Mobility is a practice privilege that generally permits a licensed CPA in good standing to practice in a state from outside of their principal place of business without obtaining another license, so long as the licensee meets certain state specific conditions.
For state accountancy boards that have adopted the Uniform Accountancy Act § 23 Safe Harbor language for mobility, this will allow those licensees who had practice privileges prior a specific date to proceed to practice, so long as they have a license in good standing and no other state specific restrictions apply. Currently, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin have adopted the UAA Safe Harbor Language for Mobility.
As of July 1, 2009:
Individual Practice Privilege (See Iowa Code § 542.20 and Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039) - An out-of-state CPA who maintains their principal place of business outside of Iowa and holds in good standing a valid, unexpired CPA certificate or license in the jurisdiction of their principal place of business may provide services in Iowa if:
- The licensing standards of the state that issued the applicant's CPA certificate were, at the time of licensure, substantially equivalent to a comparable license issued in Iowa; or
- Effective July 1, 2026, the individual has individual qualifications that are substantially equivalent to Iowa's licensing requirements, which include meeting one (1) of the following licensure pathways:
- The applicant has completed at least a baccalaureate degree with one hundred fifty (150) semester hours, or the trimester or quarter equivalent, of college education, and at least one (1) year of public accounting experience, OR
- The applicant has completed at least a baccalaureate degree with one hundred twenty (120) semester hours, or the trimester or quarter equivalent, of college education, and at least two (2) years of public accounting experience; or
- The individual has completed four (4) years of public accounting experience within the ten (10) years immediately preceding the exercising of the practice privilege, which in the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board's opinion is substantially equivalent to Iowa initial licensure requirements, which include providing any type of service or advice involving the use of accounting, attest, compilation, management advisory, financial advisory, tax, or consulting, as verified by an applicant. The experience may be in government, industry, academia, or public sector.
- Individuals or must be licensed to lawfully perform in its principal place of business all public accounting services offered or rendered under a practice privilege in Iowa.
- Practice privileges extend to authorized CPAs who offer or render professional services, whether by telephone, mail, or electronic means, and no Iowa license, fee, or notice is required.
- Out-of-state individuals holding an inactive or lapsed Iowa CPA certificate, and out-of-state individuals to whom an Iowa CPA certificate has never been issued, may exercise a practice privilege if they hold an active CPA certificate in the jurisdiction in which they maintain their principal place of business and otherwise satisfy all of the conditions described above as per Iowa Code § 542.20 and Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039.
Consent to Jurisdiction for Individual Mobility (See Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039.6(4)) - As a condition of exercising the practice privilege in Iowa, the individual:
- Consents to the personal and subject matter jurisdiction of the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board including, but not limited to, the board's jurisdiction to revoke the practice privilege or otherwise take action for any violation of Iowa statutes or rules;
- Appoints the regulatory body of the state that issued the license in the individual’s principal place of business as the agent upon whom process may be served in any action or proceeding by the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board against the individual;
- Agrees to supply the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board, upon request and without subpoena, such information or records licensees are similarly obligated to provide under Iowa Code § 542, including but not limited to licensure status in all jurisdictions; qualifications for substantial equivalency reciprocity; location of principal place of business and all other offices; criminal and disciplinary background; malpractice settlements and judgments; firm ownership and when applicable, information regarding non-licensee owners; whether public accounting services are subject to peer review; proof of completion of peer review, when applicable; qualifications to supervise attest services, when applicable; and timely response to inquiries regarding complaints and investigations conducted;
- Agrees to promptly cease offering or providing public accounting services in Iowa or for a client with a home office in Iowa if the license in the individual’s principal place of business expires or is otherwise no longer in good standing, or if any of the conditions for exercising the practice privilege are no longer satisfied, or if the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board revokes the practice privilege.
Firm Practice Privilege/Firm Registration Requirement (See Iowa Code § 542.7; § 542.20; and Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1040) - Iowa Practice Privilege applies to CPA firms that are licensed to practice as CPA firms in the jurisdiction in which their principal place of business is located for those periods of time in which all of the following conditions are satisfied:
- The out-of-state license is valid, in good standing, and active. The practice privilege ceases if the out-of-state license expires in the jurisdiction of the firm’s principal place of business.
- The out-of-state license is in conformance with the following requirements pursuant to Iowa Code § 542.20(5)-(6).
- The license authorizes in the firm’s principal place of business all of the public accounting services the firm performs or offers to perform in Iowa or for clients with a home office in Iowa.
- The public accounting services offered in Iowa or for clients with a home office in Iowa that are obligated under Iowa law to be performed by a CPA are performed by a person holding an Iowa certificate, or by a person exercising a practice privilege in Iowa.
- Firm registration requirements may apply:
- Individuals providing audit, review or other attest services in Iowa or for a client with a home office in Iowa must practice through a CPA firm that holds an active Iowa permit to practice, or through an out-of-state CPA firm exercising a practice privilege as long as the out-of-state firm is validly licensed in the state of its principal place of business, complies with Iowa’s statutory practice privilege requirements and associated rules, and complies with Iowa’s peer review and ownership provisions.
- Unless Iowa certification is specifically required by a governmental body or client, individual CPAs performing such attest services through an out-of-state CPA firm may either hold an active Iowa CPA certificate or exercise a practice privilege.
Consent to Jurisdiction for Firm Mobility (See Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1040.6(4)) - As a condition of exercising the practice privilege in Iowa, the firm:
- Consents to the personal and subject matter jurisdiction and regulatory authority of the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board including, but not limited to the board's jurisdiction to revoke the practice privilege or otherwise take action for any violation of Iowa statutes or rules;
- Appoints the regulatory body of the state that issued the license in the firm's principal place of business as the agent upon whom process may be served in any action or proceeding by the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board against the firm;
- Agrees to supply the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board, upon request and without subpoena, such information or records that licensed firms are similarly obligated to provide the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board, including but not limited to licensure status in all jurisdictions; qualifications for substantial equivalency reciprocity; location of principal place of business and all other offices; criminal and disciplinary background; malpractice settlements and judgments; firm ownership and when applicable, information regarding non-licensee owners; whether public accounting services are subject to peer review; proof of completion of peer review, when applicable; qualifications to supervise attest services, when applicable; and timely response to inquiries regarding complaints and investigations conducted.; and
- Agrees to promptly cease offering or providing public accounting services in Iowa or for a client with a home office in Iowa if the license in the firm's principal place of business expires or is otherwise no longer in good standing, or if any of the conditions for exercising the practice privilege are no longer satisfied, or if the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board revoked the practice privilege.
Peer Review Requirement (See Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039.5) - Individuals providing compilation services in Iowa or for a client with a home office in Iowa need to:
- Comply with the peer review provisions of Iowa Code § 542.6(6), including undergoing a peer review no more frequently than once every three (3) years, which shall include verification that such individual has met the competency requirements set out in professional standards for such services pursuant to Iowa Code § 542.7(10)-(12); or
- Provide such services through a CPA or LPA firm, or a substantially equivalent firm that holds a valid license in the firm’s principal place of business and that complies with the peer review and ownership provisions of Iowa Code § 542.7.
Additional Requirements (See Iowa Code § 542.20(6)(c)) - CPAs performing attest services, whether the CPAs are certified in Iowa or exercising a practice privilege, may only do so through a CPA firm that holds a permit to practice in Iowa or through an out-of-state CPA firm exercising a practice privilege in compliance with Iowa Code § 542.20(5)-(6) and associated rules and the peer review and ownership provisions of Iowa Code § 542.7.
Restrictions (See Iowa Code § 542.20(2)-(4) and Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039.4)
Definitions (See Iowa Code § 542.3) - “Attest” or “attest service” means providing any of the following services:
- An audit or other engagement to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS).
- A review of a financial statement to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS).
- Any engagement to be performed in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE).
- Any engagement to be performed in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB).
- “Compilation” means a service performed in accordance with statements on standards for accounting and review services and presented in the form of financial statements, which provides information that is the representation of management without undertaking to express any assurance on the statements.
- “Practice of public accounting” means the performance or the offering to perform, by a person holding oneself out to the public as a CPA, one (1) or more kinds of professional services involving the use of accounting, attest, or auditing skills, including the issuance of reports on financial statements, or of one (1) or more kinds of management advisory, financial advisory, or consulting services, or the preparation of tax returns or the furnishing of advice on tax matters. However, with respect to licensed public accountants, the “practice of public accounting” shall not include attest or auditing services or the rendering of an opinion attesting to the reliability of any representation embracing financial information.
- “Practice privilege” means an authorization to practice public accounting in Iowa or for clients with a home office in Iowa without licensure in Iowa, as provided in Iowa Code § 542.20.
- “Principal place of business” means the primary location from which public accounting services are performed. A person or firm may only have one (1) principal place of business at any one (1) time.
- “Substantial equivalency” is a determination by the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board that the education, exam, and experience requirements contained in the statutes and administrative rules of another jurisdiction are comparable to, or exceed those required by the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board, or that an individual licensee’s education, exam, and experience qualifications are comparable to or exceed those required by the Iowa Accountancy Examining Board.
Statute and/or Regulation References Iowa Admin. Code r. § 481—1039 and § 481—1040
Iowa Code § 542.3; § 542.5; § 542.6; § 542.7; § 542.14; § 542.19; and § 542.20
Two (2)-Tiered States - For mobility purposes, "CPA license" means a CPA license granted by the state board after all education, exam and experience requirements have been met. A CPA performing services through mobility may only perform the same level of services (attest or non-attest) in the mobility jurisdiction as they are permitted to perform in the home jurisdiction. Please note the following if you are coming from one (1) of the jurisdictions listed:
- An Alabama certificate holder, holding other than an active license with a permit to practice, may not hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- A Connecticut certificate holder may not hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- An Illinois certificate or registered certificate holder may not hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- Both a Hawaii CPA license and permit are required in order to hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- A Kansas certificate holder may not hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- Both a Montana CPA certificate and permit are required in order to hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- Both a Nebraska CPA certificate and permit are required in order to hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
- An Oklahoma registrant must hold an active permit In order to hold out or practice as a CPA in a mobility jurisdiction.
Disclaimer: The information contained in NASBA’s Accountancy Licensing Library and CPAmobility.org is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion. The information is based on current state board of accountancy law and rules which are publicly available. Because board law and rules are continuously changing, there may be a slight delay in law or rule effective dates and the information reflected in these websites. NASBA cannot guarantee a mobility outcome based solely on the information contained in these websites, as additional state factors not listed here may be applicable. It is the responsibility of each CPA licensee or permit holder to be knowledgeable of each state board's current laws and rules in the state(s) in which the licensee intends to practice via mobility.
Click Reciprocal Licensure and/or Firm Registration in the menu bar at the top of this page for additional information or if these practice privilege requirements do not apply to you or your firm.
Last update July 28, 2026 |
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