The Enrolled Agent exam costs over $600 USD before factoring in review materials for the exam. While this isn’t inexpensive, the Enrolled Agent (EA) certification is much more accessible than other accounting certifications, such as the CPA or CMA. This page breaks down each of the EA fees you need to pay and offers a few tips on how you can save money.

You will be required to pay this fee when you schedule your examinations. The following steps will help you prepare to register, study and pass your EA exam. Another great way to ensure you’re actively learning is to take notes while reading the books or watching the videos. To take good notes, jot down information that stands out to you, especially about concepts you consider tricky. Along with learning about the exam, the other most important thing you can do to pass EA exam Part 1 is to study effectively.

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Therefore, a number of candidates are forced to take the exam without sufficient preparation. One obvious reason is the overlap of the testing window’s beginning and end with the tax busy season. For individual tax preparation, the busy season ends in April. So, my theory for May’s pass rate slump is that tax preparers are burned out and lack the energy needed to do better on the EA exam.

Each part of the exam is long and asks you to answer dozens of questions. Some people speculate that the reason for this drop is a lack of preparation on the part of test-takers, as Part 1 has a reputation for being easier than the other exam parts. Therefore, to give yourself the best chance to pass and overcome the pass rate drop, you must study well and prepare fully.

What is the EA exam?

Various topics on each section of the EA exam are weighted differently, so you should factor that into your exam preparation. You may want to study more for those topics that are weighted the most, and spend less time on material that appears on the exam with less frequency. The only time constraint is that you must schedule the exam date within 1 year from your date of registration. After that, you have two years to complete and pass all three sections. If you do not pass a section on the first try, you may re-take that section up to 4 times within one testing window.

Subsequently the candidate passed Part 2 on February 15, 2021. That candidate has until November 15, 2023 to pass the remaining part. The candidate has until February 15, 2024 to pass all other parts of the examination or will lose credit for Part 2. After passing the exam, you have to submit a form ea exam pass rate or file it online to actually apply for enrollment to practice before the IRS. Remember, becoming an Enrolled Agent requires dedication, perseverance, and a commitment to maintaining a high level of tax expertise. On the day of the exam, ensure that you arrive at the test center well-prepared.

How Enrolled Agent Exams Are Scored & the EA Passing Score Revealed

You’ll find a further breakdown of the topic lists into specific topics in the IRS Enrolled Agent Special Enrollment Examination Bulletin. By referring to this document, you can see what information the exam questions will ask you about and how much of that information you already know. A passing score on each part of the SEE is required before the IRS will admit an Enrolled Agent to practice.

• Prometric administers many different exams, so make sure you’re registering for the Enrolled Agent exam specifically.
• When you take EA exam Part 2 (and any other EA exam part), you’ll answer a lot of MCQs.
• Compare that to the CPA and CMA Exams, which are both closer to 50% on average.
• For example, if the state boards of accountancy didn’t require all CPA Exam candidates to have an accounting degree or equivalent, the CPA Exam pass rates could be lower.