The 2027 CPA Exam Blueprint: what changed
2026-10-21 · 4 minute read · By Binod Raj Singh, CPA
AICPA approved new Blueprints on September 16, 2026, effective January 2027. The changes are small. Here is every one of them, section by section.
The Blueprint is the official list of what each CPA Exam section can test. AICPA updates it every year. The 2027 version keeps the same six sections, the same areas, the same weights and the same skill levels. What changed is the wording of a handful of tasks and a few reference lists.
AUD
- Audit evidence. The task on sources of evidence now reads "sources of information to be used as audit evidence", and lists information generated using technology, including artificial intelligence, next to management's specialists, external sources and the audit team's own work.
- Reliability of data. Schedules, analyses or reconciliations "generated" (no longer "prepared") using technology, including AI, must still be tested for completeness, accuracy, authenticity and bias.
- Sampling. The task now names the two methods plainly: attributes sampling and variables sampling, matched to tests of controls and tests of details.
- Investments. The fair value task for investments in securities is reworded as audit considerations. The content is the same.
FAR
- The OPEB task for state and local governments now says "other postemployment benefit (OPEB) liability" in place of "net OPEB liability", so it covers plans with and without a trust.
- NCGA Statements and Interpretations join the list of governmental references.
REG and ISC
- REG: the capital gains task now lists stocks, bonds and digital assets as examples, in place of "virtual currencies".
- ISC: the separate blockchain task under the COSO framework is gone. Blockchain and electronic data interchange now appear as examples of systems that interact with ERP and accounting information systems. The COSO blockchain paper is no longer a reference.
BAR and TCP
No changes to tasks.
What it means for CPA Notes
Every chapter's Blueprint tab now shows the 2027 wording. The AUD evidence chapter covers AI-generated information as a source of evidence. Nothing you have already studied with us is out of date.
Sources. AICPA: Uniform CPA Examination Blueprints, effective January 2027