For CPAs/CAs/Accredited Accountants:
- Hold an active, valid, and unrevoked CPA license to practice accounting issued by a legally constituted state government authority.
For Non-CPAs:
- Hold a business degree (i.e., management, economics, finance, marketing, accounting, or other business field*) and/or a Master of Business Administration (MBA) or higher business degree from an accredited college or university; and be able to demonstrate, with business references or attestations from current or previous employers and/or partners, substantial experience in business valuation. For this purpose, substantial could mean:
- Two years or more of full-time or equivalent experience in business valuation and related disciplines; or
- Having performed 10 or more business valuations where the applicant’s role was significant enough to be referenced in the valuation report or a signatory on the report; or
- Being able to demonstrate substantial knowledge of business valuation theory, methodologies and practices. For example, having a combination of published works on the subject and completed either a PhD in finance or economics or a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from an accredited institution of higher education and having some work experience. Or, having obtained a certification from another recognized valuation-accrediting organization
Required For All Applicants*:
- Successfully demonstrate that applicant meets EACVA’s Experience Threshold by completing a sample Case Study or submitting an actual and sanitized valuation report prepared in the last 12 months for peer review (See Experience Alternative for Case Study);
- Submit two professional and two business references; and
- Attend a five-day training program
- Pass a comprehensive, five-hour, multiple-choice, proctored CVA examination.
An application to take the examination must be submitted prior to issuance of the exam. To hold an active CVA designation, individuals must pay requisite annual fees and comply with EACVA’s/NACVA’s recertification requirements. CVAs who allow these requirements to lapse will lose their certification and must reapply to become certified if they later choose to reinstate.
An application to take the examination must be submitted prior to issuance of the exam. To hold an active CVA designation, individuals must pay requisite annual fees and comply with NACVA’s recertification requirements. CVAs who allow these requirements to lapse will lose their certification and must reapply to become certified if they later choose to reinstate.
CVA Exam and Applied Experience
The certification process consists of two parts:
- Part One (testing knowledge) is the five-hour proctored exam, which consists of multiple-choice questions, testing applicants on NACVA’s Business Valuation Body of Knowledge. The exam is administered at the conclusion of each five-day training program or at local proctoring facilities NACVA has contracted with nationwide for the applicants’ convenience, or through live remote proctoring provided by Kryterion.
- Part Two (evaluating applied experience) is a take-home/in-office sample Case Study provided by EACVA and requires the completion of a comprehensive business valuation report (see Experience Alternative for Case Study below). Either Part One, the exam, or Part Two, the Case Study, if failed, may be retaken for a modest fee to cover postage, copying, grader’s fees, etc. Certain time restrictions apply. (EACVA’s Credentialing Administrator can provide more details on the process.)
All candidates must also pay a CVA certification exam fee.
Experience Alternative for Case Study
CVA applicants are required to demonstrate that they meet EACVA’s Experience Threshold by completing a sample Case Study or submitting an actual and sanitized valuation report on an operating business, prepared in the last 12 months, representative of the practitioner’s work product. The report submitted is reviewed using a standardized scoring key developed by a committee of NACVA subject matter experts and approved by the VCB.
*Note: Practitioner Membership pursuing the CVA in the European Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts (EACVA) is required to obtain or maintain the Certified Valuation Analyst® (CVA®).
EACVA reserves the right to refuse or terminate membership and/or certification to any person based on their responses to the professional status/conduct policy included in membership/designation application(s) and/or tri-annual recertification form. Additionally, EACVA may use whatever resources are available to confirm and/or investigate further crimes or convictions, if indicated above, to satisfy itself that what has been reported is accurate and complete. A member or holder of a EACVA certification may have their membership and/or certification terminated based on appropriate grounds as determined by the Executive Advisory Board.
