Connecticut CPA CPE Requirements

Connecticut CPAs must complete 40 hours of CPE every year, by June 30, before their license renews on December 31, including 4 hours of professional ethics every three years.

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Connecticut CPE requirements at a glance

Required hours
40 hours
Every year.
Reporting period
One year
Ends June 30, before your license renews on December 31.
Ethics
4 hours
Every three years.
License renewal
Every year
You report each course to the board online.
Self-study
Accepted
Connecticut’s rules set no cap on self-study hours.
Carryover
Up to 20 hours
Up to 20 extra hours can count toward your next period. Carried hours count only in the following CPE year and never toward the 8 attest or compilation hours, and hours over the Board’s yearly instructor or author limits, or hours used to reinstate a license, cannot be carried.

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How many CPE hours do Connecticut CPAs need?

Connecticut counts CPE over the year ending June 30, before your license renews on December 31. Within that period:

In total

40 hours

Over each license year, which ends June 30, before your license renews on December 31.

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Is ethics CPE required in Connecticut?

Yes. Connecticut CPAs must complete 4 hours of professional ethics every three years. Ethics hours also count toward the 40-hour total for the period.

Which ethics courses count?

This Sequoia CPE course meets Connecticut’s 4-hour ethics requirement:

Does your work add CPE requirements in Connecticut?

Some Connecticut CPAs owe additional CPE because of the work they do.

Performing or supervising attest or compilation work?

Connecticut sets a separate requirement for a licensee who performs or is responsible for supervising attest or compilation services, or who signs or authorizes another person to sign reports on financial statements on behalf of the firm.

Such a licensee must earn 8 of the 40 hours each CPE year in the subject area of attest or compilation services; the Board says the course’s field of study must be "Audit," "Attest" or "Compilation." Hours carried over from the previous year do not count toward these 8.

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What subjects qualify for Connecticut CPE?

Courses in any NASBA field of study (the field shown on each course certificate) count toward the 40 hours. These areas have rules of their own:

Attest or compilation services (Audit field of study)

Includes Auditing and Auditing (Governmental)

Ethics

Includes Regulatory Ethics

When is the Connecticut CPE deadline?

Your license expires on December 31 every year. Your CPE is due by June 30, before your license renews on December 31.

  1. The day after your last period ended

    Your CPE year starts

    Hours you complete from this date count toward your next renewal. Up to 20 extra hours can count toward your next period. Carried hours count only in the following CPE year and never toward the 8 attest or compilation hours, and hours over the Board’s yearly instructor or author limits, or hours used to reinstate a license, cannot be carried.

  2. Each June 30

    All 40 hours due

    Finish 40 hours by June 30, before your license renews on December 31. Report each course to the board online before you renew; the board may ask for your certificates.

Newly licensed?

A newly licensed Connecticut CPA owes no CPE for the July 1 to June 30 CPE year during which the license was first issued; the 40 hours apply from the next CPE year. The four-hour ethics requirement must first be met within the three consecutive CPE years after that exempt year.

For example, the Board does not require a 2026 CPE report from a CPA whose initial license was issued between July 1, 2025, and December 31, 2026, but does require one from a CPA first licensed between January 1 and June 30, 2025, who holds an active renewed 2026 license. An applicant for an initial license whose certificate was issued more than four years earlier must show the CPE that would have applied had the license been secured within four years of the certificate.

How Connecticut counts CPE credit

The rules that decide whether — and how much — a course counts.

Connecticut CPA CPE credit rules
RuleWhat Connecticut requires
Credit hourOne credit equals one 50-minute contact hour.
Self-studyAccepted.
Approved sponsorsConnecticut doesn’t register CPE sponsors. Programs must meet the standards in Connecticut’s rules.Sequoia CPE is a NASBA QAS self-study sponsor (sponsor number 121900).
CarryoverUp to 20 extra hours can count toward your next period. Carried hours count only in the following CPE year and never toward the 8 attest or compilation hours, and hours over the Board’s yearly instructor or author limits, or hours used to reinstate a license, cannot be carried.

Keep your certificates for 3 years

You report each course to Connecticut online; your certificates are the evidence if the board checks. Keep each certificate for at least 3 years.

Sequoia issues your certificate the moment you pass, and it stays in your account.

Your records must show

  • Each program completed
  • Number of credits claimed
  • Proof that you satisfactorily completed the program, such as a certificate of completion

Finish your Connecticut CPE with Sequoia CPE.

Self-study courses: learn from a PDF, take the exam online and get your certificate the moment you pass.

Unlimited CPA CPE

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1,000+ hours across accounting, auditing, taxation and business. Ethics sold separately.

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Connecticut Professional Ethics

Meets Connecticut’s 4-hour professional ethics requirement.

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Connecticut CPE questions, answered

How many CPE hours do Connecticut CPAs need?

Connecticut CPAs need 40 CPE hours every year.

When is the Connecticut CPE deadline?

Your license expires on December 31 every year. Connecticut counts CPE over the year ending June 30, before your license renews on December 31. You report each course to the board online, and the board may ask for your certificates.

How many ethics hours do Connecticut CPAs need?

Connecticut CPAs need 4 hours of professional ethics every three years. Ethics hours also count toward the 40-hour total for the period.

Does behavioral ethics count toward Connecticut’s ethics requirement?

Connecticut’s rules don’t say whether behavioral ethics courses meet the ethics requirement, so a regulatory ethics course is the safe choice. Sequoia CPE’s Connecticut ethics courses are regulatory ethics courses and meet the 4-hour requirement.

Do online and self-study CPE courses count in Connecticut?

Yes. Connecticut accepts self-study programs. Connecticut’s rules set no cap on self-study hours. Connecticut doesn’t register CPE sponsors. Programs must meet the standards in Connecticut’s rules.

Can Connecticut CPAs carry extra CPE hours forward?

Yes. Up to 20 extra hours can count toward your next period. Carried hours count only in the following CPE year and never toward the 8 attest or compilation hours, and hours over the Board’s yearly instructor or author limits, or hours used to reinstate a license, cannot be carried.

Do I report my CPE to Connecticut?

Yes. You report each course to the board online, and the board may ask for your certificates. Keep your certificates for at least 3 years.

What CPE do newly licensed Connecticut CPAs need?

A newly licensed Connecticut CPA owes no CPE for the July 1 to June 30 CPE year during which the license was first issued; the 40 hours apply from the next CPE year. The four-hour ethics requirement must first be met within the three consecutive CPE years after that exempt year.

Are there exemptions from Connecticut CPE?

Connecticut’s rules cover four situations: extensions, waivers and late CPE; principal place of business outside Connecticut; certificate registration instead of a license; and reinstating a lapsed license. The details and their conditions are under Exemptions and special circumstances, below.

Exemptions and special circumstances

Extensions, waivers and late CPE

The Board may grant an extension, waiver or adjustment of the CPE requirement for reasons of health certified by a physician, extended active duty in the armed forces, or other good cause acceptable to the Board.

The Board asks that a request reach it before the CPE year ends on June 30, state the CPE completed and the hours still owed, and come with its supporting documentation. A licensee who completes the 40 hours after June 30 is out of compliance and pays a late CPE fee with the renewal: $315 if all of the late hours were earned by September 30, or $625 if any were earned after September 30 and by December 31.

Principal place of business outside Connecticut

A renewal applicant whose principal place of business is outside Connecticut, and who holds an active CPA license in that state, may meet the Connecticut requirement by certifying in writing that he or she has completed that state’s CPE requirements during each year since the Connecticut license was issued or last renewed.

If that state has no CPE requirement for renewal, the licensee must meet all of Connecticut’s CPE requirements.

Certificate registration instead of a license

Only licensed Connecticut CPAs must report CPE. A CPA who holds a certificate registration rather than a license has no continuing education requirement.

A certificate registration allows its holder to use the CPA designation with his or her name on printed materials such as business cards, letterhead and checks, but not to practice as a CPA, so the holder cannot sign any financial documents as a CPA, including tax documents.

Reinstating a lapsed license

A license lapsed 90 days or less is reinstated on an application showing that the applicant meets every renewal requirement, including the CPE for the year immediately before the application. A license lapsed more than 90 days may be reinstated at the Department’s discretion if the application is made within three years after the license expired, with 40 hours of CPE earned in the year immediately before the application; an applicant who practiced public accountancy while the license was lapsed must show the CPE required for each year since the license was issued or last renewed. After a lapse of three years or more, the applicant must apply for a new license.

Hours reported and used to reinstate cannot be used again or carried over. For example, the Board does not require a 2026 CPE report from a licensee whose license was reinstated between January 1, 2026, and December 31, 2026.

Official sources

This page explains Connecticut’s rules in plain language. The Connecticut State Board of Accountancy is the final authority; confirm details for your situation with it.

Connecticut State Board of Accountancy · Hartford, CT · (860) 713-6000

CPE requirements in other states

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