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Pick the spoke that answers the question you actually have. These labels are navigation, not rankings. Credential and enrollment rules live on the enrolled-agent guide. Dates, attempts, and the blackout live on dates and fees. Booking steps live on the PSI testing page. What a scaled 500 means lives on scoring. Rehearsal method lives on the practice-exam guide. Free questions (with the site’s email path) live on free practice. What a study system should include lives on study materials; course formats live on courses; week-by-week sequencing lives on the 10-week study plan. Part scope lives on the Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 hubs. Current PassFast plans, if you want them, are only on the pricing page. This hub does not restate plan prices or guarantees.
Three parts, one credential
You earn the exam pathway by passing all three parts, not by excelling at one. The IRS lets you take them in any order and on different days. Part 1 covers individuals. Part 2 covers businesses. Part 3 covers representation, practices, and procedures. Each part is 100 multiple-choice questions: 85 scored and 15 experimental items that are not identified and do not count toward the score. Testing time is 3.5 hours. Seat time is about four hours, including a tutorial, a survey, and two scheduled breaks. A passing part generally carries for up to three years from the pass date; read the exceptions on the scoring page rather than assuming every old pass still counts. There is no college-degree requirement to sit the SEE. Steps after the third pass (PTIN, Form 23, and suitability) are on the what-is-an-enrolled-agent guide.
The current testing window
Domestic appointments run July 1, 2026 through February 28, 2027. This cycle does not open on a generic May 1 date. Testing is unavailable in March and April while the exam is updated. For this window, references are to the Internal Revenue Code, forms, and publications as amended through December 31, 2025, and “current year” means calendar year 2025. Do not study post-2025 legislation as if it were on this form of the test. You may attempt each part up to four times in the window. The $317 per-part fee is paid to PSI at scheduling. The IRS states it is non-refundable and non-transferable. Prep prices never include that fee. Retake waits, the 48-hour reschedule rule, and no-show forfeiture are on the dates-and-fees page. Use that page before you pay. International scheduling and testing are temporarily delayed. The expected September 1 to 2, 2026 start did not proceed, and replacement dates have not been announced. When international testing is offered under the current arrangement, it is remote-proctored only.
PSI is the testing vendor
Effective March 1, 2026, PSI Services, LLC develops and administers the EA-SEE. Prometric does not. If a bookmark, PDF, or forum post still says Prometric, treat it as historical and do not follow it for scheduling, ID rules, or score lookup. Create the PSI profile before you pay. The name on that profile should match the government ID you will bring and, later, the enrollment application. Domestic candidates can test at a PSI center or, if they meet PSI’s rules, by remote proctor. Book at least 24 hours ahead. Change or cancel at least 48 hours ahead if you want to avoid paying another full fee. After a fail, wait 24 hours before scheduling the same part again. Step-by-step scheduling, remote rules, and test-day ID live on the PSI testing page. The controlling room rules are in the PSI Candidate Information Bulletin, not in this hub.
A study path from this hub
Use the exam facts above to decide when you might sit, then use evidence, not a pass-rate claim, to decide whether you are ready. First, take the free diagnostic (email to start; results stay in the browser). It is a part-priority signal, not a prediction that you will pass. Second, put one part on a calendar inside the July to February window using the 10-week study plan. Ten weeks is an example for one part, not a promise to finish all three or to pass. Third, move to mixed timed sets with the practice-exam method and free practice. Practice percentages are not scaled scores. Fourth, when domain-level evidence is stable, book through PSI. Keep the $317 fee in a separate budget line. If you are choosing materials or a course format, start with study materials and courses, then the best EA exam prep shortlist for a dated provider pick, then compare current PassFast access only on pricing. The IRS points candidates to the Code, Circular 230, publications, forms, and its own sample questions, and says it does not recommend a specific commercial provider.
What exam requirements means here
People search “enrolled agent exam requirements” for two different things. To sit, you need a PSI account, a schedulable appointment in an open window, the per-part fee, and acceptable ID. There is no degree gate on the exam pathway. To be enrolled, you pass all three parts (or qualify for the narrow former-IRS experience route), file Form 23 with the $140 enrollment fee within one year of the third pass, and clear suitability. This hub covers the test. The credential checklist, continuing education, and PTIN renewal are on the what-is-an-enrolled-agent page.
What candidates ask next
What is the SEE?
The Special Enrollment Examination is the three-part IRS exam most candidates pass to apply for enrolled agent status. PSI administers it for the IRS. Passing the exam is not itself enrollment. You still apply and clear suitability.
How many parts are there, and do I have to take them in order?
Three parts: Individuals, Businesses, and Representation, Practices and Procedures. You may take them in any order and on non-consecutive days.
How much does the EA exam cost?
$317 per part at PSI scheduling for the current cycle. The fee is non-refundable and non-transferable. The separate IRS enrollment application fee is $140 via Form 23 after you pass all three. Prep costs are extra. See the dates-and-fees guide.
Who administers the EA exam?
PSI Services, LLC, effective March 1, 2026. Prometric is the prior vendor only. Scheduling steps are on the PSI testing page.
What is a passing EA exam score?
A scaled score of 500 on a 200 to 800 scale. The IRS does not publish a raw-percent cutoff, and this page does not invent one. Passing reports show a pass designation rather than a number. See the scoring guide.
Where should I start studying for the EA exam?
Confirm the part and the law period (through December 31, 2025 for this window), take the free diagnostic, and follow the 10-week study plan. Use the study-materials guide to check that instruction, questions, and feedback match the current PSI outline.
Is there free EA exam practice?
Yes. Free practice and the part sample paths are the free-question route. The free diagnostic is the shorter baseline. Neither is an official SEE form, and neither guarantees a result.
Do exam rules and enrollment rules live on the same checklist?
No. Exam shape, fee, and window are on this hub and the logistics spokes. PTIN, Form 23, suitability, and continuing education are on the what-is-an-enrolled-agent guide.
Primary sources
Exam facts on this page are checked against these current official sources.
