Retired porn star Asia Carrera has a lot to celebrate ... because she just passed the bar exam in Texas and is one step closer to officially being a lawyer!

Asia -- born Jessica Steinhauser -- recently announced on Facebook she passed the bar after taking the highly demanding test back in February ... and it seems she's ready to start practicing law.

TMZ looked into it ... and sure enough, Asia is listed -- under her birth name -- among those who were admitted to The State Bar of Texas.

The former adult film star previously said via Facebook ... she took the bar for the second time inside a huge room in Waco, packed with nearly 1,000 would-be lawyers taking the grueling exam. She said she was more than ready this time after missing by just two points on her prior attempt.

What's really wild is ... Asia said she didn't even want to be a lawyer -- she just wanted to prove she could pass the bar. The development isn't really that shocking ... AC is best known for her prior career, but it is also well documented that she's super smart -- a member of Mensa, with an IQ of 156. And she already had a master's degree in education.

There's a great pro bono joke somewhere in all this ... but we're taking the high road.

Congrats, Asia!