Chartered Accountancy Foundation

CA Foundation is the entry-level examination of the Chartered Accountancy course, conducted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). It tests four papers: Accounting, Business Laws, Quantitative Aptitude and Business Economics. Under the current scheme, ICAI holds the Foundation exam three times a year, in January, May and September.

The next session is January 2027. ICAI released its schedule on 23 September 2026, and the exam form opens on 3 November 2026. This page covers the dates, eligibility, application fee, exam pattern, syllabus, passing rules and pass-percentage trends, along with a practical plan to prepare. Each section links to a detailed page where you need more depth.

CA Foundation at a glance

CA Foundation January 2027 important dates

The dates below come from ICAI announcement No. 13-CA (EXAM)/JANUARY/2027, dated 23 September 2026.

The paper-wise dates are as widely reported from the ICAI schedule; the announcement lists the Foundation exam days as 3, 5, 7 and 9 January 2027. ICAI has said the schedule will not change even if a central, state or local government declares a holiday on any exam day. Dates can still be revised by ICAI, so track the examination announcements on icai.org and your registered email.

Other sessions

• September 2026: The Foundation exam was held on 2, 5, 7 and 9 September 2026. As of 11 October 2026, ICAI had not announced the result date. The September 2025 result was declared on 3 November 2025, which gives a rough idea of timing only.

• May 2027: ICAI has not released the schedule yet. Under the four-month rule, you would need to register for the Foundation course by 1 January 2027 to sit this session. Confirm this with ICAI before relying on it.

Eligibility for CA Foundation

Educational qualification

You can register for the Foundation course after passing Class 10 from a recognised board. You must pass Class 12 (or an equivalent examination) before you appear in the Foundation exam. Students from any stream can register; commerce is not required.

Registration period

Candidates must stay registered with ICAI's Board of Studies for at least four months on or before the first day of the exam month. For the January 2027 session, that meant registering by 1 September 2026. Registration is valid for four years from your first eligible attempt, and ICAI's FAQs state that revalidation is not permitted at the Foundation level.

Age limit

ICAI does not prescribe an upper or lower age limit for CA Foundation. The Class 12 requirement and the four-month registration rule are the conditions that matter.

Fees and how to apply

There are two separate payments. The one-time Foundation registration fee is Rs. 9,000 as per ICAI's FAQs, which includes the prospectus and study material. The exam fee is paid every session when you fill the exam form.

Steps to fill the exam form

1. Log in to the Self Service Portal: Use your ICAI registration credentials at eservices.icai.org.

2. Open the exam application: Select the Foundation exam form for the January 2027 session once it opens on 3 November 2026.

3. Choose the exam city and medium: Pick your preferred centre city and English or Hindi as the answering medium.

4. Check your details: Verify your name, photograph, signature and Class 12 status against your records.

5. Pay the fee online: ICAI accepts credit and debit cards, net banking and UPI.

6. Save the confirmation: Download the submitted form and payment receipt for your records.

The most common problem is missing the registration cut-off. If you registered after the four-month deadline, you cannot sit that session even if the exam form window is open.

CA Foundation exam pattern

All papers start at 2 PM IST. Papers 1 and 2 get 15 minutes of advance reading time from 1:45 PM; Papers 3 and 4 do not. In the objective papers, 0.25 marks are deducted for each wrong answer.

What this means for you

• Writing practice matters: Half the exam is subjective, so presentation, working notes and legal reasoning earn marks.

• Guessing has a cost: Four wrong answers in Papers 3 or 4 wipe out the marks of one correct answer.

• Speed is tight in the MCQ papers: Two hours for 100 marks leaves little time to rework a calculation.

Older pages may still show Business Correspondence and Reporting in Paper 2 or Business and Commercial Knowledge in Paper 4. Those sections belong to the earlier scheme.

CA Foundation syllabus summary

ICAI's Board of Studies publishes study material for each paper, marked with the exam sessions it applies to.

Passing criteria and result

CA Foundation has no competitive cut-off. You pass if you score at least 40% in each paper and at least 50% in aggregate (200 out of 400) in a single sitting. If you miss either condition, you reappear in all four papers in a later session.

Figures are from ICAI result press releases. Roughly one in five candidates has passed in recent sessions, so aim well above the minimums.

What comes after CA Foundation

Passing Foundation makes you eligible to register for CA Intermediate. After Intermediate, students move to practical training and the CA Final, along with the other training requirements ICAI prescribes. Graduates and some professional-course students can skip Foundation through ICAI's direct entry route to Intermediate.

How to prepare for CA Foundation

1. Start with ICAI study material: The exam is set from it. Read each chapter, then solve its illustrations and end-of-chapter questions.

2. Balance subjective and objective papers: Do Accounting problems daily. Write law answers in a structured format: provision, facts, conclusion.

3. Build speed for Papers 3 and 4: Practise timed MCQ sets so you can finish 100 marks in two hours without rushing at the end.

4. Use ICAI resources: Mock Test Papers, Revision Test Papers and past question papers show the level and style of questions.

5. Revise in cycles: Keep short notes and an error log, and revise them weekly.

Mock tests in the final phase

In the last six to eight weeks, take full-length papers in exam timing, starting at 2 PM to match the real schedule. Check each attempt against the 40% per paper and 50% aggregate rule, not just the total. For timed practice in the current pattern.

For official notices, use the ICAI website at icai.org and apply only through the ICAI Self Service Portal.