ICAI CA Exam Pattern 2026: Paper-wise Marking Scheme, Pattern for CA Foundation, Intermediate, Final exam

Q: How many CA exam levels are there for students appear for the exam ?

There are 3 CA exam levels including CA Foundation, CA Intermediate and CA Final.

ICAI CA exam pattern is prescribed by the ICAI. Candidates are advised to check the exam pattern before beginning their preparation as it will help them to have an idea of which topic carries the highest marks.

Aakanksha SinghUpdated on : Mar 01 2026 16:28 IST

ICAI CA Exam Pattern 2026: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India lays out the CA exam pattern for students who are willing to appear for the accountancy exam. The ICAI CA exam is conducted twice a year. The exam pattern helps in training the candidate in accounting and taxation. Candidates can check the exam pattern from the official website of the ICAI.

Candidates must know that the CA exam is divided into three levels: Foundation, Intermediate, and Final. Candidates are required to qualify for all the levels in order to gain certification. The ICAI CA exam pattern is different for all three levels of the CA courses, and candidates are required to be well-versed in it. Similarly, the ICAI CA syllabus for all three levels is different.

The CA exams are for those candidates who are willing to become Chartered Accountants. Since the exam is conducted in two sessions, the first session takes place in May, and the second session takes place in the month of December.

As per the latest notification by ICAI which released on February 26, 2026, the result for Chartered Accountants (CA) Final Examination, conducted in January 2026, will tentatively be live by the evening of March 1, 2026. Candidates can go to the official website of ICAI - icai.nic.in to download the result using their registration number and roll number.

ICAI CA Exam Pattern 2026

Candidates who belong to the English medium school are provided with the English syllabus, whereas candidates who have studied in the Hindi medium get CA question papers in a bilingual language. Candidates may use Hindi to answer the questions on the Accounting, Taxation, and Advanced Accounting exam papers.

Candidates must know that there are four papers in the CA foundation exam. While papers 1 and 2 are subjective types, papers 3 and 4 are objective types. The total mark for the CA exam is 400 where each paper is for 100 marks.

ICAI CA Foundation Exam Pattern 2026

The CA Foundation is the initial level of the Chartered Accountancy programme. Candidates who appear for the CA examination after completing their class 12th appear for the CA Foundation exam. The Foundation exam has been further divided into four parts, and candidates have to separately clear all four exams. Candidates must know that the minimum score required to qualify for the CA Foundation exam is 40 per cent marks in each paper, whereas candidates have to score 55 per cent overall across all four papers.

Take a look below at the marking scheme of skill assessment - CA Foundation course below :

ICAI CA Foundation Papers		Total Marks	Type of Questions
1	Principles and Practice of Accounting	100	Subjective
2	Business Laws	100	Subjective
3	Quantitative Aptitude	100	Objective
3A	Business Mathematics	40 (Out of 100)	Objective
3B	Logical Reasoning	20 (Out of 100)	Objective
3C	Statistics	40 (Out of 100)	Objective
4	Business Economics	100	Objective

Exam Pattern of CA Intermediate Exam

ICAI CA Intermediate Papers		Total Marks
1	Advance Accounting	100 Marks
2	Corporate and Other Laws	100 Marks
2A	Company law and Limited Ability Partnership Law	70 (out of 100)
2B	Other Laws	30 (out of 100)
3	Taxation	100
3A	Income Tax Law	50 (out of 100)
3B	Goods And Services Tax	50 (out of 100)
4	Cost and Management Accounting	100
5	Auditing and Code of Ethics	100
6	Financial Management and Strategic Management	100
6A	Financial Management	50 (out of 100)
6B	Strategic Management	50 (out of 100)

ICAI CA Final Papers		Total Marks
1	Financial Reporting	100
2	Advanced Financial Management	100
3	Advanced Auditing and Professional Ethics	100
4	Direct Tax Laws and International Taxation	100
5	Indirect Tax Laws	100
	Goods and Services Tax	80 (out of 100)
	Customs & FTP	20 (out of 100)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

In which mode will the CA exam be conducted this year?

The CA exams will be conducted offline in pen-paper format.

How many times does the CA exam take place in a year?

The CA exam takes place twice a year. The first phase of the exam is conducted in May, whereas the second phase is conducted in November.

Which body prescribes the CA exam pattern?

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) prescribes the exam pattern of CA course levels. The agency is also responsible for conducting the CA courses and certification in India.

What difficulty level can a candidate expect for CA foundation papers?

Given that Foundation is the first level of the Chartered Accountancy course, the difficulty level of CA Foundation papers is often easy to moderate in comparison to the Intermediate and Final levels.

What difficulty level can a candidate expect for CA Intermediate exams?

The CA Intermediate exams are very difficult. As a result of the extensive syllabus and numerous subjects, it is regarded as one of the most difficult exams. The CA Intermediate exam has a low pass rate.

How many CA exam levels are there for students appear for the exam ?

There are 3 CA exam levels including CA Foundation, CA Intermediate and CA Final.

What is CA exam eligibility ?

The basic CA exam eligibility is that the candidates must have been above 18 years and passed 10+2 exams with an aggregate of 65% in Accounts/Maths and English. Also, candidates should have qualified for other subjects with 50%.