(a) The Board shall grant or renew certificates to persons who make application and demonstrate (i) that their qualifications, including where applicable the qualifications prescribed by section 250b, are in accordance with this section or (ii) that they are eligible under the substantial equivalency standard set out in section 250q(a)(2) of this chapter which requires licensure for those CPAs that establish their principal place of business in another state. The holder of a certificate issued under this section may provide only attest services, as defined, in a CPA firm that holds a permit issued under section 250d of this chapter.
(b) Certificates are initially issued and renewed annually, but in any event expire on a specified date following issuance or renewal. Applications for such certificates must be made in such form, and in the case of applications for renewal, between such dates, as the Board shall by rule specify.
(c)
(1) With regard to applicants that do not qualify for reciprocity under the substantial equivalency standard set out in section 250q(a)(2) of this chapter, the Board shall issue a certificate to a holder of a certificate, license, or permit issued by another state upon a showing that:
(A) The applicant passed the uniform CPA examination;
(B) The applicant had four years of experience of the type described in section 250b(f) or meets comparable requirements prescribed by the Board by rule, after passing the examination upon which the applicant’s certificate was based and within the ten years immediately preceding the application; and
(C) If the applicant’s certificate, license, or permit was issued more than four years prior to the application for issuance of an initial certificate under this section, that the applicant has fulfilled the requirements of continuing professional education that would have been applicable under subsection (d) of this section.
(2) As an alternative to the requirements of paragraph (1) of this subsection, a certificate holder licensed by another state who establishes his principal place of business in the Territory shall request the issuance of a certificate from the Board prior to establishing such principal place of business. The Board shall issue a certificate to such person who obtains from the NASBA National Qualification Appraisal Service verification that such individual’s CPA qualifications are substantially equivalent to the CPA licensure requirements of the AICPA/NASBA Uniform Accountancy Act.
(3) An application under this section may be made through the NASBA Qualification Appraisal Service.
(d) One year from the effective date of this chapter, for renewal of a certificate under this section each permittee shall participate in a program of learning designed to maintain professional competency. Such program of learning must comply with rules adopted by the Board. The Board may by rule create an exception to this requirement for certificate holders who do not perform or offer to perform for the public one or more kinds of services involving the use of accounting or auditing skills, including issuance of reports on financial statements or of one or more kinds of management advisory, financial advisory or consulting services, or the preparation of tax returns or the furnishing of advice on tax matters. Permittees granted such an exception by the Board must place the word “inactive” adjacent to their CPA title or PA title on any business card, letterhead or any other document or device, with the exception of their CPA certificate or PA registration, on which their CPA or PA title appears.
(e) The Board shall charge a fee for each application for initial issuance and renewal of a certificate under this section in an amount prescribed by the Board by rule.
(f) Applicants for initial issuance or renewal of certificates under this section shall in their applications list all states in which they have applied for or hold certificates, licenses, or permits and list any past denial, revocation or suspension of a certificate, license or permit, and each holder of or applicant for a certificate under this section shall notify the Board in writing, within 30 days after its occurrence, of any issuance, denial, revocation, or suspension of a certificate, license or permit by another state.
(g) The Board shall issue a certificate to a holder of a substantially equivalent foreign designation, provided that:
(1) The foreign authority that granted the designation makes similar provision to allow a person who holds a valid certificate issued by the Territory to obtain such foreign authority’s comparable designation; and
(2) The foreign designation:
(A) was duly issued by a foreign authority that regulates the practice of public accountancy and the foreign designation has not expired or been revoked or suspended;
(B) entitles the holder to issue reports upon financial statements; and
(C) was issued upon the basis of educational, examination, and experience requirements established by the foreign authority or by law; and
(3) The applicant:
(A) received the designation, based on educational and examination standards substantially equivalent to those in effect in this Territory, at the time the foreign designation was granted;
(B) completed an experience requirement, substantially equivalent to the requirement set out in section 250b(f), in the jurisdiction which granted the foreign designation or has completed four years of professional experience in this Territory; or meets equivalent requirements prescribed by the Board by regulation within the ten years immediately preceding the application; and
(C) passed a uniform qualifying examination in national standards and a Territory specific examination as determined by Board rule.
(h) An applicant under subsection (g) of this section shall in the application list all jurisdictions, foreign and domestic, in which the applicant has applied for or holds a designation to practice public accountancy, and each holder of a certificate issued under this subsection shall notify the Board in writing, within thirty days after its occurrence, of any issuance, denial, revocation or suspension of a designation or commencement of a disciplinary or enforcement action by any jurisdiction.
(i) The Board has the sole authority to interpret the application of the provisions of subsections (g) and (h) of this section.
(j) The Board shall by rule require as a condition for renewal of a certificate under this section, by any certificate holder who issues compilation reports for the public other than through a CPA firm, that such individual undergo, no more frequently than once every three years, a peer review conducted in such manner as the Board shall by rule specify, and such review shall include verification that such individual has met the competency requirements set out in professional standards for such services.