Georgia CPA CPE Requirements (2026): 80 Hours Every 2 Years
Requirements Overview
Georgia requires licensed CPAs to earn 80 hours of continuing professional education every two years. The biennial period runs January 1 through December 31 of odd-numbered years, with a minimum of 20 hours required each calendar year. At least 40 of the 80 hours must be in technical fields.
The ethics mandate is 4 hours per cycle, with at least 1 hour covering Georgia Board laws, rules, and policies. Technical fields include accounting, auditing, taxation, business law, economics, finance, IT, management services, and statistics, among others.
Georgia allows up to 15 excess credits to carry forward to the next renewal period, though carried credits cannot satisfy ethics, technical subject, or yearly minimum requirements. Licensees aged 70 or older are fully exempt from CPE. Non-compliance results in license expiration, and reinstatement is at the Board's discretion.
Mandatory Topics
| Topic | Hours | Frequency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ethics | 4 | Every renewal | 4 ethics credits required per biennial reporting period, including 1 credit specific to Georgia Board laws, rules, and policies. |
| Georgia-Specific Ethics | 1 | Every renewal | 1 credit of the 4 ethics credits must be specific to Georgia Board laws, rules, and policies. This is a subset of the 4-hour ethics requirement, not additional hours. |
First Renewal vs. Standard Renewal
Exemptions
- Age 70+ Exemption — Any licensee who has attained 70 years of age is exempt from the continuing professional education requirement.
- Non-Resident Reciprocity — May meet Georgia CPE requirements via Principal Place of Business state's requirements.Must maintain compliance with principal place of business state requirements
How You Can Complete Your CE
Georgia CPE Rules & Limits
Details specific to Georgia that generic CE guides tend to miss:
- Annual minimum — at least 20 hours must be completed each year of the cycle, not just by the renewal deadline.
- Carry-over — Maximum 15 credits may be carried forward to the next renewal period. Carried credits cannot be used to satisfy ethics, technical subject, or yearly minimum requirements. Excess credits beyond 15 cannot be carried forward.
- At least 50% (40 credits) of total CPE must be in technical fields of study.
- Technical fields: Accounting, Government Accounting, Auditing, Government Auditing, Business Law, Economics, Finance, IT, Management Services, Regulatory Ethics, Specialized Knowledge, Statistics, Taxes.
- Authored published material capped at 50% of total.
- Instructed credit capped at 50% of total.
- CPE Technical Reviewer capped at 50% of total.
- Committee/Technical Meetings limited to 25% (if Technical Committee work).
- Practice review credits not accepted.
- College/university courses not accepted for basic/introductory accounting or CPA exam prep.
- Self-study credit: 0.5 initially, then 0.2/0.5 increments.
- Group study/blended learning: 0.2 and 0.5 increments after first hour.
- Nano Learning: 0.2 from first credit.
- Records must be retained for 5 years.
- Non-compliance results in license expiration; reinstatement is discretionary.
- Renewal on December 31 of odd-numbered years.
Provider Requirements
The Board does not pre-approve providers or courses. Licensees and providers share responsibility for verifying compliance with Board Rules Chapter 20-11. Georgia accepts credits from NASBA National Registry sponsors.
Tips for Georgia CPAs
- Georgia is one of few states offering a carry-over benefit — up to 15 hours can roll forward, but they cannot count toward ethics or the 20-hour annual minimum.
- Make sure 1 of your 4 ethics hours specifically covers Georgia Board laws and policies. Generic ethics courses alone will not satisfy this requirement.
- CPAs aged 70 or older qualify for a full CPE exemption. Apply through the Board before your renewal deadline.
- Retain CPE records for 5 years. Non-compliance leads to license expiration with discretionary reinstatement.
Sources
Each figure on this page is taken directly from the Georgia State Board of Accountancy's official rules and continuing-education sources and recorded with the exact source excerpt. Last verified Mar 2026. Read how we compile and verify this data.