PRACTICE PRIVILEGES FOR CPA'S LICENSED IN ANOTHER STATE
Senate Bill 484 was signed by Governor Doyle on March 27, 2006. The bill adopted Section 23 of the Uniform Accountancy Act in Wisconsin. The bill was published on April 10, 2006. Effective April 11, 2006, a CPA that has a valid license to practice from a "substantially equivalent" state has practice privileges in Wisconsin.
This privilege is only available to CPA's who are not residents of Wisconsin or whose primary office is not in Wisconsin. Residents of Wisconsin or individuals whose primary office is in Wisconsin must obtain a Wisconsin CPA license in order to practice in Wisconsin.
The National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) National Qualification Appraisal Service determines the states and other jurisdictions that are "substantially equivalent" to the provisions of the Uniform Accountancy Act. NASBA maintains the list of "substantially equivalent states" on its web site.
You do not need to register, complete any forms or pay a fee in order to have practice privileges in Wisconsin. By entering the state and practicing without a Wisconsin license under the practice privileges statute, the individual agrees to follow the Wisconsin statutes and rules and is subject to investigation and disciplinary action for a violation of Wisconsin statutes or rules in the same manner as a Wisconsin licensee.
PEER REVIEW REQUIRED FOR FIRM LICENSURE STARTING JANUARY 1, 2006
After January 1, 2005, Wisconsin
law will require all firms, including sole practitioners, who provide
certain services to their clients to have a peer review every three
years in order to be licensed to practice in Wisconsin. Starting
with the January 1st , 2006 renewal date, any CPA firm (“firm” means
proprietorship, partnership, limited liability partnership, corporation,
service corporation, or limited liability company) that provides attest
services must affirm on its renewal application that it has undergone
a peer review during this three-year period.
A peer review is a review of
a CPA firm's attest services practices. The review covers a random
sampling of engagements and includes an evaluation of relevant
working papers and reports to determine if appropriate standards were
fo l l owed. Under the standards of the peer review, firms that perform
audits during the review period are required to have a system review.
Firms that perform on l y compi l actions or reviews are a l l owed
to have either an engagement or a report review of selected engagements.
The reviewers' report must provide reasonab l e assurance that the
firm's attest practices conform with professional standards. For
more information concerning the types of reports or the standards,
p l ease go to the Wisconsin Institute of Certified Public Accountants'
(WICPA) website.
Attest services include audits,
reviews, compilations (in accordance with the Statements on Standards
for Accounting and Review Services) and attestation engagements. Some
licensed CPA firms do not provide attest services. For example, a
firm that provides only income tax planning and preparation services
would not be required to undergo a peer review.
The questions listed below
are intended to assist firms in determining whether a peer review
is required for renewal. An affirmative answer to any part of any
question means that a peer review is required. This list is not exclusive.
1. Does your firm audit SEC
clients, including employer-sponsored plans required to file a form
11-K with the SEC?
2. Does your firm currently
perform the following types of engagements?
Statements on Auditing Standards
(SAS) - Audits?
Agreed-upon procedures?
Statements on Standards for
Accounting and Review Services (SSARS)?
Reviews of financial statements?
Compilations of financial statements
with disclosures?
Compilations of financial statements
where “Selected Information-Substantially all disclosures required
are not included?”
Compilations of financial statements
that omit substantially all disclosures?
Statements on Standards for
Attestation Engagements (SSAE)?
Examinations of prospective
financial statements under SSARS?
Compilations of prospective
financial statements under SSARS?
Agreed-upon procedures of prospective
financial statements?
Examinations of written assertions?
Reviews of written assertions?
Agreed-upon procedures of written
assertions?
Engagements under Government
Auditing Standards (Yellow Book)?
The Wisconsin Accounting Examination
Board has approved the AICPA Peer Review Program, administered by
the WICPA, as the program to be used by Wisconsin firms. If you have
any questions regarding the Peer Review Program, p l ease contact
Jessica Murphy at 1-800-772-6939, ext. 3025 or at jessica@wicpa.org
.
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