Illinois IDFPR · 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1420.70
Illinois CPAs must complete 120 hours of continuing professional education during each three-year reporting cycle, which runs October 1 through September 30. Of those 120 hours, at least 4 must cover professional ethics and at least 1 must be sexual harassment prevention training. There is no annual minimum, so the hours may be spread across the cycle in any pattern.
The one-hour sexual harassment prevention requirement is the rule most often missed, and it is the one requirement that still applies to out-of-state licensees who otherwise qualify for CPE reciprocity.
One square equals one CPE hour in the three-year cycle.
| Total CPE hours | 120 hours per three-year reporting cycle |
|---|---|
| Reporting period | October 1 to September 30, triennially |
| CPE completion deadline | September 30 of the renewal year |
| License renewal deadline | September 30, every three years |
| Annual minimum | None |
| Ethics requirement | 4 hours covering professional ethics |
| Sexual harassment prevention | 1 hour, required for renewals on or after January 1, 2020 |
| Self-study cap | 80 hours maximum, of which no more than 60 may be non-interactive |
| Non-verifiable CPE cap | 60 hours maximum |
| Instruction cap | 60 hours maximum |
| Authorship cap | 30 hours maximum |
| Personal development cap | 24 hours maximum |
| Carryover | Not permitted. Hours beyond 120 do not roll into the next cycle. |
| First renewal | CPAs are exempt from CPE for their first license renewal |
| Record retention | Not less than six years |
Completing 120 hours and 4 ethics hours while overlooking the single hour of sexual harassment prevention training. It is a distinct requirement from general ethics education, it must be completed within the active cycle, and it applies even to licensees using out-of-state CPE reciprocity.
Covers both Illinois-specific subject requirements: the 4-hour professional ethics requirement and the separate 1-hour sexual harassment prevention training. Both count toward the 120-hour total.
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Illinois runs a single clean three-year cycle with no annual checkpoints, which makes it simple to plan and easy to leave until the last month.
Hours earned before this date do not count toward the new cycle.
All 120 hours may be completed in a single year if you choose, though spreading them out is the safer approach.
Including the 4 ethics hours and the 1 sexual harassment prevention hour. All must fall within the current cycle.
Renewal and CPE share the same deadline in Illinois, unlike states that separate the two.
Licensees must keep CPE records for not less than six years and produce them at renewal or on restoration from inactive status.
Illinois is one of the few states that formally recognizes non-verifiable learning, and it caps it tightly.
Illinois CPAs need 120 CPE hours during each three-year reporting cycle.
Of those 120 hours, at least 4 must be in professional ethics and at least 1 must be sexual harassment prevention training. Illinois sets no annual minimum, so the remaining hours may be distributed however you like across the three years.
The Illinois CPE reporting period runs from October 1 to September 30, triennially.
Unlike states that separate the education deadline from the renewal deadline, Illinois uses September 30 for both.
Illinois requires 1 hour of sexual harassment prevention training per three-year cycle, effective for license renewals on or after January 1, 2020.
It is a separate requirement from the 4-hour ethics requirement and cannot be satisfied by a general ethics course. The hour counts toward the 120-hour total.
Illinois requires at least 4 hours covering the subject of professional ethics in each three-year cycle.
The ethics hours count toward the 120-hour total rather than sitting on top of it.
No. Illinois sets no minimum annual requirement.
A licensee may complete all 120 hours in one year of the cycle. The practical risk is that the ethics and harassment prevention requirements are easy to overlook when everything is left to the final months.
Yes. Effective January 2020, licensees with an address of record outside Illinois are considered compliant if they have met the CPE requirements of that state — with one exception.
The one-hour sexual harassment prevention training is carved out of reciprocity and must still be completed.
No. Effective January 2020, hours earned in excess of 120 during a renewal period are not eligible for credit in a subsequent cycle.
Earning substantially more than 120 hours offers no compliance advantage going into the next period.
No. CPAs are exempt from the CPE requirement for their first license renewal.
That first period runs from the date the license is issued to the end of the next IDFPR three-year cycle, so it can be anywhere from a few months to three years. The renewal itself and the fee are still required. Every subsequent renewal requires the full 120 hours.
Self-study is capped at 80 hours per cycle, and no more than 60 of those may come from non-interactive self-study.
Interactive self-study is treated more favorably than non-interactive formats, so the delivery method of a course affects how much of it you can use.
Non-verifiable CPE covers self-directed learning activities that do not produce third-party documentation, and is capped at 60 hours per cycle.
Illinois recognizes both verifiable programs and non-verifiable activities, but the majority of a licensee's hours must be verifiable.
Instruction credit is capped at 60 hours per cycle and authorship at 30 hours.
For instruction, credit equals presentation time plus preparation, with preparation limited to two times the presentation time. Personal development credits are separately capped at 24 hours.
Subjects that do not contribute directly to professional competence are excluded, including spirituality, personal health and fitness, sports and recreation, foreign language, and production.
Personal development subjects do count but are capped at 24 hours per cycle.
Licensees must maintain CPE records for not less than six years.
Records must be available when renewing a license or when restoring a license from inactive or non-renewed status.
A waiver of the CPE requirement may be granted under certain circumstances defined in the administrative rules.
Waivers are handled by IDFPR case by case. Review the CPE provisions of the Illinois Administrative Code and contact the Department directly if you believe your circumstances qualify.
| Licensing agency | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation |
|---|---|
| Website | idfpr.illinois.gov |
| Governing rule | 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1420.70 (CPE) and 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1130.400 (sexual harassment prevention training) |
| Exam authority | Illinois Board of Examiners, 1120 E. Diehl Road, Suite 107, Naperville, IL 60563 · (815) 753-8900 |
| State society | Illinois CPA Society — CPE requirements |
This page summarizes Illinois CPE rules for general informational purposes and is reviewed against IDFPR and Illinois Administrative Code guidance. Rules change. Confirm your specific obligations with IDFPR before relying on any summary, including this one. Last reviewed August 2026 by CPE Solutions, LLC dba Professionals Publishing Group, NASBA Registry ID #111907.
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