Minnesota operates a rolling three-year CPE system. CPAs complete 120 hours over any three-year period with a minimum of 20 hours annually. The state enforces annual reporting by December 31, even though licenses renew yearly. Think of it as continuous compliance rather than fixed cycles.
General requirements
The rolling three-year requirement means that at any point when the Board reviews your CPE, you must have completed 120 hours during the preceding three years.
Each fiscal year runs from July 1 through June 30. You must complete a minimum of 20 hours per fiscal year. CPE earned during that window must be reported by December 31.
Subject area requirements
A minimum of 60 hours must come from technical learning activities. Minnesota uses the NASBA Fields of Study (January 2024 Revision) to define technical subjects:
Accounting • Governmental Accounting • Auditing • Governmental Auditing • Business Law • Economics • Finance • Information Technology • Management Services • Regulatory Ethics • Specialized Knowledge • Statistics • Taxes
The remaining 60 hours may come from any qualifying CPE that maintains or improves your professional competence.
Ethics requirements
Minnesota requires 8 hours of ethics over the rolling three-year period. The Board accepts both regulatory (technical) ethics and behavioral (non-technical) ethics. License holders may mix these or complete all hours in one category.
Credit limitations
Minnesota enforces specific caps and minimums during each three-year rolling period:
- Instruction: Maximum 60 hours for presenting or instructing qualifying courses. First-time presenters earn actual preparation time up to two times participant credit hours, plus presentation credit.
- Published materials: Maximum 60 hours for authoring articles, books, or CPE courses for publication, or for content review. Work must be formally reviewed by an independent party. Credit applies only upon publication. You cannot claim credit for both authoring and presenting the same program.
- Group or blended study: Minimum 24 hours must come from attending group or blended learning programs.
- Self-study repeats: The identical self-study course cannot be retaken for credit within the same one-year CPE period.
Approved providers
A minimum of 72 hours must come from approved providers.
Group programs
The Board automatically accepts group programs from the following sources:
- NASBA Registry of CPE Sponsors
- Office of the Legislative Auditor or State Auditor (with peer review completed in the last three years and an unmodified report filed with the Board)
- CPA firms with system review level peer review completed in the last three years and an unmodified report filed with the Board
- Colleges and universities whose academic programs qualify applicants to sit for the CPA exam
- Professional organizations recognized by the Board as Report Acceptance Bodies
- CPE programs sponsored by professional organizations recognized by another state's board of accountancy
Carryover and carryback
Carry forward is not allowed. Minnesota's rolling three-year system makes carryforward unnecessary because excess hours from earlier years automatically count in your three-year total.
Carryback is permitted. License holders may apply hours earned after June 30 to the previous fiscal year by paying CPE noncompliance fees under MN Rules 1105.3000.
Non-resident CPAs
Non-resident licensees with active status meet Minnesota's requirements by completing the CPE requirements of their principal place of business state. However, if the principal state has no CPE requirements, Minnesota's 120-hour rolling requirement applies.
This exemption must be claimed annually by December 31.
Renewal and reporting
All active and inactive CPAs renew yearly by December 31. The license renewal window opens each fall. There is no grace period for unlicensed practice or holding out—licenses expire annually on December 31.
Active licensees must complete required CPE before renewal or status change. The Board processes renewals through its online services system.
Documentation and recordkeeping
License holders must retain CPE coursework documentation for five years following completion of each program. The Board conducts random audits each year, requiring selected CPAs to submit complete CPE records for the previous three-year reporting period.
If deficiencies are identified, the Board may grant additional time to correct the issues or take disciplinary action. Noncompliant licensees may also be required to pay late processing fees under MN Rules 1105.3000 E. Fraudulent reporting may result in disciplinary action.