The American Institute of CPAs has scheduled Jan. 1, 2011 as the official launch date of CBT-e, a more technologically modern version of the Uniform CPA Examination.

In a letter sent Friday to the leaders of the various state boards of accountancy, AICPA officials informed them of the launch date that has just been approved by the AICPA Board of Examiners. CBT-e, short for Computer-Based Testing evolution, will also update the content of the Uniform CPA Exam. The exam will include new content and skill specification outlines, including questions about International Financial Reporting Standards.

Also starting on Jan. 1, 2011, new authoritative literature will be released based on the FASB Codification of accounting standards and a new research task format will be introduced on the CPA Examination. A new tutorial and sample tests will be released in the fall of 2010 to give candidates time to familiarize themselves with the new research task format and authoritative literature.

The AICPA plans to make a series of announcements in the months ahead with more details about each of the scheduled CBT-e changes, including the transfer of written communication tasks from various parts of the exam to the Business Environment and Concepts section and the introduction of new task-based simulations in the exam.

The new content and skill specification outlines are now available in final form on the CPA Exam Web site, www.cpa-exam.org, along with the Fall 2009 issue of “The Uniform CPA Examination Alert,” which contains further information about the CBT-e changes.