Certification Prerequisites
Basic Requirements to Become an FCPA
An individual MUST be a licensed CPA (Certified Public Accountant) or a CA (Chartered Accountant) or another country’s CPA equivalent to be eligible to take our 5-part certification test and receive the FCPA (Forensic Certified Public Accountant) designation.
Exemption: CFF
If an individual is a licensed CPA and a CFF (Certified in Financial Forensics), he or she is exempt from taking the certification exam and can automatically receive their FCPA. Simply print and fill out our application form and mail it in along with your first year’s dues.
Partial Exemption: CFE
If a person is a licensed CPA and also a CFE (Certified Fraud Examiner), he or she is exempt from 2 of the 5 exams. He or she does not have to take:
However, he or she must take the following exams:
- CRM504 – Criminal Interrogation and Confessions
- FRD506 – Financial Investigation and Forensic Accounting
- FRD508 – Forensic and Investigative Accounting
A CPA or CA wishing to take our 5-part FCPA certification course must pass each section with a score of 70% or above. Each section can be taken individually.
Once an individual has earned their FCPA, he or she must take 20 hours of continuing professional education (CPE) each year to keep their membership current. These hours must be forensic accounting or fraud related. Our subsidiary, Pony Express CPE offers many interesting CPE courses that will satisfy our CPE requirements as well as those of most state Boards of Accountancy.