What is the ethics CPE requirement for New York CPAs?

New York CPAs must complete 4 hours of ethics CPE during each 3-year triennial period. The ethics course must be approved by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) and cover ethical obligations under New York law. These 4 ethics hours count toward the annual 40-hour (or 24-hour concentrated) CPE total in the calendar year they are completed. CPAs should ensure their ethics provider is NYSED-approved or listed on the NYSSCPA's approved provider list.

What is the attest CPE requirement for New York CPAs?

New York CPAs who supervise attest engagements or who sign attest reports must complete at least 40 contact hours of CPE in accounting, auditing, or attest subjects during the 3 calendar years preceding the date on which the attest service is performed. This 3-year lookback rule means attest CPAs need to maintain a rolling 40-hour A&A concentration — not just in a single year. This is an additional subject-concentration requirement layered on top of the annual CPE total.

Can New York CPAs carry over unused CPE credits?

No. New York does not allow CPE credit carryover. All credits earned between January 1 and December 31 must be used within that calendar year. Credits completed in December cannot be applied to the following year's requirement. This makes the December 31 deadline firm and non-negotiable — CPAs who fall short have no mechanism to retroactively satisfy the annual requirement by banking prior-year credits.

What subject areas qualify for CPE credit in New York?

NYSED recognizes the following CPE subject areas for New York CPAs: accounting, auditing, taxation, advisory services, financial planning, management, specialized knowledge and applications, and computer science. For the 24-hour concentrated option, all 24 hours must fall within a single subject area. For the 40-hour option, courses may span any combination of recognized areas. Ethics credits fall within advisory services or a specific ethics category. All providers must be NASBA-registered or NYSED-approved.

Does New York have an annual CPE minimum separate from the 40-hour total?

New York's CPE requirement is itself annual — either 40 hours (general) or 24 hours (concentrated) must be completed every calendar year by December 31. There is no separate 'minimum' floor below the annual total, but the no-carryover rule means each year stands alone. A CPA who completes 80 hours in one year does not get credit for the following year — they must still complete their full annual requirement the next year.

How does New York CPA license renewal relate to CPE?

New York CPA licenses renew on a triennial (3-year) cycle. Licenses issued on or after January 1, 1993 expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month every 3 years. Licenses issued before January 1, 1993 expire based on the original issue date cycle. While the license renews triennially, CPE must be completed annually by December 31 of each calendar year — the annual CPE requirement does not pause during renewal cycles. NYSED may audit CPE compliance at any time.

What CPE providers are approved for New York CPAs?

New York CPAs may take CPE from: NASBA National Registry of CPE Sponsors, AICPA learning programs, NYSSCPA (New York State Society of CPAs) courses, university accredited programs for academic credit, and employer-sponsored in-house programs meeting NASBA standards. Self-study programs (online, webcasts, on-demand) must be interactive to receive full credit. New York does not maintain its own state approval list separate from NASBA — verify your provider at nasbaregistry.org before enrolling.

Is there a limit on self-study CPE credits in New York?

New York does not publish a hard cap on self-study (non-interactive) CPE credits, but NYSED requires that CPE programs be formally structured and contribute to professional competence. Interactive self-study and webcast programs that include testing components are fully accepted. CPAs relying heavily on self-study should ensure programs are NASBA-accredited and include assessments — passive video consumption without assessment mechanisms may not qualify.

What are the CPE record-keeping requirements for New York CPAs?

New York CPAs must retain CPE records for a minimum of 4 years following the completion of the CPE. Records should include: program title and description, sponsoring organization, dates of participation, location (or online format), number of CPE hours claimed, and certificates of completion or attendance. NYSED may select licensees for CPE audits — failure to produce records during an audit can result in compliance findings even if the CPE was completed.

What happens if a New York CPA fails to meet CPE requirements?

Failure to meet the annual CPE requirement can result in license non-renewal or suspension. New York CPAs who cannot demonstrate compliance during a NYSED CPE audit may be required to make up the deficiency, pay a fine, or face disciplinary proceedings. Because the deadline is December 31 with no carryover, CPAs who fail a given year cannot retroactively satisfy the requirement — they must demonstrate future compliance and may be subject to retroactive scrutiny.

New York CPA CPE Requirements — December 31 Annual Deadline

Q: How many CPE hours do New York CPAs need per year?

New York CPAs must complete either 40 contact hours of CPE per calendar year if taking courses across multiple subject areas, OR 24 contact hours if all courses are concentrated in a single recognized subject area (such as accounting, auditing, or taxation). The CPE year runs January 1 through December 31. Credits cannot be carried forward from one year to the next — unused hours expire on December 31.

Q: What is the CPE deadline for New York CPAs?

The CPE deadline for New York CPAs is December 31 of each calendar year. New York has a strict annual CPE cycle: all required hours must be completed between January 1 and December 31, and no credits may be transferred to the following year. This annual December 31 deadline is separate from the triennial license renewal date, which is based on the licensee's birth month or original license date.

New York CPE At-a-Glance

Annual Hours (General)

40

Multiple subject areas

Annual Hours (Concentrated)

24

Single subject area only

Ethics (per 3-year period)

4 hrs

NYSED-approved courses

Annual Deadline

Dec 31

No carryover to next year

License Renewal

Triennial

Birth-month based

Attest Rule

40 hrs A&A

Per rolling 3-year window

No carryover rule: CPE hours completed in one calendar year cannot be applied to any subsequent year. A CPA who completes 60 hours in 2025 still needs to complete 40 hours (or 24 concentrated) in 2026. Plan early — December is a common pinch point.

Annual CPE Requirements: The Two Options

New York gives CPAs a choice each year between two CPE structures:

Option 1: 40 Hours — General Mix

Complete 40 contact hours of acceptable formal CPE across any combination of NYSED-recognized subject areas. This is the default option for most CPAs with a varied practice. Hours can be spread across accounting, auditing, taxation, advisory services, computer science, and more.

Option 2: 24 Hours — Concentrated in One Area

Complete 24 contact hours all within a single recognized subject area (e.g., all taxation, all auditing, all accounting). This option is valuable for specialists — tax-only practitioners or audit-only CPAs who want fewer total hours at the cost of strict subject discipline. If you mix subject areas even slightly, you fall under Option 1 and need the full 40 hours.

Subject areas recognized by NYSED: Accounting, Auditing, Taxation, Advisory Services, Financial Planning, Management, Specialized Knowledge and Applications, and Computer Science. Ethics falls under Advisory Services or a dedicated ethics category depending on course content.

Option	Hours Required	Subject Constraint	Best For
General	40	Any recognized subject area	Broad-practice CPAs
Concentrated	24	One subject area only	Tax specialists, audit-only CPAs

Ethics CPE Requirement

New York CPAs must complete 4 hours of ethics CPE per triennial period (every 3 years). The ethics course must be approved by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) and address ethical obligations applicable to CPAs practicing in New York.

Key Ethics Rules

4 hours per 3-year license period — not 4 hours per year
Ethics hours count toward your annual total in the year completed (not in addition to it)
Must be NYSED-approved — not all generic "ethics" courses qualify
NYSSCPA (New York State Society of CPAs) offers NYSED-approved ethics programs
Plan ethics timing to align with a year where 4 extra hours helps meet the annual total

Timing tip: Complete your ethics requirement in years when you're short on other CPE. The 4 hours count toward your 40 (or 24) annual total, making it a strategic credit in leaner CPE years.

Attest Supervisor Rule

New York has a specific CPE concentration rule for CPAs who perform attest work — one of the most important rules and one that's frequently missed by CPAs who shift into attest practice.

Who the Attest Rule Applies To

The rule applies to any CPA who:

Supervises attest engagements (audits, reviews, compilations requiring CPA sign-off), or
Signs attest reports on behalf of a licensed CPA firm

What the Rule Requires

Attest CPAs must complete at least 40 contact hours of CPE in accounting, auditing, or attest subjects during the 3 calendar years preceding the date on which the attest service is performed. This is a rolling 3-year lookback, not a 3-year renewal cycle.

Example: A CPA signs an audit report on March 15, 2026. NYSED would look back at January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2025. The CPA must have completed ≥40 hours of A&A CPE during that period. A gap in any of those years could cause a compliance shortfall even if general CPE requirements were met.

Approved Subject Areas for the Attest Rule

Accounting (GAAP, ASC updates, IFRS)
Auditing (SAS, SSARS, PCAOB, government auditing)
Attest engagements (reviews, compilations, agreed-upon procedures)

Tax courses, management courses, and technology courses do NOT satisfy the attest concentration requirement.

New York vs. Neighboring States: CPE Comparison

State	Annual Deadline	Total Hours	Cycle	Ethics	Carryover
New York	December 31	40 (or 24 concentrated)	Annual	4 hrs / 3 years	None
New Jersey	December 31	120 hrs / triennial	Triennial	4 hrs / triennial	None
Connecticut	December 31	40 hrs / annual	Annual	2 hrs / annual	None
Pennsylvania	December 31 (odd years)	80 hrs / biennial	Biennial	4 hrs / biennial	Some
Ohio	December 31	120 hrs / triennial	Triennial	3 hrs PSR / triennial	None
Virginia	December 31	120 hrs / triennial	Triennial	2 hrs / triennial	None

NY stands out for its strict no-carryover annual rule and the dual-option structure (40 general vs. 24 concentrated). Most other December 31 states use a triennial or biennial pool — NY CPAs must hit their target every single year.

Approved CPE Providers for New York CPAs

New York accepts CPE from the following categories of providers:

NASBA National Registry of CPE Sponsors

The most common and reliable source. Search providers at nasbaregistry.org. Any NASBA-registered sponsor in good standing qualifies for NY credit. This includes major providers like Becker, Surgent, Western CPE, CPE Inc., and hundreds of others.

NYSSCPA Programs

The New York State Society of CPAs offers extensive in-person and on-demand courses that are NYSED-recognized by default. NYSSCPA programs include ethics, technical accounting, and attest-specific content ideal for meeting the attest concentration rule.

AICPA Learning

AICPA courses qualify for NY CPE credit. AICPA self-study programs must include post-course assessments to receive CPE credit.

University Academic Courses

Graduate-level accounting, law, or business courses at accredited universities qualify. Typically 1 semester credit hour = 15 CPE hours. Pass/fail courses that grant academic credit qualify; auditing courses without credit do not.

Employer In-House Programs

Formal employer training programs may qualify if they meet NASBA standards: written learning objectives, qualified instructors, documented attendance, and post-program assessment where appropriate. Informal staff meetings and project debriefs do not qualify.

Verify before you enroll: New York does not maintain a parallel state-specific approval list — NASBA registration is the standard. Non-NASBA providers (including some webinar platforms and employer coaching programs) may not qualify. Check nasbaregistry.org first.

License Renewal vs. Annual CPE — Understanding Both Cycles

New York CPAs operate under two distinct cycles that are often confused:

Annual CPE Cycle (January 1 – December 31)

Every calendar year, regardless of license status, a NY CPA must complete their annual CPE by December 31. No carryover. No exceptions. The year ends, the clock resets, and a new year's CPE requirement starts January 1.

Triennial License Renewal Cycle

NY CPA licenses renew every 3 years. If licensed on or after January 1, 1993, your license expires on the last day of your birth month every 3 years. If licensed before 1993, your expiration is tied to the original license cycle. License renewal through NYSED requires demonstrating CPE compliance for the prior year(s). You must have met each annual CPE requirement — the triennial renewal does not average or pool the 3 years.

Practical impact: A CPA whose license expires in May 2027 (birth month = May) must show CPE compliance for 2024, 2025, and 2026. If they missed the December 31, 2025 deadline, they have a compliance gap even if 2024 and 2026 were fine. Each year is standalone.

CPE Timeline: A Year in the Life of a New York CPA

January — Reset and plan

New year, new CPE cycle. Review your triennial period to see if ethics is due this year. If you're an attest supervisor, check your 3-year lookback window. Plan your 40 hours (or 24 concentrated) across the year to avoid a December crunch.

January–October — Steady accumulation

Complete CPE throughout the year. Aim for at least 10 hours per quarter for the 40-hour track. Log each course immediately after completion. Retain certificates. Use a tracker or spreadsheet — NYSED audits can come at any time, including years after the fact.

November — Gap audit

With 2 months left, audit your CPE log. How many hours remain? Do you have your ethics hours covered for the triennial period? Are attest A&A hours on track? Now is the time to schedule final courses — not December.

December — Finish, don't scramble

Complete any remaining hours before December 25. Many CPE providers pause operations over the holiday break. Live webinars and scheduled courses may not be available in the final week of December. CPE completed on December 31 counts — but December 30 is safer.

December 31 — Hard deadline

All CPE must be completed by end of December 31. Anything not completed by midnight does not count for this year and cannot be carried forward. Verify your total, confirm your certificates are saved, and archive the year's records. Retention required for 4 years.

Record-Keeping Requirements

NYSED requires NY CPAs to retain CPE records for a minimum of 4 years from the date of completion. A CPE audit can occur at any point during or after the annual cycle.

What records to keep

Program title and sponsoring organization
Program description and learning objectives
Dates of attendance or completion
Format (live, self-study, webcast, in-person)
Number of CPE hours claimed
Certificate of completion or attendance record
For self-study: proof of assessment passing score

Best practice: Keep a master CPE log with one row per course and attach digital copies of all certificates. Store in a cloud folder labeled by year (e.g., "CPE Records — 2026"). This takes 2 minutes per course and prevents hours of reconstruction during an audit.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many CPE hours do New York CPAs need per year?

New York CPAs must complete either 40 contact hours per year (general, across any subject areas) or 24 contact hours per year (concentrated entirely in one subject area). The choice applies independently each year. Credits cannot be carried from one year to the next.

What is the CPE deadline for New York CPAs?

December 31 of each calendar year. This is a strict annual deadline — all CPE must be completed between January 1 and December 31. No extensions are available. The annual CPE deadline is separate from the triennial license renewal date, which varies by birth month.

Can I carry over unused CPE credits in New York?

No. New York has a strict no-carryover rule. Any credits completed in a given year must be used for that year's requirement. Excess credits expire on December 31 and cannot be applied to the following year.

What is New York's ethics CPE requirement?

4 hours of NYSED-approved ethics CPE per triennial (3-year) period. These 4 hours count toward your annual CPE total in the year they are completed. The ethics requirement is tied to your triennial license cycle, not the annual CPE cycle.

What is the attest supervisor rule in New York?

CPAs who supervise or sign attest engagements must have completed at least 40 hours of CPE in accounting, auditing, or attest subjects during the 3 calendar years preceding the attest service date. This rolling 3-year lookback requirement is tracked separately from the annual general CPE requirement.

Does the 24-hour concentrated option really only require 24 hours?

Yes — but with strict discipline. All 24 hours must be in a single NYSED-recognized subject area (e.g., all taxation, all auditing). If you complete even one course in a different subject area, you fall under the 40-hour general track. Tax specialists and audit-only CPAs benefit most from this option.

How does New York license renewal relate to annual CPE?

New York CPA licenses renew triennially (every 3 years) on the last day of your birth month. During renewal, NYSED requires evidence of CPE compliance for each year in the renewal period. A single year of non-compliance (e.g., missing 2025's December 31 deadline) creates a gap that cannot be cured by over-completing CPE in other years.

Which CPE providers are approved for New York?

NASBA National Registry of CPE Sponsors, NYSSCPA programs, AICPA learning programs, accredited university courses for academic credit, and NASBA-compliant employer in-house programs. Verify at nasbaregistry.org before enrolling.

How long must New York CPAs keep CPE records?

NYSED requires retention of CPE records for a minimum of 4 years from completion. Keep certificates of completion, program descriptions, and attendance records in a secure, accessible location.

What happens if a New York CPA misses the December 31 CPE deadline?

Missing the annual CPE requirement can result in inability to renew the CPA license, potential license suspension, and disciplinary action. Because there is no carryover and no retroactive cure, a missed year creates a permanent compliance gap that NYSED may discover during triennial renewal or a CPE audit. CPAs in this situation should contact NYSED directly to understand remediation options.