What Does "LPA" Mean? A Plain-English Guide to the Credential

If you landed here searching just the three letters — "LPA" — you're not alone, and it's a fair thing to wonder about. It's a real, state-issued license, not a made-up title, and it's the credential I hold myself. Here's the plain explanation, no alphabet soup.

What LPA stands for

LPA stands for Licensed Public Accountant. It's a license granted by a state board of accountancy — the same kind of state body that licenses CPAs — authorizing someone to practice public accounting: preparing taxes, keeping books, running payroll, and advising individuals and businesses on their finances.

How someone becomes an LPA

Requirements are set state by state, but the general shape is consistent: a combination of accounting education, a period of supervised professional experience, and passing an examination recognized by the state board. Once licensed, an LPA keeps the license active through continuing education, the same way a CPA does. It's a maintained credential, not a one-time certificate.

Where the LPA license exists

Not every state issues this particular license — it exists in a smaller number of states, Delaware among them, where the state Board of Accountancy licenses both CPAs and Public Accountants side by side. Where it exists, it carries the same legal standing as any other state accounting license: it's regulated, renewable, and revocable for cause, just like a CPA license.

What an LPA is licensed to do

• Prepare and plan individual and business tax returns
• Keep books and prepare financial statements for internal use
• Run payroll and handle day-to-day business accounting
• Advise on budgeting, debt payoff, and financial planning

The one category of work reserved specifically for CPAs is formal attestation — auditing or reviewing financial statements and signing an opinion on them, typically required when a bank, investor, or regulator needs that kind of assurance. Most individuals and small businesses never need that particular service.

Why I hold this credential

I'm licensed as an LPA here in Delaware, where the state Board of Accountancy licenses both credentials under the same regulatory roof. For the tax preparation, bookkeeping, payroll, and advisory work I do every day with clients, it's the exact same standing as a CPA license. If you want the fuller side-by-side comparison — what each credential can do, where they actually differ, and what matters more than the letters when you're choosing someone — I've written that out in LPA vs. CPA: What's the Difference?

How to verify any accountant's license

Whatever letters someone has after their name, you can and should check them. Every state maintains a public license lookup through its board of accountancy — in Delaware, that's the Delaware Board of Accountancy. A legitimate professional will never be bothered that you looked.

Common questions