West Virginia CPA CPE Requirements, Explained
Last reviewed June 2026 against the official sources linked below. Requirements change — always confirm with your board before relying on them.
Total hours
120 hrs / rolling 3 years
Annual minimum
20 hours/year
Ethics requirement
4 hrs ethics
Issued by
West Virginia Board of Accountancy
West Virginia uses a rolling three-year total of 120 hours with a 20-hour annual floor, and it renews the license every year on June 30. The word rolling is the catch: the Board always looks back across your most recent three years, so there is no clean reset point to coast from.
CPAs call this CPE (continuing professional education), not CE. Here is what an active West Virginia license actually requires, in plain English.
The base requirement: 120 hours over a rolling three years
The West Virginia Board of Accountancy requires 120 hours of CPE over a rolling three-year period (January 1 to December 31), with a minimum of 20 hours each year. In practice you maintain an average of 40 hours a year, but the 20-hour annual floor means you can never skip a year entirely.
Ethics and provider rules
- 4 hours of ethics are required, and they count within the 120-hour three-year total, not on top of it.
- Acceptable ethics content can cover ethical reasoning, state-specific statutes and rules, and standards of professional conduct, including those of other applicable regulatory bodies.
- Providers offering ethics courses must register with the Board, and CPE sponsors must generally be NASBA-registered or otherwise board-recognized.
- Courses in the principles of accounting do not count for credit, whether for attendance or instruction.
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Start tracking — freeWhen is your deadline?
West Virginia CPA licenses renew annually on June 30, while CPE is measured over the rolling three-year window. That split is the thing to watch: an annual renewal clock sitting on top of a three-year hours total, so the safe approach is keeping both in view at once rather than counting hours only at renewal time.
How CredTally keeps this on autopilot
- Track the rolling three-year 120-hour total and the 20-hour annual minimum side by side, with a dedicated bucket for the 4-hour ethics requirement.
- Store every completion certificate with its course in a private vault, so a Board audit is a one-click export.
- Reminders at 90, 60, 30, and 7 days before your June 30 renewal.
- Hold CPA licenses in more than one state? Each gets its own card, deadline, and progress tracking on a single dashboard.
Frequently asked questions
How many CPE hours does West Virginia require?
120 hours over a rolling three-year period, with a minimum of 20 hours each year.
How much ethics CPE do I need in West Virginia?
4 hours of ethics, which count within the 120-hour three-year total. Ethics providers must be registered with the Board.
When does my West Virginia license renew?
Annually, by June 30, even though CPE hours are counted over a rolling three-year window.
Do principles-of-accounting courses count?
No. Courses in the principles of accounting do not earn CPE credit in West Virginia, whether for attendance or instruction.
Official sources
CredTally is a record-keeping tool and is not affiliated with any licensing board. This guide is general information, not legal or compliance advice.
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