AICPA has released the latest revisions to the CPA Exam Blueprints, which are to take effect on July 1, 2019. Wiley CPAexcel’s update for the July 2019 CPA Exam is rolling out this spring, so stay tuned!

The main takeaway? This latest revision expands on the existing blueprint but does not significantly change the content already eligible for testing.

Members of our Wiley CPAexcel leadership team were honored to participate in the American Professional Accounting Certifications Provider’s Association (APACPA) at AICPA’s office in Durham, NC on March 4, 2019. We meet with AICPA bi-annually to learn all about the changes coming to the CPA Exam and the profession so we can share this information with you.

Summary of July 2019 CP Exam Changes

If you don’t feel like reading through the 102-page blueprint document, we’ve gone ahead and summarized the key changes you can expect to see on the CPA Exam in July.

FAR: Financial Accounting and Reporting 

No changes. Yay!

AUD: Auditing and Attestation 

The blueprint added some lengthy detail around audit data analytics. This is the change some folks are making into a big deal. But it’s not. Why? Because it’s essentially the same content that’s already eligible for testing and which you should be studying anyway.

BEC: Business Environment and Concepts

The section on IT (information technology) has been reorganized and expanded. But, again, the content to be tested isn’t changing drastically.

REG: Regulation  

According to the updated introduction in the section, the CPA exam is to start using real dates so you can determine the appropriate tax treatment. Absent specific dates or timing in exam questions, you should assume transactions occurred in the current year.

There are also small clarifications to three representative tasks. Again, this does not drastically change the content eligible for testing.

Want to read the blueprints for yourself? You can download them in full here.

What Else Have We Learned from AICPA?

• The CPA Exam continues to be updated regularly and remains current with the profession.
• Audit data analytics is currently assessed and will continue to be assessed on the CPA Exam.
• Candidates are underutilizing the CPA Exam Blueprints. Be sure to read the blueprints.
• There were application processing delays last summer that has now been resolved.

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