Washington State Board of Accountancy · WAC 4-30-134
Washington CPAs must complete 120 hours of continuing professional education during each three-year reporting period, with a minimum of 20 hours in every calendar year. Four of those hours must be a Washington State Board-approved ethics and regulations course with specific application to the practice of public accounting in Washington. No more than 60 hours may come from non-technical subjects.
The Board evaluates and approves ethics course materials annually, and asks that you take the version matching the year of completion. A 2026 course should be completed by December 31, 2026 — an older version will not satisfy the requirement.
One square equals one CPE hour in the three-year period.
| Total CPE hours | 120 hours per three-year reporting period |
|---|---|
| Annual minimum | 20 hours in each calendar year |
| Reporting period | January 1 to December 31, triennially |
| License renewal | Triennial. Expiration dates vary by license group. |
| Ethics requirement | 4 hours in a Board-approved ethics and regulations course with specific application to the practice of public accounting in Washington. Take the version matching your year of completion. |
| Non-approved ethics courses | Still count toward the technical and total hour requirements, but do not satisfy the ethics requirement |
| Non-technical cap | 60 hours maximum per three-year period |
| Nano learning cap | 12 hours maximum per reporting period |
| Combined activity cap | 60 hours combined for board service, first-time instruction or course development, published articles and books. These do not count toward the 20-hour annual minimum. |
| Self-study | Full credit if interactive; half credit otherwise |
| Carryover | Not permitted |
| Extensions | One extension allowed in any two consecutive reporting periods (a six-year span). Requests are accepted January 1 through June 30 of the renewal period and must be made before expiration. |
| Lapse | Failure to complete the required steps on or before June 30 results in a lapse of the credential on July 1 |
| Non-resident reciprocity | Non-residents may satisfy Washington's requirements by meeting those of their principal licensing state. If that state has no CPE requirement, Washington's rules apply. |
Taking a general ethics course and assuming it counts. Only a Washington Board-approved ethics and regulations course satisfies the four-hour requirement. A non-approved ethics course still counts toward your total and technical hours — but the ethics requirement stays unmet, and it is the single most common reason Washington renewals stall.
Satisfies the four-hour Washington ethics and regulations requirement. The Board approves ethics course materials annually and maintains a published list — take the version that corresponds to the year in which you complete it.
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The Washington Board publishes approved ethics and regulations courses on its website
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Washington pairs a triennial total with a firm annual floor, and offers a formal extension mechanism that most states do not.
The cycle runs on calendar years, January 1 through December 31.
Required in every calendar year of the period. Board service, first-time instruction, and publication credits do not count toward this floor.
Complete the version of the course matching your year of completion.
Requests must be made before the expiration date. Only one extension is allowed in any two consecutive reporting periods, a six-year span.
Failure to complete the required steps on or before June 30 results in a lapse of the credential on July 1.
Washington applies two separate 60-hour caps, and one of them also carries a restriction on the annual minimum.
Washington CPAs need 120 CPE hours during each three-year reporting period, with a minimum of 20 hours in every calendar year.
Four of the 120 must be a Washington Board-approved ethics and regulations course, and no more than 60 may be non-technical.
The Washington CPE reporting period runs January 1 to December 31, triennially.
License renewal is also triennial, though expiration dates vary by license group rather than falling on a single shared date.
Four hours in a Board-approved ethics and regulations course with specific application to the practice of public accounting in Washington, once per three-year period.
The Board evaluates and approves ethics course materials annually and publishes a list of approved courses.
No. Only a Board-approved ethics and regulations course meets the four-hour ethics requirement.
Ethics courses that are not Board-approved still count toward the technical and total hour requirements, so the hours are not wasted — but the ethics requirement remains unmet.
Yes. The Board requests that you take and complete the course version relating to your year of completion.
A 2026 version of the course should be completed by December 31, 2026. Licensees must complete the appropriate version for the applicable reporting cycle.
Yes. At least 20 hours must be completed in each calendar year of the three-year period.
The annual minimum cannot be satisfied by completing all hours in a single year, and falling short in one year is non-compliance even if the 120-hour total is eventually met.
No more than 60 hours per three-year period.
Non-technical subjects include communication, interpersonal management, leadership and personal development, motivational and behavioral topics, and similar areas.
Credits from board or committee service, first-time instruction or course development, and published articles and books.
These are capped at 60 hours combined per period and cannot be applied to the 20-hour yearly minimum, which is a trap for CPAs who teach or write regularly.
Yes. Interactive self-study earns full credit; non-interactive self-study earns half credit.
Nano learning is accepted but capped at 12 hours per reporting period.
No. Washington does not permit carryover of unused hours.
Every requirement resets with each new three-year period.
Yes. Any individual who fails to complete the required CPE by the end of the reporting period can request an extension prior to the expiration date.
Only one extension is allowed in any two consecutive CPE reporting periods, a six-year span. Extension requests are accepted from January 1 through June 30 of the renewal period.
Failure to complete the required steps on or before June 30 results in a lapse of the credential on July 1.
A lapsed credential must be addressed through the Board rather than by simply completing the missing hours.
Yes. Non-residents may be considered compliant by meeting the CPE requirements of the state in which their principal place of business is located, provided those requirements are substantially equivalent.
If the principal state has no CPE requirement, Washington's rules apply in full.
For an initial reporting period, the requirement runs from the license issue date to December 31 of the third calendar year in the period.
A license issued during the first calendar year of a reporting period generally carries an 80-hour requirement, limited to 40 non-technical hours and including the four-hour Board-approved ethics course. Confirm your figure with Board-issued materials.
| Agency | Washington State Board of Accountancy |
|---|---|
| Address | P.O. Box 9131, Olympia, WA 98507-9131 |
| Phone | (360) 753-2586 |
| Website | acb.wa.gov |
| Approved ethics courses | Approved ethics and regulations courses |
| State society | Washington Society of CPAs |
This page summarizes Washington CPE rules for general informational purposes and is reviewed against the Washington State 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.
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