Mobility is a practice privilege that generally permits a licensed CPA in good standing to practice in a state from outside of their principal place of business without obtaining another license, so long as the licensee meets certain state specific conditions.
For state accountancy boards that have adopted the Uniform Accountancy Act § 23 Safe Harbor language for mobility, this will allow those licensees who had practice privileges prior to a specific date to proceed to practice, so long as they have a license in good standing and no other state specific restrictions apply. Currently, Delaware, New Jersey, Texas, and Pennsylvania have adopted the UAA Safe Harbor Language for Mobility.
As of August 28, 2014:
Individual Practice Privilege (See Public Accounting Act 1945, No 293 as amended on April 15, 2024, Section 4.) An individual whose principal place of business is not in Puerto Rico shall have all the privileges of a Puerto Rico CPA without the need to obtain a reciprocal Puerto Rico CPA license or file notice, if: Note: An individual who has passed the Uniform CPA Examination and holds a valid license issued by any other state prior to January 1, 2012, shall be exempt from the education requirements of Section 774(e) for purposes of Section 775(a)(2). - The performance of attest services or the issuance of reports requiring the attachment of a stamp may require individual reciprocal licensing and society membership. Please contact the Puerto Rico Board of Accountancy directly for further clarification on requirements specific to your activities.
Firm Practice Privilege/Firm Registration Requirement - An individual licensee who qualifies for practice privileges who, for any entity with its home office in Puerto Rico, performs the following services may only do so through a firm having a firm permit issued under Public Accounting Act 1945, No 293 as amended on April 15, 2024, Section 5(a)(3) unless the individual is a sole practitioner in the state in which they have their principal place of business:
- an audit or other engagement in accordance with SAS;
- any review of a financial statement or compilation in accordance SSARS;
- any engagement in accordance with SSAE; or
- any engagement in accordance with PCAOB standards
Consent to Jurisdiction - An individual licensee of another state who is exercising this privilege and the CPA firm that employs such individual, if any, as a condition of the grant of this privilege, hereby simultaneously consents:
- To the personal and subject matter jurisdiction and disciplinary authority of the Puerto Rico Board of Accountancy;
- To comply with the Puerto Rico law and rules;
- That in the event that the license from the state of the individual's principal place of business is no longer valid, the individual shall cease offering or rendering accounting activities individually or on behalf of a CPA firm; and
- To the appointment of the state board that issued the individual's or the CPA firm's license as the agent upon which process may be served in any action or proceeding by the Puerto Rico Board of Accountancy against the individual.
Peer Review Requirement N/A
Additional Requirements N/A
Restrictions N/A
Definitions - "Compilation" in Puerto Rico means to provide a service pursuant to the Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS), to present in financial statement format information from statements of management (or owners) without intent to express any opinion on the statements.
- "Firm" in Puerto Rico means a partnership, company, organization, association, enterprise, or other commercial, business, or professional combination authorized by law to engage in the practice of public accounting in the Commonwealth or any other State.
- "Principal Place of Work" in Puerto Rico refers to the location of the headquarters designated by a licensee for the purposes of equivalence and substantial reciprocity.
- "Practice of Public Accounting" in Puerto Rico means performing the following attestation services:
- audits or other interventions, which must be carried out in accordance with the Statements on Auditing Standards (SAS);
- reviews of financial statements or compilations, which must be conducted in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Accounting and Review Services (SSARS);
- interventions that must be carried out in accordance with the Statements on Standards for Attestation Engagements (SSAE); and
- audits or other interventions, which must be carried out in accordance with the PCAOB Standards; and
- interventions that must be carried out in accordance with other rules of the profession that the Puerto Rico Board of Accountancy adopts under this Section.
Statute and/or Regulation Reference Regulation No. 9583 of August 30, 2024
Regulation No. 9447 of March 30, 2023
Disclaimer: The information contained in NASBA’s Accountancy Licensing Library and CPAmobility.org is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice or legal opinion. The information is based on current state board of accountancy law and rules which are publicly available. Because board law and rules are continuously changing, there may be a slight delay in law or rule effective dates and the information reflected in these websites. NASBA cannot guarantee a mobility outcome based solely on the information contained in these websites, as additional state factors not listed here may be applicable. It is the responsibility of each CPA licensee or permit holder to be knowledgeable of each state board's current laws and rules in the state(s) in which the licensee intends to practice via mobility.
Click Reciprocal Licensure and/or Firm Registration in the menu bar at the top of this page for additional information or if these practice privilege requirements do not apply to you or your firm. |
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