General New Mexico CPA CPE Requirements
CPE is one of the most important requirements for members of the AICPA who are preparing for license renewal. Though because a local Board of Accountancy oversees each state, the actual requirements vary by location. So, the New Mexico CPA CPE requirements aren’t the same as those of other states. As a result, individual CPAs understand the state requirements imposed by their own Board. Otherwise, they might find themselves facing penalties for failure to meet those standards.
Overall New Mexico CPAs must renew their license every three years. And during that time, they must also complete 120 CPE, with a minimum of 20 hours per year. The following table further highlights a few of the primary requirements for licensees in New Mexico.
License Renewal Date | CPE Reporting Period | Total CPE Hours | Self-Study Credit Limitations |
Last day of birth month, annually | First day of month following birth month – last day of birth month (three year rolling period | 120 hours | None |
Subject Area Requirements
During each license renewal period, New Mexico CPAs must take at least 4 hours of Professional Ethics. Of course, these hours count toward the 120-hour total. A further 96 hours must also be in technical subjects such as audit, attestation, financial reporting, tax, management consulting, financial advisory or consulting, and other areas acceptable to the Board. 24 hours of CPE must be sponsored by organizations other than a licensee’s firm or employer.
Credit Limitations and Calculation
CPAs who present in formal settings can claim up to 60 hours of credit (also combined with credit for authorship). Here, instruction credit equals the presentation time plus that of preparation. However, preparation time cannot exceed twice the length of the presentation. Furthermore, repeated instruction is only accepted by the Board if the material has been substantially altered or changed.
Credit can be obtained for authorship, so long as the relevant instructional or educational material has been published. Though a maximum of 60 hours can be obtained through this method (in conjunction with instruction credit).
CPAs in university courses can also claim 15 CPE hours per semester hour or 10 credits per quarter hour. Furthermore, individuals can obtain 1 CPE credit per qualifying classroom hour of a non-credit course.
Attending Board meetings is also an acceptable method for obtaining CPE credit. However, it cannot surpass 4 hours per recertification period.
Peer review is not a Board-approved method for obtaining CPE credit in the state of New Mexico.
However, self-study credit has no stated limitations.
Credit is obtainable in half-credit increments following the completion of the first full hour of CPE.
Exemptions
CPAs offering no services to third parties, also described by the four categories listed below, automatically qualify for exemption. Consequently, they have no CPE requirements:
- Retirees
- Members who are currently unemployed
- Licensees who have opted to temporarily leave the workforce
- Individuals who have formally listed their organizational status as “inactive”
However, active members can also request waivers for CPE exemption due to:
- Health complications
- Active-duty military service
- Extreme natural disaster of a sort which prevents continuing professional education
- Any other similar circumstances
Additional Resources for New Mexico CPA CPE Requirements
Article written by Braden Norwood
Last updated August 19, 2024