New Mexico: CPE, firm permit and peer review rules for CPAs.

This page lists what the New Mexico board of accountancy publishes for a CPA and a CPA firm: CPE hours and the reporting period, the ethics requirement, whether a firm permit or registration is required, whether peer review is required, the licence renewal cycle, and whether an out-of-state CPA may practise under a practice privilege.

It is built for owners of small accounting and bookkeeping firms, especially those licensed in one state and serving clients in another. Every entry is a snapshot of what the cited source published on the verification date; it is a research starting point, not licensing advice.

New Mexico, field by field.

Board of accountancy

New Mexico Public Accountancy Board (Regulation and Licensing Department, Boards and Commissions Division)

CPE hours & reporting period

120 hours in the 36-month period ending on the last day of the holder's birth month, with a minimum of 20 hours in each reporting year. 16.60.3.15.A NMAC: "An applicant for certificate/license renewal shall show completion of no less than 120 clock hours of CPE, complying with these rules during the 36-month period ending on the last day of the certificate/license holder's birth month."; 16.60.3.15.A(2): "with a minimum of 20 hours completed in each reporting year." 16.60.3.15.E(12): "at least 96 of the hours reported shall be courses, programs or seminars whose content is in technical fields of study"; 16.60.3.15.E(13): "at least 24 of the hours reported shall not include CPE sponsored by the licensee's firm, agency, company, or organization". Deadline: 16.60.3.15.A(4), "Deadline for receipt of license renewal applications and supporting CPE reports or affidavits is no later than the last day of the certificate/license holder's birth month."; 16.60.3.9.I(2): renewal applications and CPE reports received after the deadlines "shall include prescribed delinquency fees." New licensees: 16.60.3.15.A(1), "No CPE will be required for the period between issue date and first expiration date (birth month)." Board CPE page: "Completion of 120 CPE hours in a full 36-month reporting cycle"; "A minimum of 20 CPE hours completed for each reporting year"; a reporting year "begins with the first day of the month after your birth months and ends with the last day of your birth month". Board CPE sheet: "CPE Requirements for a rolling 3 year reporting cycle ending on the last day of the licensees birth month". Statute: NMSA 1978 § 61-28B-9.E, to renew, a certificate holder "shall provide satisfactory proof to the board of continuing professional education that is designed to maintain competency"; § 61-28B-9.F, a nonresident meets the requirement by meeting the CPE requirement of the state of the principal place of business, if that state requires CPE, and signing a statement on the renewal application.

Ethics CPE requirement

4 hours per 36-month period. 16.60.3.15.A(2) NMAC: continuing professional education "must include a minimum of four hours of ethics education during the 36-month period after January 1, 2010." No New Mexico-specific course is required: 16.60.3.15.E(1)(g) lists acceptable ethics topics that "may include, but are not limited to," instruction on the AICPA code of professional conduct and "the New Mexico occupational and professional licensing code of professional conduct"; the board's CPE requirements sheet lists the same topics (AICPA code, New Mexico licensing code of professional conduct, Treasury Circular 230, malpractice avoidance, organizational ethics, moral reasoning, duties of the CPA).

CPA firm permit / registration

Yes. NMSA 1978 § 61-28B-13.B: a permit "shall be required for" (1) "a firm with an office in New Mexico performing attest services", (2) "a firm with an office in New Mexico that uses the title 'CPA' or 'CPA firm'", and (3) "a firm that does not have an office in New Mexico but offers or renders attest services for a client in New Mexico" except as provided in § 61-28B-13.C (an out-of-state firm may render attest services and use the CPA title without a permit only through an individual licensed in another U.S. jurisdiction who passed a qualifying exam and consents to the board's disciplinary authority, and only if the firm meets the ownership rule of § 61-28B-13.H(1) and the peer review rule of § 61-28B-13.L). § 61-28B-13.D: a firm may perform non-attest services under the CPA title without a permit through a person with practice privileges under § 61-28B-26 if it "can lawfully perform services in the state that is the firm's principal place of business." Term: § 61-28B-13.E, "Permits shall be issued and renewed for periods of not more than two years, expiring on June 30 of the year of expiration."; 16.60.4.8.B NMAC: firm permit renewal applications are due before "the expiration date printed on the firm permit", and renewal notices go out at least 30 days before the deadline. Offices: § 61-28B-13.I, each office of the firm within New Mexico is registered with the board; 16.60.4.8.A NMAC: "any CPA or RPA acting as the sole proprietor, partner, shareholder or member of a legal business entity" who holds out to the public as a CPA or RPA "must obtain a firm permit to be granted authority to practice public accountancy as a CPA or RPA firm" and "each office of the firm within New Mexico must obtain a firm permit." Board Firm Requirements sheet: licence fee $75, reinstatement $175; firm permits cancelled for more than five years apply as a new firm. Ownership: a simple majority of the ownership belongs to certificate holders licensed in some state (§ 61-28B-13.H(1)).

Peer review requirement

Yes, as a condition of firm-permit renewal. § 61-28B-13.L: "As a condition to permit renewal, the board shall require the applicant to undergo a peer review conducted in accordance with board rules." 16.60.4.10.A NMAC: "A firm seeking to obtain or renew a firm permit to provide accounting and auditing services in New Mexico must be enrolled in a peer review program and undergo a peer review"; 16.60.4.10.A(2): "Participation is required of each firm registered with the board who provides accounting or auditing services". 16.60.4.10.B(1): "Each holder of a board-issued firm permit shall enroll in a board approved peer review program and arrange, schedule, complete and allow time for the sponsoring organization to consider their peer reviews for acceptance prior to the June 30 renewal period." 16.60.4.10.B(2): for a first engagement "the firm shall be enrolled in a board approved peer review program by the report date of the first engagement, and the due date ordinarily will be 18 months from the report date of that engagement." 16.60.4.10.D: a firm that performs no accounting or auditing engagements "is exempt from the peer review program and shall re-certify annually to the board as to this exempt status as part of the firm permit renewal process"; a previously exempt firm that begins those services completes a review within 18 months. 16.60.4.10.F(1): the accepted peer review report, letter of response and acceptance letter are submitted within 30 days of the sponsoring organization's acceptance. 16.60.5.11.B(1) NMAC: a "pass with deficiencies" or "fail" report is reported to the board within 30 days. Board Firm Requirements sheet: participation is required for a firm that performs audits, reviews, financial statements, compilations, attestation, forecasts or projections [16.60.4 NMAC]; system reviews for SAS, GAS or SSAE examination work and engagement reviews for SSARS-only work; the sheet says new firms "enroll in a qualified program within 30 days of completing the engagement" and submit a peer review within 18 months. 16.60.4.10 NMAC states no fixed interval for subsequent reviews.

Licence renewal cycle

Certificates/licences expire on a staggered basis by birth month and are renewed by the last day of the holder's birth month. 16.60.3.9.I NMAC: "Certificates/licenses for individuals will have staggered expiration dates based on the individual's birth month."; the renewal deadline "is no later than the last day of the CPA or RPA certificate/license holder's birth month or the next business day if the deadline date falls on a weekend or holiday."; 16.60.3.9.I(4): "The board shall send renewal application notices no less than 30 days prior to the renewal deadline."; 16.60.3.9.I(2): late renewal applications and CPE reports "shall include prescribed delinquency fees." Statute: § 61-28B-9.B, "The board may establish by rule for the issuance of annual certificates and may prescribe the expiration date of certificates."; a certificate is subject to cancellation if the renewal fee and delinquency fee are not paid within ninety days after expiration, and reinstatement after cancellation for failure to pay "the annual renewal fee" requires application, fees and board approval (§ 61-28B-9.B). The term of an individual certificate in years is not stated in 16.60.3.9 NMAC.

Mobility / practice privilege

Yes; no notice, fee or other submission. NMSA 1978 § 61-28B-26.A: a person whose principal place of business is not in New Mexico "shall be presumed to have met comparable licensure requirements and may exercise all the practice privileges of certificate holders of New Mexico without the need to obtain a certificate" if the person holds a valid CPA license from a state that requires the education and accounting experience of § 61-28B-8.D, or a valid CPA license in good standing from a U.S. jurisdiction that required a qualifying exam and those education and experience requirements; § 61-28B-26.B: "no notice, fee or other submission shall be required of the person."; § 61-28B-26.C: consent to the board's jurisdiction and disciplinary authority, compliance with the Act and rules, ceasing attest services in New Mexico if the home license is no longer valid, and appointment of the home board as agent for service of process; § 61-28B-26.D: a person with practice privileges who performs an attest service "shall meet the requirements of Section 61-28B-11 NMSA 1978"; § 61-28B-11.B grants the privilege "without notice to the board or being certified" to an individual holding a valid CPA license in good standing from another U.S. jurisdiction who was required at licensure to pass a qualifying exam. 16.60.5.13.A NMAC: a person whose principal place of business is not in New Mexico "can use the term CPA while serving clients in New Mexico as long as the CPA is actively licensed in good standing in his principal place of business and is eligible for practice privileges in New Mexico"; 16.60.5.13.B: "Non-resident CPAs who wish to practice in New Mexico may do so only in accordance with Section 61-28B-26 NMSA 1978." Firm mobility: § 61-28B-13.C and D; board Firm Mobility Statement: performance of services by an eligible individual or firm "will not require a firm permit from the state board of New Mexico, so long as the firm is actively licensed in good standing in the home jurisdiction." and "Firms must meet ownership and peer review requirements of the mobility jurisdiction."