Credentials Evaluation Application

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Evaluation Pricing

Pre-Evaluation – $50

Who is the Pre-Evaluation for?

The Pre-Evaluation is not a required part of the evaluation process. Instead, the Pre-Evaluation is designed to help you explore the possibility of taking the CPA Exam now or in the future. Do you have a degree outside of accounting and wonder how much additional education you need to be qualified? Or, are you considering multiple jurisdictions? If so, the Pre-Evaluation will provide you with basic information for a decision.

What are the guidelines for this application?

Although you cannot be approved to sit for the CPA exam with the Pre-Evaluation, it is performed in the same manner as a Domestic Credentials Evaluation. Using the resulting report as an advisory tool, you can discover if your accumulated semester credit hours and coursework have satisfied our education requirements. You will also understand how you are deficient, thus enabling you to plan future classes that will yield an approval. Please note that we do not consider in-progress coursework.

The Pre-Evaluation is performed only once. If you have additional transcripts to submit, you must officially apply using the appropriate application.

We do not issue refunds.

How do I submit this application?

  1. Complete a hard copy Pre-Evaluation form and pay the $50 fee with a check or money order. We highly recommend you write your name the same way it appears on your primary id.
  2. Print out your unofficial transcript(s) or request official transcript(s) from all the post-secondary institutions you attended.
  3. Unofficial transcripts can be included with your application and fee and mailed to:

Illinois Board of Examiners
1120 East Diehl Road
Suite 107
Naperville, IL 60563

  1. Official transcripts can be mailed as above or submitted electronically to: etranscripts@ilboe.org
  2. Look for an email containing a temporary ID and password allowing you access to the ILBOE online system for future submission of an official application. Set up this account immediately.
  3. Allow 6-8 weeks response time for the Evaluation Results letter to be emailed to you.
  4. When you are ready to officially apply, the $50 Pre-Evaluation application fee will not be deducted from the official evaluation fee.

If you used unofficial transcripts for the Pre-Evaluation, you must request official transcripts for the official evaluation.

Domestic Credentials Evaluation – $200

Who is the Domestic Evaluation for?

This standard application is for a candidate who has been educated in the United States at Board-approved accredited institutions.

What are the guidelines for this application?

In our evaluations, the ILBOE considers only education; we do not consider work experience.

Study abroad credits shown on a domestic transcript as earned at a domestic institution are not considered foreign.

If you have taken up to 3 exam sections in another jurisdiction and have been educated domestically, you can use this application to transfer your exam scores. Please note you must be educationally qualified based on the rules we had in place on the day you sat for your first passed exam. You may not take classes to become eligible in Illinois. Click View Requirements below for our current requirements, beginning in 2023, and for requirements prior to that date.

We do not issue refunds.

How do I submit this application?

  1. Open an account at our website.
  2. Through this account, complete and submit the online Domestic Credentials Evaluation application and $200 fee. We highly recommend you enter your name the same way it appears on your primary id.
  3. Ask all the post-secondary institutions you attended to submit your official transcript(s). These can be mailed to:

Illinois Board of Examiners
1120 East Diehl Road
Suite 107
Naperville, IL 60563

Or they can be submitted electronically to: etranscripts@ilboe.org

  1. Once any application and fee are processed, you will receive an emailed receipt.
  2. If you are transferring your exam scores, the jurisdiction can submit them as above.
  3. Allow 6-8 weeks for the evaluation results to be emailed to you.

Foreign Education Evaluation

Who is the Foreign Credentials Evaluation application for?

This application is for a candidate who has been educated outside the United States at an institution equivalent to a Board-recognized accredited U.S. institution (excluding study abroad).

What are the guidelines for this application?

To begin, read the information at the website for the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) under the heading “Professional Organizations.” Requirements | NASBA

In our evaluations, please note that we consider only education; we do not consider work experience.

Before submitting an application with our organization, you must first have your international transcript(s) evaluated by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA): Requirements | NASBA

If you have foreign credits that total 12 or less domestic semester credit hours, do not apply for NASBA’s Credential Evaluation for $225. Instead, apply for NASBA’s Evaluation for CPA Exam and/or Licensure for $120. Services and Fees | NASBA

The Illinois Board relies solely on NASBA for accurate and thorough reporting of your academic and professional history. The result of their report determines the result of your evaluation here in Illinois. With that in mind, once you get your report from NASBA, you should carefully read it to compare the results with the education requirements on our website. By making this comparison, you can determine if you are eligible in Illinois.

If you have taken up to 3 exam sections in another jurisdiction and have been educated outside the United States, you can use this application to transfer your exam scores. Please note you must be educationally qualified based on the rules we had in place on the day you sat for your first passed exam. You may not take classes to become eligible in Illinois. Click the button below for our current requirements, beginning in 2023, and for requirements prior to that date.

We do not issue refunds.

How do I submit this application?

  1. Open an account at our website.
  2. Through this account, complete and submit the Foreign Credentials Evaluation application. There is no fee for this application. We highly recommend you enter your name the same way it appears on your primary id.
  3. Ask NASBA to send your official report. This can be mailed to:

Illinois Board of Examiners
1120 East Diehl Road
Suite 107
Naperville, IL 60563

Or it can be submitted electronically to: etranscripts@ilboe.org

  1. Once any application is processed, you will receive an emailed receipt.
  2. If you are transferring your exam scores, the jurisdiction can submit them as above.
  3. Allow 6-8 weeks for the evaluation results to be emailed to you.