Michigan CPA requirements
Michigan lets you sit for the exam at 120 credit hours, but you still need 150 hours and at least 2 before the board will license you.
Education
You need a bachelor’s degree or higher and 150 total semester hours to be licensed in Michigan. You can sit for the exam earlier, at 120 hours.
| Requirement | Michigan | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total semester hours | 150 | Required to be licensed; 120 to sit |
| Upper-level accounting | 24 semester hours, covering accounting information systems, auditing, cost/managerial accounting, financial accounting, governmental accounting, and taxation | |
| Upper-level business | 24 semester hours of general business coursework | |
| Degree level | Bachelor’s minimum | Regionally accredited institution |
Community college credits generally count toward the total but not toward the upper-level accounting requirement. Get a transcript evaluation from the board before you pay for extra coursework.
Foreign-educated candidates
Foreign-educated candidates need a course-by-course evaluation from a NACES-member service or NASBA International Evaluation Services, sent directly to the board. Coursework from a Chartered Accountant program alone doesn’t count — only accredited academic coursework does.
Sitting versus licensing
Michigan is one of the states that has adopted the newer 120-hour pathway: you can sit for the exam well before you finish your degree’s final 30 hours, then complete the rest while you work toward licensure. That timing flexibility is real, but don’t mistake “eligible to sit” for “eligible to be licensed” — plenty of candidates finish all four sections and then wait months to hit the full 150-hour threshold.
Plan the extra hours into your degree rather than bolting them on afterwards. A fifth-year master's or an integrated program is almost always cheaper than taking individual courses later, and it keeps you eligible for student course pricing.
Experience
At least 2,000 hours of qualifying experience, completed over 1 to 5 years and verified by a licensed, active CPA.
The experience can typically be earned before, during, or after you pass the exam sections. Your supervisor submits the verification directly to the board, so keep the relationship intact — chasing a signature from a former manager years later is the most common avoidable delay at this stage.
Ethics
Michigan does not require a separate ethics exam. Ongoing CE requires 4 hours of professional ethics every 2-year renewal cycle, at least 1 hour of which must specifically be a Michigan-approved ethics course.
How to apply, step by step
The order matters less than it looks — experience and exam sections can overlap — but this is the sequence that avoids the most common delays.
At least 120 semester hours, including the required upper-level coursework, to sit.
Have your school send official transcripts directly to Michigan State Board of Accountancy (LARA Bureau of Professional Licensing). Unofficial or self-submitted transcripts are not accepted.
Filed with Michigan State Board of Accountancy (LARA Bureau of Professional Licensing) along with the application fee. This is the board's first review of your eligibility.
Once the board approves your application, it notifies NASBA, which issues your Authorization to Test (ATT).
NASBA issues one NTS per section you've paid for. Schedule promptly — an expired NTS means paying the exam fee again.
Schedule at a Prometric test center. All four sections must be passed within a rolling 30-month window that starts when you pass your first section.
At least 2,000 hours of qualifying experience, completed over 1 to 5 years and verified by a licensed, active CPA. This can run before, during, or after your exam sections.
Michigan does not require a separate ethics exam. Ongoing CE requires 4 hours of professional ethics every 2-year renewal cycle, at least 1 hour of which must specifically be a Michigan-approved ethics course.
With your experience verification and ethics requirement on file, submit the final application and initial license fee.
Fees
| Fee | Amount | When |
|---|---|---|
| Application | $300 (combined application and 2-year license fee) | Before anything else |
| Exam fee, per section | $268.59 | Paid to NASBA (national rate) |
| Initial license | Included in the $300 combined application fee | On approval |
| Renewal | $200 every 2 years | Ongoing |
After you’re licensed: staying current
Getting licensed is not the end of the paperwork. Michigan requires ongoing continuing professional education to keep your license active, and it is easy to lose track of once you’re working full time.
40 hours of CE per year (80 hours over the 2-year renewal cycle), including at least 8 hours per year in auditing and accounting and 2 hours per year in ethics. New licensees are exempt for their first 12 months.
What changed recently
A bill (HB 4893) that would add a bachelor’s-degree-plus-2-years-experience licensure pathway alongside the existing 150-hour route passed the Michigan House 93-9 in November 2025, but remains stuck in a Senate committee as of this writing, with no Senate vote or governor’s signature yet. Until it passes, Michigan’s 120-to-sit/150-to-license structure remains unchanged.
Most states have also aligned their credit window with the national thirty-month rule, which gives candidates six more months than the old eighteen-month window to finish all four sections. If you were planning around the old rule, replan.
Common questions
Can I sit in Michigan if I studied out of state?
Usually yes — most states, including Michigan, don’t require residency to sit for the exam. Your transcripts still have to satisfy the upper-level accounting and business hours, which is where out-of-state applicants most often fall short.
Do online courses count toward the credit hours?
They typically do, provided the institution is accredited and the course is genuinely upper-level. Get it confirmed in writing by the board before enrolling — this is one of the most expensive assumptions candidates make.
Do I need to be a US citizen or a resident of Michigan?
No residency or citizenship requirement to sit for the exam. A Social Security Number is required at the licensure stage, with an exemption affidavit available for those legally exempt from having one.
What happens right after I pass all four sections?
Passing the exam doesn’t license you on its own. You still need your experience requirement on file and the ethics requirement satisfied before you can submit a license application. You may be able to complete the experience requirement in parallel with the exam, so there’s often little or no extra wait.
Should I license in a state with easier rules instead?
Rarely worth it. Mobility means a license from another state generally lets you practice in Michigan, but if you live and work here you will eventually want a local license anyway, and transferring adds cost and paperwork.
Is there anything unusual about Michigan's process?
Michigan distinguishes a CPA “license” (full practice rights) from a CPA “registration” (title use only), with separate application types. A reform bill adding a 120-hour full-licensure pathway has already cleared the House and is awaiting Senate action — worth watching for a status change.
Next step
Michigan State Board of Accountancy (LARA Bureau of Professional Licensing) — PO Box 30670, Lansing, MI 48909 — (517) 241-7500.
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