Overview
Licenses are renewed on a three-year cycle set by the
Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), the licensing body for CPAs in Illinois. The current renewal cycle ends Sept. 30, 2018.
In 2006, it became law that in order for anyone to hold themselves out as a CPA to the public in Illinois, they must have an active license or registration with the IDFPR.
Anyone not having applied for a registration before June 30, 2012 or obtaining the CPA credential after June 30, 2012 is required to obtain a full CPA license, as the Registered CPA category is no longer available for new applicants.
CPA Certification and Licensure Brochure (PDF)
Licensed CPAs
- May use the "CPA" designation
- Can perform accountancy activities
- Must complete 120 hours of CPE every three years (including 4 hours of ethics taken from an approved sponsor)
- Are exempt from the requirement to take an Annual Federal Tax Refresher course to participate in the IRS Annual Filing Season Program.
An individual license and a license for all firms are required. An individual license is all that is required for a sole practitioner, unless the firm name suggests the firm consists of more than one person (such as "and associates" or "and company").
For further information on the use of the CPA (Inactive), Licensed CPA or Registered CPA titles see the Illinois Public Accounting Act FAQs 2013 (PDF).
Registered CPA Designation
The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation stopped accepting new applications for the "Registered CPA" category on June 30, 2012. All active registrations as of that date will be grandfathered and renewable for life.
Registered CPAs have to renew every 3 years with IDFPR in order to stay in compliance. The last renewal cycle ended Sept. 30, 2015, and the next renewal cycle will end Sept. 30, 2018.
Actively Registered CPAs
- May use the "CPA" designation
- Can perform accountancy activities except for attestation services (audits and reviews)
- Do not have a CPE requirement
- Are not exempt from the requirement to take an Annual Federal Tax Refresher course to participate in the IRS Annual Filing Season Program. IRS Letter regarding Registered CPAs