elicpa wrote: help I passed FAR July 1 2008. (JULY 1 - AUG 31ST WINDOW i thought) I passed REG the next window nov 14 NYS has my credit status has far expiring 12/31/09 reg 6/30/10 It looks to me they gave me a 15 month window for far? isnt the clock for far supposed to start 9/30/09 so it expires 3/31/10? I am on the phone with nys tommorow. Yes I just noticed it now, freaking out i have to pass auditing by nov window

My understanding is, it is 18 months from DATE you took the first exam & passed. That is why the review courses tell you not to wait for the results to start studing the next section so you don't run out of time.

I myself will have taken 2 sections and start studing my 3rd section before I get the results of my first test.

Hi everyone,

Just became a member of this forum and it is a great place. Tons of useful information for CPA candidates. Sorry if this is a repost. I found a similar topic but wasn't sure about the answer and just wanted to double check.

I have a question for the CPA Exam Credit validity requirements and need your help desperately. As you know most of the states impose a 18 month window to pass all four exam sections. On the Nasba websites of the states this is stated as follows:

“Credit for any section(s) passed shall be valid for eighteen (18) months from the actual date the examination section(s) was taken.
Candidates are required to pass all four sections of the examination within a rolling eighteen (18) month period, which begins on the date the first examination section passed was taken”

The beginning of the 18 month period is clearly stated above, however my question is about the ending date.  When is the ending of this 18 month period?  Is it the day on which the last exam section passed was taken? (Regardless of date of score notification to the candidate or the date of application for licensing?).

For illustration purposes if we assume the relevant dates for the candidate are as follows:

(1)   Date the first exam section passed: 2 January 2009

(2)   Date the last exam section passed: 1 August 2009

(3)   Date the score for last section was received: 15 October 2009

(4)   Date for application of licensing: 1 November 2009

To rephrase my question above; Is the 18 month period condition is met based on period between dates (1) and (2) above regardless of the dates for score notification (3) or for licensing application (4)? I think it should be based on the date of the exam section taken even if a few more months will pass by the time the candidate will receive his/her score and apply for licensing. But I wanted to be sure.

Sorry for the long post! Many thanks for your help and good luck to everyone!

If I'm reading everything right, I think you're correct.  Forgive me for my equally lengthy response, haha!  (And if I'm wrong, someone please correct me - this is just my understanding of the whole process.)

The 18-month window starts on the date you pass your first exam.  The disadvantage here (and the part that confuses a lot of people, I think) is the time lag between your test date and the date you receive your score. 

Let's say you sit on for FAR on January 2, 2009, like in your example.  You find out your score in wave one - you passed!  In mid-February, immediately after receiving your 75, you'd essentially say to yourself - "Yes, I passed!!  Oh crap, now 1.5 months of my 18 months are gone."

Let's also say that you decide to take the full 18 months to pass each of the four sections.  You take AUD on April 2, 2009 and REG on July 2, 2009.  Congrats!  You passed both on the first try.  You sit for BEC on the absolute last possible day you can in order to prevent FAR from expiring - July 1, 2010.

-Scenario one: you receive your BEC score in wave one - you passed!  All is right in the world.  You passed all four parts within 18 months and you're on your way to becoming a full-blown CPA.  (You're also one lucky SOB for taking such a big risk.)

-Scenario two: you receive your BEC score in wave one - unfortunately, you failed.  Now, not only do you have to retake BEC, but you also have to retake FAR because it has expired.  Essentially, you have to completely ignore the fact that you passed FAR on January 2, 2009.  Your 18 month window now starts on April 2, 2009, which is the day you "passed your first exam" (AUD in this case, not FAR anymore).  You now have until October 2, 2010 to pass both FAR and BEC.

So, in summary, the date you receive each of your scores and the date you apply for your CPA license are meaningless in the context of the dates used to satisfy the 18-month requirement; HOWEVER, the scoring lag makes it essential to plan ahead.  Using our example above, it wouldn't be the smartest thing to wait until July 1, 2010 to take BEC.

I hope this helps. Good luck!!

Thanks for the reply! That was helpful. I know it is risky to wait till the very end of 18 month period but in my case I will have to do it. I passed 3 sections but failed in REG 2 times :(  I wrote the first exam that I passed on 6 April 08. So I have to write REG by latest 6 October (for the last time...)

So I will write REG by October 6 and hopefully I will pass (I dont event want to think otherwise...)

My worries was that by the time I receive my score it will be probably be around late November, which is beyond my 18 month window. But since the date that I sit for the exam is before it expires, I will be OK (provided that I will pass..)