License Application Requirements

The experience required under ORS 673.040 consists of activities generally performed by Oregon licensed CPAs and PAs engaged in public practice.  Typical public practice experience includes attestation engagements, tax return preparation, financial advisory services and/or compliance and internal control evaluation.

OAR 801-010-0065(4)(c)​ Industry Accountancy.

Experience that demonstrates the competencies described below may also be obtained while the applicant is employed under the direct supervision of a public accountant or certified public accountant as provided under this rule. The experience affidavit for industry applicants addresses the following concepts and demonstrates competency to the satisfaction of the Board:

• Understanding the Code of Professional Conduct.  Industry experience will include the practice of accountancy with integrity, objectivity, independence, professional judgment, due professional care and professional skepticism.
• Ability to assess the achievement of a client's objectives by demonstrating knowledge of various business organizations, understanding of the objectives and goals of business entities, ability to develop and analyze performance measures and critical success factors, and understanding of the economic and regulatory trends that affect the environment of a business entity.  Industry experience will be in the context of assessing the objectives and goals, performance measures, critical success factors and the economic and regulatory trends affecting the applicant’s company and industry.
• Experience in preparing working papers that include sufficient, relevant data to support the analysis and conclusions required by the applicant´s work.  Industry experience will be in the context of documenting an analysis of a financial accountancy issue affecting the applicant’s company from the collection and summarization of financial data to the identification of alternative conclusions such that others of equal training and experience can trace information to source data and draw similar conclusions.
• Understanding transactions streams and information systems, including the ability to understand how individual transactions aggregate at the organizational level, to infer how transactions impact the organization as a whole, and to evaluate the integrity and reliability of various client information systems, including relevant computer aspects.  Industry experience will be in the context of evaluating an accounting system within the applicant’s company, performing internal control and substantive testing (analytical procedures, technical research and conclusion), and providing a written conclusion on the reasonableness of the procedures conducted, specific controls that were missing or ineffective, and the measures taken to corroborate data accuracy and conclusions drawn.
• Skills in risk assessment and verification demonstrated by a sufficient understanding of accounting and other information systems to (1) assess the risk of misstatement in an information system and (2) obtain sufficient, relevant data based on the risk of misstatement and the nature of the engagement to determine the appropriateness of underlying data in terms of its completeness, existence and occurrence, valuation and allocation, rights and obligations and presentation and disclosures.  Industry experience will be in the context of evaluating risks of misstated financial data within the applicant’s company and performing tests to substantiate data accuracy.
• Skills in decision making, problem solving and critical analytical thinking, including the ability to evaluate and interpret sufficient, relevant data in a variety of engagements and settings. For example, the applicant must evaluate an entity´s cash flow, profitability, liquidity, solvency, operating cycle, achievement of management´s plans, and accomplishment of service efforts of systems reliability.  Industry experience will be in the context of identifying significant data trends and the impact of the trends on the applicant’s company on both a short and long term basis.
• Ability to express scope of work, findings and conclusions, including the ability to determine the appropriateness of reports on financial statements, system reliability, or reports expressing scope of work, findings and conclusions.  Industry experience will be in the context of both written and oral presentation of financial information and related accounting conventions within the applicant’s company that include the significance of the financial information, applicable accounting rules and consideration of alternatives and conclusions drawn

Demonstration of the competencies prescribed above must be obtained while the applicant is employed in industry or government on the staff of a public accountant or certified public accountant engaged in employment that is equivalent to public practice, including internal tax departments.