes. No more than 20 of the 80 hours may be earned in behavioral subjects.
Behavioral subjects generally cover communications, management, and personal or professional development. This is a ceiling, not a floor — a Florida CPA can complete zero behavioral hours and still be compliant.
A Florida CPA who performs audits governed by Government Auditing Standards or the Rules of the Auditor General, Chapter 10.550, must complete 24 hours of governmental CPE.
This obligation comes from the audit standards themselves rather than from a general rule applying to every licensee. CPAs who do not perform governmental audits are not subject to it.
Yes. Florida accepts self-study CPE, but self-study courses in accounting, auditing, and technical business subjects must come from a sponsor approved under NASBA's Quality Assurance Service (QAS).
Florida does not distinguish between live in-person and online or virtual instruction for the general 80-hour requirement. Group study does not have to be taken through an approved sponsor provided the content qualifies under the Board's CPE guidelines.
Florida grants two automatic extensions, each carrying additional accounting and auditing hours as a penalty.
A licensee who does not meet the requirement by June 30 receives an automatic extension to September 15 by completing 8 additional hours in accounting and auditing, for 88 hours total. An extension to December 31 is available by completing 16 additional hours in accounting and auditing, for 96 hours total. Proof of completion is submitted through DBPR Online Services on or before the extension date.
No. Hours earned beyond 80 in a re-establishment period cannot be applied to the next period.
Every requirement resets on July 1, and courses may not be taken for credit more than once within the same two-year period.
Yes. Florida accepts half credits.
Credit is awarded in increments consistent with the Board's rules, so a 90-minute qualifying session can be reported as 1.5 hours.
Instructors receive two times presentation time for a first presentation, one times presentation time for a second, and no credit for a third or later presentation of the same material.
Repeat instruction counts as a first presentation again if the material has been substantially changed. For academic work, one semester hour equals 15 CPE hours, one quarter hour equals 10 CPE hours, and each classroom hour of a non-credit course equals one qualifying hour.
Florida excludes elementary accounting and basic mathematics, business meetings, social functions, committee service, and published materials.
Courses must contribute directly to professional competence following licensure to be counted.
A newly licensed Florida CPA's first re-establishment period generally ends on the third June 30 following licensure.
Count forward to the next June 30, then add two years. A CPA licensed in December 2025, for example, would renew the license before completing a full CPE period, with the first 80 hours due by June 30, 2028. Confirm your own dates with the Board, since the calculation shifts around the July 1 boundary.
Yes. A non-resident Florida licensee may satisfy Florida's general CPE requirement by meeting the requirements of the state where their principal office is located.
If that state has no CPE requirement, the licensee must follow Florida's rules. The Florida ethics requirement applies either way and cannot be satisfied by another state's ethics course.
| Agency | Division of Certified Public Accounting, Florida DBPR |
|---|---|
| Address | 240 NW 76th Drive, Suite A, Gainesville, FL 32607 |
| Phone | (850) 487-1395 |
| Fax | (352) 333-2508 |
| [email protected] | |
| Website | www2.myfloridalicense.com/certified-public-accounting |
This page summarizes Florida CPE rules for general informational purposes and is reviewed against the Florida Board of Accountancy's published guidance. Rules change. Confirm your specific obligations with the Board before relying on any summary, including this one. Last reviewed August 2026 by CPE Solutions, LLC dba Professionals Publishing Group, NASBA Registry ID #111907, Florida Sponsor #5121, Ethics Course Approval #13657.
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