The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) and the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA) have released an exposure draft for public comment, outlining proposed changes to the Statement on Standards for Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Programmes.  

The revisions aim to modernise the framework for CPE programme development, presentation, measurement and reporting. 

The changes are designed to address emerging learning methods and clarify credit-awarding mechanisms, ensuring the CPE remains relevant to the needs of professional practice. 

The proposal offers flexibility to accommodate future learning innovations.  

Existing CPE programmes that are compliant with the 2024 Standards will remain eligible for credit under the new proposal. 

The draft suggests modifications to the amount of CPE credit that can be earned for group and self-study programmes. 

It allows for group programme credit to be earned in one-half or one full credit initially, and self-study programme credit in one-fifth or one-half credit increments.  

Additional credit for self-study can be earned in one-fifth increments following the initial one-fifth credit. 

Stakeholders are invited to review the exposure draft and provide their input within the 90-day comment period, ending on 16 December 2025.  

AICPA Learning, Conferences, Online Events and Technical Publications senior director Barbara Andrews said: “By engaging in ongoing education, CPAs [certified public accountants] are empowered to adapt to change, uphold the highest standards of service and foster lasting trust with those they advise. Lifelong learning not only enhances individual expertise but also strengthens the accounting profession’s ability to support resilient financial systems and global progress.”  

NASBA National Registry associate director Erin Scruggs stated: “These proposed revisions reflect the hard work and collaboration of the CPE Standards Working Group, NASBA’s CPE Committee and the Joint AICPA/NASBA CPE Standards Committee, as well as input from stakeholders across the profession. As learning technologies and delivery methods evolve, it is essential that the standards adapt to maintain the quality and integrity of CPE.” 

Earlier this month, the AICPA called for guidance on implementing the Pillar Two framework, part of the G7’s Global Minimum Tax agreement, highlighting the need for clarity on issues like the US section 41 research credit.