To become a CPA in South Carolina, you’ll need to meet the following requirements:
- Education: A bachelor’s degree with 24 upper-level accounting hours and 24 business hours – South Carolina introduced a second licensure pathway from 30 June 2025 under Senate Bill 176
- Exam: Pass all four sections of the Uniform CPA Exam through NASBA’s CPA Examination Services, within a rolling 36-month credit window – one of the most generous in the country
- Experience: 2 years (bachelor’s pathway) or 1 year (master’s or 150-hour pathway), in accounting, attest, tax, advisory, or consulting
- Ethics: Pass an AICPA Professional Ethics exam designated by the Board with a passing score as required by the Board
- International candidates: No residency or citizenship required; SSN or Green Card required to sit for the exam; lawful US presence required for licensure
- Licensure and CPE: Apply to the South Carolina Board of Accountancy, then renew annually by 1 February with 40 CPE hours per calendar year
Two licensure pathways are live from 30 June 2025 (Senate Bill 176): South Carolina now offers a bachelor’s degree route alongside the existing master’s or 150-hour pathway.
Candidates with a bachelor’s degree and the required accounting and business coursework can qualify for a CPA license with two years of experience – without completing 150 semester hours. The legislation also extended the CPA Exam credit window from 18 months to 36 months for all South Carolina candidates.
The sections below cover education, the exam itself, experience, ethics, international candidates, ongoing CPE, and answers to frequently asked questions in detail.
South Carolina CPA requirements: quick summary
| CPA requirement | South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Hours to sit for exam | 120 hours (24 upper-level accounting + 24 business) |
| Hours to license | Pathway 1: bachelor’s degree; Pathway 2: master’s degree or 150 hours |
| CPA exam | Pass all 4 sections (AUD, FAR, REG + 1 discipline) |
| Work experience | 2 years (Pathway 1) or 1 year (Pathway 2) |
| Ethics requirement | AICPA Professional Ethics exam, passing score as designated by the Board |
| Credit window | 36 months, rolling from first passing score release |
| CPE | 40 hours per calendar year, 2 hours ethics minimum |
| Tier system | One-tier |
| International candidates | No residency required; SSN or Green Card required |
South Carolina CPA licenses renew annually by 1 February – not 31 December. The renewal cycle runs from 1 February to 31 January each year. Licenses that are not renewed by 1 February lapse after 16 February and require a reinstatement application at $595.
Build the February deadline firmly into your calendar – the Board sends reminder emails but you are solely responsible for timely renewal.
Jump to: Education | Exam | Experience | Ethics | International candidates | CPE | FAQ
What are the CPA education requirements in South Carolina?
South Carolina uses the same accounting and business coursework requirements for both sitting the exam and obtaining a license – the key difference between the two pathways is the degree level and total hours.
Requirements to sit for the exam
Candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree or higher, or have completed at least 120 semester hours, from a college or university accredited by a body approved by the US Department of Education. The coursework must include:
Accounting – 24 semester hours at junior level or above covering some or all of:
- Financial accounting for business organisations
- Financial statement auditing and attestation services
- Taxation
- Accounting information systems
- Managerial or cost accounting
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Data analytics
- Information systems or technology
- Accounting ethics
- Other areas approved by the Board
Business – 24 semester hours covering some or all of:
- Business law
- Economics
- Management
- Marketing
- Finance
- Business communications
- Statistics and quantitative methods
- Data analytics
- Information systems or technology
- Business ethics
- Other areas approved by the Board
Candidates can apply within 180 days of anticipated graduation, but must have completed all education requirements by the time of application. Correspondence and online courses count when taken at a regionally accredited institution. CPA review courses are not acceptable.
Qualifying experience for licensure cannot begin until a candidate has completed the 24 upper-level accounting hours described above.
Two pathways to license (from 30 June 2025)
| South Carolina licensure | Pathway 1 (from 30 Jun 2025) | Pathway 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Education | Bachelor’s degree with accounting concentration or equivalent | Master’s or higher, OR bachelor’s degree with 150 total semester hours |
| Accounting hours | 24 upper-level accounting hours | 24 upper-level accounting hours |
| Business hours | 24 business hours | 24 business hours |
| Experience | 2 years | 1 year |
Both pathways require the same 24+24 accounting and business coursework, completing the CPA exam, and passing the Board-designated ethics exam. The distinction is degree level and experience duration.
For a full breakdown of total CPA exam costs including study materials and license fees, see our CPA exam cost guide. If you are comparing CPA review courses ahead of sitting, our guide covers all major providers.
Jump to: Education | Exam | Experience | Ethics | International candidates | CPE | FAQ
What are the CPA exam requirements in South Carolina?
South Carolina’s CPA Exam is administered through NASBA’s CPA Examination Services. Candidates apply via the NASBA CPA Portal. A notarisation form must be submitted with every initial exam application – this is required by the South Carolina Board and must be submitted by the candidate to CPAES.
| Detail | South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Education evaluation fee (one-time) | $96.00 |
| Exam application fee per section | $96.00 |
| Exam section fee | $268.59 |
| Total exam fees, 4 sections | $1,554.36 ($364.59 × 4 + $96 eval) |
| NTS validity | 6 months |
| Credit window | 36 months, rolling from first passing score release |
| Residency required | No |
| Minimum age | 18 |
| SSN/Green Card required | Yes |
South Carolina’s 36-month credit window is longer than the 30-month standard used by most states – and was changed from just 18 months by the June 2025 legislation, making it significantly more candidate-friendly. The window begins on the date the first passing score is released. Credit expires section by section for any section passed outside the rolling window.
If you apply for a license more than 3 years after passing all four exam sections, you must document 120 hours of acceptable CPE earned in the 3 years immediately before your application.
For a full breakdown of total CPA exam costs, see our CPA exam cost guide.
What are the CPA experience requirements in South Carolina?
| Detail | South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Pathway 1 (bachelor’s) | 2 years |
| Pathway 2 (master’s or 150 hours) | 1 year |
| Part-time equivalence | 2,000 hours = 1 year |
| Maximum accrual rate | 40 hours per week |
| Acceptable types | Accounting, attestation, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax, or consulting |
| Acceptable settings | Public accounting, government, industry, or academia |
| Verifying licensee | CPA actively licensed in any US state or territory |
| Experience start | Cannot begin until 24 upper-level accounting hours are completed |
Experience may be supervised by a non-licensee, but must be verified by a CPA with direct knowledge of the work, licensed in any US state or territory. Part-time experience counts proportionately at 2,000 hours per year, capped at 40 hours per week.
Candidates whose experience was obtained 7 or more years before submitting their application may need to meet additional Board requirements – contact the South Carolina Board of Accountancy for details if this applies to your situation.
License fees
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Initial license application | $165.00 |
| Annual renewal fee | $95.00 |
| Reinstatement (lapsed license) | $595.00 ($500 reinstatement + $95 renewal) |
What are the CPA ethics requirements in South Carolina?
South Carolina requires a professional ethics exam as a condition of licensure. The Board designates the acceptable ethics exam on its website – the current acceptable exam is the AICPA Professional Ethics Comprehensive Course (for Licensure).
| Detail | South Carolina |
|---|---|
| Exam required | Board-designated ethics exam (currently AICPA Professional Ethics exam) |
| Passing score | As required by the Board – confirm current threshold at llr.sc.gov/acct |
| Verification | Confirmation submitted to the SC Board on completion |
Note that the pre-licensure ethics exam is separate from the ongoing ethics CPE requirement. Once licensed, CPAs must complete 2 hours of ethics CPE each calendar year as part of their annual 40-hour requirement, and 2 of the 6 required ethics hours per 3-year period must be a Board-approved South Carolina Rules and Regulations course.
What are the CPA requirements for international candidates in South Carolina?
| Detail | South Carolina |
|---|---|
| US citizenship required | No |
| Residency required | No |
| SSN or Green Card required for exam | Yes |
| Lawful US presence required for licensure | Yes (SC Code 8-29-10 affidavit) |
| Foreign credential evaluation (exam) | NIES only |
| Foreign credential evaluation (licensure) | NIES or any NACES member |
South Carolina does not require US citizenship or state residency. To sit for the exam, candidates must have either a Social Security Number or a Lawful Permanent Resident Number (Green Card). The Board also allows candidates to test outside the United States, but does not issue licenses to applicants residing in foreign countries.
For the licensure application, South Carolina law (SC Code § 8-29-10) requires all applicants to complete an affidavit of lawful US presence.
For candidates with education completed outside the United States, NASBA International Evaluation Services (NIES) is the only accepted evaluation service for the exam application. For the licensure application, NIES or any member organisation of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) is accepted. All evaluations must be submitted directly from the evaluation service. Coursework completed as part of a Chartered Accountant or similar professional qualification programme is treated as professional training and does not count toward the academic credit requirements.
Jump to: Education | Exam | Experience | Ethics | International candidates | CPE | FAQ
What are the CPE requirements for CPAs in South Carolina?
| CPE requirement | Detail |
|---|---|
| Annual hours required | 40 hours per calendar year (January to December) |
| Ethics minimum per year | 2 hours (part of the 40 annual hours) |
| Ethics over 3-year period | 6 hours, of which 2 must be SC Rules and Regulations course |
| Carryover | Up to 20 hours per year (ethics CPE cannot be carried over) |
| CPE documentation | NASBA CPE Audit Service (mandatory from 2025 calendar year) |
| Report deadline | 1 February annually |
| First year exemption | New licensees never previously licensed in another state are exempt from CPE in their first licensing period |
| Records retention | 5 years |
| License renewal cycle | Annual, 1 February to 31 January |
| Renewal fee | $95.00 |
| Lapse date | After 16 February |
| Reinstatement fee | $595.00 |
South Carolina CPAs must submit CPE documentation via the NASBA CPE Audit Service from the 2025 calendar year onwards – this is now a mandatory step in the renewal process rather than an optional tracking tool. The service shows compliance status and no further documentation is required unless the Board notifies you of a deficiency or selects you for a CPE audit.
Non-resident South Carolina licensees whose principal place of business is in another state may use that state’s ethics CPE course to satisfy South Carolina’s ethics requirement, provided that state requires an ethics course and the licensee holds an active license there. Retired licensees may meet the CPE requirement by completing 20 hours rather than 40.
FAQs
Yes, since 30 June 2025. Under Pathway 1 introduced by Senate Bill 176, candidates with a bachelor’s degree and the required accounting and business coursework can qualify with two years of experience – without completing 150 semester hours.
The existing 150-hour route (Pathway 2) continues unchanged alongside the new option, requiring only one year of experience. Both pathways require the same 24 upper-level accounting hours and 24 business hours.
Most candidates take 4 to 6 years in total: 4 years for a bachelor’s degree, 6 to 18 months to pass all four exam sections within South Carolina’s generous 36-month window, and 1 or 2 years of qualifying experience depending on the pathway.
The ethics exam adds a short step before the license application. South Carolina’s 36-month credit window – extended from just 18 months in June 2025 – gives candidates more flexibility than most states to complete all four sections.
Yes – South Carolina offers reciprocal licensure to CPAs already holding an active license in another US state. The reciprocal fee is $150.
Out-of-state CPAs can also practice in South Carolina under mobility rules without a separate South Carolina license, provided they hold an active license in good standing from a substantially equivalent state. Use the NASBA Mobility Tool to confirm your mobility eligibility before providing services in South Carolina.
South Carolina CPA salaries are driven by growth in the Charlotte metropolitan spillover market, Columbia’s government and financial services sector, and the rapidly expanding Charleston area which has attracted significant corporate investment in recent years.
While overall compensation sits below major coastal markets, South Carolina’s lower cost of living and no income tax on Social Security income make the real-world compensation competitive. For detailed salary benchmarks by experience level and sector, see our CPA salary guide.
No. South Carolina does not require US citizenship or state residency. To sit for the exam, you need either a Social Security Number or a Green Card. For the license application, you must complete a lawful US presence affidavit under SC Code § 8-29-10 in addition to providing your SSN.
Foreign-educated candidates must have their credentials evaluated by NIES for the exam application and by NIES or a NACES member organisation for licensure.
Yes, in most cases. South Carolina is recognised as substantially equivalent under NASBA’s mobility framework, meaning a South Carolina CPA in good standing can generally practice in other states without a separate license, provided South Carolina remains their principal place of business.
Candidates who license under Pathway 1 (bachelor’s degree only) should verify education requirements with target states before providing services there. Use the NASBA Mobility Tool to check specific states.
For the most current requirements and application forms, visit the South Carolina Board of Accountancy.
Related Guides