CPA-REG Exam Information and Guideline
CPA Regulation
Below are complete topics detail with latest syllabus and course outline, that will help you good knowledge about exam objectives and topics that you have to prepare. These contents are covered in questions and answers pool of exam.
Content area allocation Weight
I. Ethics, Professional Responsibilities and Federal Tax Procedures 10–20%
II. Business Law 10–20%
III. Federal Taxation of Property Transactions 12–22%
IV. Federal Taxation of Individuals 15–25%
V. Federal Taxation of Entities 28–38%
minutes — Welcome/enter launch code
5 minutes — Confidentiality/section information
4 hours — Testing time
15 minutes — Break after third testlet (option to pause Exam timer)
5 minutes — Survey
Each of the four Exam sections is broken down into five smaller sections called testlets. These testlets feature multiple-choice questions (MCQs) and task-based simulations (TBSs). In the case of BEC, you also have to complete three written communication tasks. The number of MCQs and TBSs tested varies depending upon the specific section taken. You will receive at least one research question (research-oriented TBS) in the AUD, FAR and REG sections. To complete them, you will have to search the related authoritative literature and find an appropriate reference.
The REG section blueprint is organized by content AREA, content GROUP
and content TOPIC. Each topic includes one or more representative TASKS
that a newly licensed CPA may be expected to complete when performing tax
preparation services, tax advisory services or other responsibilities of a CPA.
The tasks in the blueprint are representative. They are not intended to be (nor
should they be viewed as) an all-inclusive list of tasks that may be tested in the
REG section of the Exam. Additionally, it should be noted that the number of
tasks associated with a particular content group or topic is not indicative of the
extent such content group, topic or related skill level will be assessed on the
Exam. Similarly, examples provided within the task statements should not be
viewed as all-inclusive.
Area I Ethics, Professional Responsibilities and
Federal Tax Procedures 10–20%
Area II Business Law 10–20%
Area III Federal Taxation of Property Transactions 12–22%
Area IV Federal Taxation of Individuals 15-25%
Area V Federal Taxation of Entities 28-38%
Overview of content areas
Area I of the REG section blueprint covers several topics, including the following:
• Ethics and Responsibilities in Tax Practice – Requirements based on Treasury
Department Circular 230 and the rules and regulations for tax return preparers
• Licensing and Disciplinary Systems – Requirements of state boards of
accountancy to obtain and maintain the CPA license
• Federal Tax Procedures – Understanding federal tax processes and
procedures, including appropriate disclosures, substantiation, penalties and
authoritative hierarchy
• Legal Duties and Responsibilities – Understanding legal issues that affect
the CPA and his or her practice
Area II of the REG section blueprint covers several topics of Business Law,
including the following:
• Knowledge and understanding of the legal implications of business
transactions, particularly as they relate to accounting, auditing and financial
reporting.
• Areas of agency, contracts, debtor-creditor relationships, government
regulation of business, and business structure.
- The Uniform Commercial Code under the topics of contracts and
debtor-creditor relationships.
- Nontax-related business structure content. Area V of the REG section
blueprint covers the tax-related issues of the various business structures.
• Federal and widely adopted uniform state laws and references as identified
in References below.
Area III, Area IV and Area V of the REG section blueprint cover various topics
of federal income taxation and gift and estate tax. Accounting methods and
periods, and tax elections are included in the Areas listed below:
• Area III covers the federal income taxation of property transactions. Area III
also covers topics related to federal estate and gift taxation.
• Area IV covers the federal income taxation of individuals from both a tax
preparation and tax planning perspective.
• Area V covers the federal income taxation of entities including sole
proprietorships, partnerships, limited liability companies, C corporations,
S corporations, joint ventures, trusts, estates and tax-exempt organizations,
from both a tax preparation and tax planning perspective.
Section assumptions
The REG section of the Exam includes multiple-choice questions,
task-based simulations and research prompts. Candidates should assume
that the information provided in each question is material and should apply
all stated assumptions. To the extent a question addresses a topic that could
have different tax treatments based on timing (e.g., alimony arrangements
or net operating losses), it will include a clear indication of the timing (e.g.,
use of real dates) so that the candidates can determine the appropriate
portions of the Internal Revenue Code or Treasury Regulations to apply to
Remembering and understanding is mainly concentrated in Area I and Area II.
These two areas contain the general ethics, professional responsibilities and
business law knowledge that is required for newly licensed CPAs and is tested
at the lower end of the skill level continuum.
• Application and analysis skills are primarily tested in Areas III, IV and V. These
three areas contain more of the day-to-day tasks that newly licensed CPAs are
expected to perform and therefore are tested at the higher end of the skill level
continuum.
The representative tasks combine both the applicable content knowledge and
the skills required in the context of the work that a newly licensed CPA would
reasonably be expected to perform. The REG section does not test any content at
the Evaluation skill level as newly licensed CPAs are not expected to demonstrate
that level of skill in regards to the REG content.
1. Regulations
governing
practice
before the Internal Revenue Service
Recall the regulations governing practice before the Internal Revenue Service.
Apply the regulations governing practice before the Internal Revenue Service given a specific scenario.
2. Internal Revenue
Code and
Regulations
related
to tax return
preparers
Recall who is a tax return preparer.
Recall situations that would result in federal tax return preparer penalties.
Apply potential federal tax return preparer penalties given a specific scenario.
B. Licensing and disciplinary systems
Understand and explain the role and authority of state boards of accountancy.
C. Federal tax procedures
1. Audits, appeals
and judicial
process
Explain the audit and appeals process as it relates to federal tax matters.
Explain the different levels of the judicial process as they relate to federal tax matters.
Identify options available to a taxpayer within the audit and appeals process given a specific
scenario.
Identify options available to a taxpayer within the judicial process given a specific scenario.
2. Substantiation
and disclosure
of tax positions
Summarize the requirements for the appropriate disclosure of a federal tax return
position.
Identify situations in which disclosure of federal tax return positions is required.
Identify whether substantiation is sufficient given a specific scenario.
3. Taxpayer penalties Recall situations that would result in taxpayer penalties relating to federal tax returns.
Calculate taxpayer penalties relating to federal tax returns.
4. Authoritative
hierarchy
Recall the appropriate hierarchy of authority for federal tax purposes.
D. Legal duties and responsibilities
1. Common law
duties and
liabilities to
clients and third
parties
Summarize the tax return preparers common law duties and liabilities to clients and
third parties.
Identify situations which result in violations of the tax return preparers common law duties
and liabilities to clients and third parties.
2. Privileged
communications,
confidentiality
and privacy acts
Summarize the rules regarding privileged communications as they relate to tax practice.
Identify situations in which communications regarding tax practice are considered
privileged.
1. Authority of agents
and principals Recall the types of agent authority.
Identify whether an agency relationship exists given a specific scenario.
2. Duties and
liabilities of agents
and principals
Explain the various duties and liabilities of agents and principals.
Identify the duty or liability of an agent or principal given a specific scenario.
B. Contracts
1. Formation Summarize the elements of contract formation between parties.
Identify whether a valid contract was formed given a specific scenario.
Identify different types of contracts (e.g., written, verbal, unilateral, express and implied)
given a specific scenario.
2. Performance Explain the rules related to the fulfillment of performance obligations necessary for an
executed contract.
Identify whether both parties to a contract have fulfilled their performance obligation given
a specific scenario.
3. Discharge, breach
and remedies
Explain the different ways in which a contract can be discharged (e.g., performance,
agreement and operation of the law).
Summarize the different remedies available to a party for breach of contract.
Identify situations involving breach of contract.
Identify whether a contract has been discharged given a specific scenario.
Identify the remedy available to a party for breach of contract given a specific scenario.
C. Debtor-creditor relationships
1. Rights, duties
and liabilities of
debtors,
creditors
and guarantors
Explain the rights, duties and liabilities of debtors, creditors and guarantors.
Identify rights, duties or liabilities of debtors, creditors or guarantors given a specific
scenario.
2. Bankruptcy and
insolvency
Explain the rights of the debtors and the creditors in bankruptcy and insolvency.
Summarize the rules related to the different types of bankruptcy.
Explain discharge of indebtedness in bankruptcy.
Identify the rights of the debtors and the creditors in bankruptcy and insolvency given a
specific scenario.
Identify the type of bankruptcy described in a specific scenario.
3. Secured
transactions
Explain how property can serve as collateral in secured transactions.
Summarize the priority rules of secured transactions.
Explain the requirements needed to create and perfect a security interest.
Identify the prioritized ordering of perfected security interests given a specific scenario.
Identify whether a creditor has created and perfected a security interest given a
specific scenario.
D. Government regulation of business
1. Federal securities
regulation
Summarize the various securities laws and regulations that affect corporate governance
with respect to the federal Securities Act of 1933 and federal Securities Exchange Act
of 1934.
Identify violations of the various securities laws and regulations that affect corporate
governance with respect to the federal Securities Act of 1933 and federal Securities
Exchange Act of 1934.
2. Other federal
laws and
regulations
(e.g., employment
tax, qualified health
plans and worker
classification)
Summarize federal laws and regulations, for example, employment tax, qualified health plans
and worker classification federal laws and regulations.
Identify violations of federal laws and regulations, for example, employment tax, qualified
health plans and worker classification federal laws and regulations.
1. Selection and
formation of
business entity
and related
operation
and termination
Summarize the processes for formation and termination of various business entities.
Summarize the non-tax operational features for various business entities.
Identify the type of business entity that is best described by a given set of
nontax-related characteristics.
2. Rights, duties,
legal obligations
and authority
of owners and
management
Summarize the rights, duties, legal obligations and authority of owners and management.
Identify the rights, duties, legal obligations or authorities of owners or management given a
specific scenario.
1. Basis and holding
period of assets
Calculate the tax basis of an asset.
Determine the holding period of a disposed asset for classification of tax gain or loss.
2. Taxable and
nontaxable
dispositions
Calculate the realized and recognized gain or loss on the disposition of assets for federal income
tax purposes.
Calculate the realized gain, recognized gain and deferred gain on like-kind property exchange
transactions for federal income tax purposes.
Analyze asset sale and exchange transactions to determine whether they are taxable or
nontaxable.
3. Amount and
character of gains
and losses, and
netting process
(including
installment sales)
Calculate the amount of capital gains and losses for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate the amount of ordinary income and loss for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate the amount of gain on an installment sale for federal income tax purposes.
Review asset transactions to determine the character (capital vs. ordinary) of the gain or
loss for federal income tax purposes.
Analyze an agreement of sale of an asset to determine whether it qualifies for installment
sale treatment for federal income tax purposes.
4. Related party
transactions
(including imputed
interest)
Recall related parties for federal income tax purposes.
Recall the impact of related party ownership percentages on acquisition and disposition
transactions of property for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate the direct and indirect ownership percentages of corporation stock or partnership
interests to determine whether there are related parties for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate a taxpayers basis in an asset that was disposed of at a loss to the taxpayer by a
related party.
Calculate a taxpayers gain or loss on a subsequent disposition of an asset to an unrelated
third party that was previously disposed of at a loss to the taxpayer by a related party.
Calculate the impact of imputed interest on related party transactions for federal
tax purposes.
B. Cost recovery (depreciation, depletion and amortization)
Calculate tax depreciation for tangible business property and tax amortization of intangible
assets.
Calculate depletion for federal income tax purposes.
Compare the tax benefits of the different expensing options for tax depreciation for federal
income tax purposes.
Reconcile the activity in the beginning and ending accumulated tax depreciation account.
1. Transfers subject
to gift tax Recall transfers of property subject to federal gift tax.
Recall whether federal Form 709 — United States Gift (and Generation-Skipping Transfer)
Tax Return is required to be filed.
Calculate the amount and classification of a gift for federal gift tax purposes.
Calculate the amount of a gift subject to federal gift tax.
2. Gift tax annual
exclusion and gift
tax deductions
Recall allowable gift tax deductions and exclusions for federal gift tax purposes.
Recall situations involving the gift tax annual exclusion, gift-splitting and the impact on
the use of the lifetime exclusion amount for federal gift tax purposes.
Compute the amount of taxable gifts for federal gift tax purposes.
3. Determination
of taxable estate
Recall assets includible in a decedents gross estate for federal estate tax purposes.
Recall allowable estate tax deductions for federal estate tax purposes.
Calculate the taxable estate for federal estate tax purposes.
Calculate the gross estate for federal estate tax purposes.
Calculate the allowable estate tax deductions for federal estate tax purposes
Calculate the amounts that should be included in, or excluded from, an individuals gross
income as reported on federal Form 1040 — U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
Analyze projected income for use in tax planning in future years.
Analyze client-provided documentation to determine the appropriate amount of gross
income to be reported on federal Form 1040 — U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
B. Reporting of items from pass-through entities
Prepare federal Form 1040 — U.S. Individual Income Tax Return based on the information
provided on Schedule K-1.
C. Adjustments and deductions to arrive at adjusted gross income and taxable income
Calculate the amount of adjustments and deductions to arrive at adjusted gross income
and taxable income on federal Form 1040 — U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
Calculate the qualifying business income (QBI) deduction for federal income tax purposes.
Analyze client-provided documentation to determine the validity of the deductions
taken to arrive at adjusted gross income or taxable income on federal Form 1040 — U.S.
Individual Income Tax Return.
D. Passive activity losses (excluding foreign tax credit implications)
Recall passive activities for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate net passive activity gains and losses for federal income tax purposes.
Prepare a loss carryforward schedule for passive activities for federal income tax purposes.
Calculate utilization of suspended losses on the disposition of a passive activity for
federal income tax purposes.
Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints: Regulation (REG) REG16
Regulation (REG)
Area IV – Federal Taxation of Individuals