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Provisional Status

What is a Provisional Status?

Provisional Status allows a candidate to test early, before officially meeting all the requirements in effect. It is available to candidates who are currently enrolled in the classes that will finalize their eligibility. In other words, by finishing your classes and/or getting your degree at the end of this current semester/term, you will meet all our education requirements. We do not approve candidates for provisional status before the qualifying semester/term begins. In addition, you can apply for Provisional status only once.

How do I get approved for Provisional Status?

Provisional status is automatically granted to candidates who qualify. If your current classes and/or degree program help you meet all our requirements, make sure to list them in the Courses-in-Progress section of the online application. Also, be sure to submit an official transcript that has your grades posted through the most recent semester/term. If you have already applied without listing your current, qualifying classes, you can submit the Courses-in-Progress form found by clicking below.

How is Provisional approval different than Regular approval?

The benefit to testing provisionally is that you can get started early while you are still in school with an environment conducive to studying. You may want to start testing early so you can be finished with the CPA exam by the time you start a full-time career.

Understand, however, that Provisional status is a temporary status, and you must initiate its change to regular status. Only candidates with regular status can submit the Re-Exam Request application.

The disadvantages to Provisional status are the limitations imposed by the ILBOE:

  1. To initiate the change in status from Provisional to Regular, you must submit your official transcript at the end of your provisional term. This is a necessary step that proves you have finished your education as promised on the application. Failure to submit a transcript may create a situation in which your exam scores are voided and your candidacy revoked.
  2. If you change your course schedule, you are obligated to contact your evaluator to make sure you are still eligible for Provisional approval.
  3. You can make ONLY the Initial Exam Request. You can select up to all 4 exam sections in this request. However, because the Notice to Schedule (NTS) for these exam sections expires in 6 months, you should choose the number of exams you can realistically take in that 6 months. In addition, we recommend you plan to be removed from Provisional status before this 6-month expiration date. In other words, you need two things to happen in 6 months- taking a realistic number of exams and removal from Provisional status.
  4. The Re-Exam link will NOT be available to you until you submit your final transcript and are changed from a provisionally approved candidate to a candidate with regular status.
  5. We will withhold the hard copies of your score reports for tests taken as a provisional candidate. You can, however, view your scores online.

Deadlines:

The ILBOE encourages all provisionally approved candidates to submit their final transcript as soon as grades and/or a degree are posted in order to avoid the hassle of deadlines.

Each term has its own deadline by which you must submit your final official transcript.

  • Candidates completing required courses in spring term must test by October 1st.
  • Candidates completing required courses in summer term must test by January 1st.
  • Candidates completing required courses in fall term must test by April 1st.
  • Candidates completing required courses in winter term must test by July 1st.

If you do sit provisionally for an exam prior to the deadline date assigned to this term, the ILBOE must receive a final, official transcript(s) verifying completion of all courses and/or degree within 150 days of the first exam taken.

If you do not sit provisionally for an exam prior to the deadline date assigned to this term, the ILBOE must receive a final, official transcript(s) verifying completion of all courses and/or degree by the deadline date assigned to the term of provisional approval.

Any Initial Exam Request application filed after the deadline date assigned to your term will not be sent to NASBA for a Payment Coupon (PC).