CA Foundation 2023 – Everything you want to Know: Dates, Registration, Eligibility, Syllabus, Exam Pattern, and Study Pattern

The CA Foundation course is undoubtedly, an entry level examination for entering into the most prestigious Accountancy Examination of India i.e. Chartered Accountancy.

CA Foundation examination replaced the earlier CPT examination going on which was infact an objective type MCQ based OMR test for qualifying entrance to CA Course.

One can also understand that this is the first stage to become a Chartered Accountant. After this a student needs to qualify two other stages of examination i.e. Intermediate and Final Stage, apart from going through the practical training.

CA Foundation is the qualifying entrance test for registration to the Chartered Accountancy Course. This test is conducted 2 times in a year to make students eligible to qualify their entry in the course. It’s a national level examination.

This examination is conducted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. The language of the examination is English and the purpose of conducting this exam is to train and certify the candidates who aspire to become Chartered Accountants.

Eligibility Criteria (excluding exemptions)

A candidate should check the eligibility criteria before applying for CA Foundation. For being eligible, the candidate needs to meet the minimum criteria of qualification laid down by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of  India.

(i) Enrol for the Foundation Course after passing Class 10th Examination conducted by an examining body constituted by law in India or an examination recognized by the Central Government as equivalent thereto.

(ii) Register for the Foundation Course on or before the 1st day of January or the 1st day of July for the examination to be held in the months of May/June or November/December respectively.

(iii) Appear in Foundation Examination after appearing in the Senior Secondary Examination (10+2 examination) conducted by an examining body constituted by law in India or an examination recognised by the Central Government as equivalent thereto and on complying with above 

Exemptions for CA Foundation

• Candidates who have completed their graduation or Post graduation will not be eligible for CA Foundation exam. 
• Candidates who have cleared the Intermediate levels of ICSI or ICMAI will also not be eligible for CA Foundation course.

CA Foundation Course Subjects

1. Principle and basics of accounting.

2. Business law and business corresponding and recording

3. Business mathematics and logical reasoning and statistics

4. Business economics and business and commercial knowledge

Paper	Objective
PAPER – 1 : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF ACCOUNTING	To develop an understanding of the basic concepts and principles of Accounting and acquire the ability to apply the same in preparing financial statements and simple problem solving.
PAPER – 2 : BUSINESS LAWS AND BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCEAND REPORTING	To develop an understanding of significant provisions of select business laws and acquire the ability to address basic application-oriented issues.To acquire and develop good communication skills requisite for business correspondence and reporting. SECTION A : BUSINESS LAWS (60 MARKS)SECTION B : BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE AND REPORTING (MARKS 40)
PAPER –3: BUSINESS MATHEMATICS, LOGICAL REASONINGAND STATISTICS	(a) To develop an understanding of the basic mathematical and statistical tools and their application in Business, Finance and Economics.(b) To develop logical reasoning skills and apply the same in simple problem solving. Part – A. Business Mathematics (40 Marks)Part – B: Logical Reasoning (20 Marks)Part – C: Statistics (40 Marks)
PAPER – 4 : BUSINESS ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ANDCOMMERCIAL KNOWLEDGE	To develop an understanding of the concepts and theories in Business Economics and apply such concepts and theories in simple problem solving.To develop an understanding of common business and commercial concepts and to keep abreast with developments in the business and commercial world.PART I : BUSINESS ECONOMICS (60 Marks)PART – II : BUSINESS AND COMMERCIAL KNOWLEDGE (40 MARKS)

Announcements by ICAI (as released by ICAI vide notification dated 05^th July 2023 and 17^th August 2023

FOUNDATION COURSE EXAMINATION

[As per syllabus contained in the scheme notified by the Council under Regulation 25 F (3) of the Chartered Accountants Regulations, 1988.]

Earlier declared dates	Revised Dates
24th December 202326th December 202328th December 2023 30th December 2023	31st December 2023, 2nd January 202404th January 202406th January 2024

Other Details

• Paper(s) 3 & 4 of Foundation Examination are of 2 hours duration

• In Paper 3 and 4 of Foundation Examination there will not be any advance reading time, whereas in all other papers / exams mentioned above, an advance reading time of 15 minutes will be given from 1.45 PM (IST) to 2 PM (IST). 
• Further, in case of composite papers having both MCQs based & Descriptive Question Papers, seal of MCQs based Question Paper shall be opened at 2 PM (IST), in other words there will be no prior reading time for MCQs based Question Papers

PLACES OF EXAMINATION CENTRES:

The Chartered Accountants Examinations, November / December 2023 will be held in the following Indian cities:

Name of the State	(No.of Cities)	Name of the Examination City
Andaman and Nicobar Islands	1	Port Blair
Andhra Pradesh	14	Anantapur, Eluru, Guntur, Kadapa, Kakinada, Kurnool, Nellore, Ongole, Rajamahendravaram, Srikakulam, Tirupati, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam andVizianagaram
Assam	5	Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Jorhat, Silchar and Tinsukia
Bihar	12	Begusarai, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Gaya, Madhubani, Motihari, Muzaffarpur, Patna, Purnea, Samastipur, Sitamarhi and Siwan
Chattisgarh	5	Bilaspur, Durg, Raigarh, Raipur and Rajnandgaon
Chandigarh	1	Chandigarh
Delhi / New Delhi	1	Delhi / New Delhi
Goa	2	Mapusa and Margao
Gujarat	20	Ahmedabad, Anand, Bharuch, Bhavnagar, Bhuj, Gandhidham, Gandhinagar,Himatnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Mehsana, Nadiad, Navsari, Palanpur, Porbandar, Rajkot, Surat, Surendranagar, Vadodara and  Vapi
Haryana	18	Ambala, Bahadurgarh, Bhiwani, Faridabad, Fatehabad, Gurgaon (Gurugram),Hisar, Jind, Kaithal, Karnal, Kurukshetra, Narnaul, Panipat, Rewari, Rohtak, Sirsa, Sonepat and Yamuna Nagar
Himachal Pradesh	1	Shimla
Jammu & Kashmir	2	Jammu and Srinagar
Jharkhand	7	Bokaro Steel City, Deoghar, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, Jamshedpur, Ramgarh and Ranchi
Karnataka	23	Bagalkot, Belgaum, Bellary, Bengaluru, Chikkaballapur, Chitradurga, Davangere, Gadag, Hassan, Haveri, Hubli, Kalaburgi (Gulbarga), Kolar, Koppal, Mandya, Mangalore, Mysore, Raichur, Shimoga, Sirsi, Tumakuru, Udupi and Vijayapura
Kerala	14	Adoor, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Idukki, Kalpetta, Kannur, Kasaragod, Kollam (Quilon), Kottayam, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Palakkad, Thiruvananthapuramand Thrissur
Madhya Pradesh	15	Bhopal, Burhanpur, Chhindwara Gwalior, Indore, Jabalpur, Katni, Khandwa, Mandsaur, Neemuch, Ratlam, Rewa, Sagar, Satna and Ujjain
Maharashtra	36	Ahmednagar, Akola, Amravati, Aurangabad, Badlapur, Beed, Bhiwandi, Khamgaon (Buldhana), Chandrapur, Dhule, Gondia, Ichalkaranji, Jalgaon, Jalna, Kolhapur, Latur, Mumbai, Nagpur, Nanded, Nandurbar, Nashik, Navi Mumbai, Palghar, Panvel, Parbhani, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Pune, Ratnagiri,Sangli, Satara, Sindhudurg, Solapur, Thane, Vasai, Wardha and Yavatmal
Meghalaya	1	Shillong
Odisha	9	Balangir, Balasore, Berhampur (Brahmapur), Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Jharsuguda, Rayagada, Rourkela and Sambalpur
Puducherry	1	Puducherry
Punjab	8	Amritsar, Bathinda, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Mandi Gobindgarh, Pathankot, Patiala and Sangrur
Rajasthan	22	Ajmer, Alwar, Banswara, Beawar, Bharatpur, Bhilwara, Bikaner, Bundi Chittorgarh, Churu, Jaipur, Jhunjhunu, Jodhpur, Kishangarh, Kota, Nagaur,Pali – Marwar, Rajsamand, Sikar, Sirohi, Sri Ganganagar and Udaipur
Sikkim	1	Gangtok
Tamil Nadu	27	Chennai, Coimbatore, Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Erode, Hosur, Kancheepuram, Karaikudi, Karur, Kumbakonam, Madurai, Nagapattinam, Nagercoil, Namakkal, Pudukkottai, Salem, Sivakasi, Theni, Tiruchirapalli, Tirunelveli, Tirupur, Tiruvallur, Tiruvannamalai, Tuticorin, Vellore andVillupuram
Telangana	8	Adilabad, Hyderabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, Mahabubnagar, Nalgonda, Nizamabad and Warangal
Tripura	1	Agartala
Uttar Pradesh	18	Agra, Aligarh, Allahabad (Prayagraj), Bareilly, Bulandshahr, Firozabad,Ghaziabad, Gorakhpur, Jhansi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Mathura, Meerut, Moradabad, Muzaffarnagar, Noida, Saharanpur and Varanasi
Uttarakhand	4	Dehradun, Haldwani, Haridwar and Kashipur
West Bengal	7	Asansol, Durgapur, Hooghly, Kharagpur, Kolkata, Raniganj and Siliguri

PLACES OF EXAMINATION CENTRES OVERSEAS:

[FOR FOUNDATION, INTERMEDIATE AND FINAL EXAMINATIONS ONLY]

The November / December 2023 Examinations will also be held at 8 (Eight) overseas examination centres, namely:

• The Examination commencement timing at Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Muscat Centres will be 12.30 PM i.e., Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Muscat local time corresponding / equivalent to 2 PM. (IST). 
• The Examination commencement timing at Bahrain, Doha, and Kuwait Centre will be 11.30 AM i.e., Bahrain / Doha / Kuwait local time corresponding / equivalent to 2 PM (IST). 
• The Examination commencement Timing at Kathmandu (Nepal) Centre will be 2.15 PM Nepal local time corresponding / equivalent to 2 PM (IST). 
• The Examination commencement timing at Thimpu (Bhutan) Centre will be 2.30 PM Bhutan local time corresponding / equivalent to 2 PM (IST).
• The Council reserves the right to withdraw any city / centre at any stage without assigning any reason.

Online filling up of examination forms:

• As a part of automation and platform consolidation, ICAI is pleased to announce that all candidates in respect of Foundation,   Intermediate   &   Final   Examinations   will   be   required   to apply   online at https://eservices.icai.org (Self Service Portal – SSP) for November / December 2023 Exam and also pay the requisite examination fee online. 
• These forms are based on your eligibility of your course based on announcements and regulations. 
• These forms will be available on SSP, and you are requested to login with your credentials (Username <SRN@icai.org> and password). 
• These Exam forms will be available in SSP effective designated dates as announced on www.icai.org.

• Kindly Note: If you have never registered as a user in SSP, kindly open the following URL: https://eservices.icai.org/EForms/configuredHtml/1666/57499/Registration.html?action=existing
• Please use forgot password option in case you have forgotten or lost your password. 
• Students are also requested to Create Username, Register Course, Convert Course, Revalidate, Update Photo, Signature and Address on SSP only.
• Members desirous to apply for Post Qualification Course Examinations i.e., International Taxation – Assessment Test (INTT – AT) and Insurance and Risk Management (IRM) Technical Examination (which is open to the members of the Institute) are required to apply on-line at pqc.icaiexam.icai.org and also pay the applicable examination fee online only.
• Examination fee can be remitted on-line by using VISA or MASTER or MAESTRO Credit / Debit Card / Rupay Card / Net Banking / Bhim UPI.

Opening and closing of online window for submission of examination application forms.

The following dates(s) may be noted:

Details	For Foundation Exam- [December 2023]
Commencement of submission of online examination application forms	2nd August 2023[Wednesday]
Last date for submission of online examination application forms (without late fees)	23rd August 2023[Wednesday]
Last date for submission of online examination application forms (with late fees of ` 600/- or US $ 10)	30th August 2023[Wednesday]

Further, for students seeking change of examination city / medium for the Chartered Accountants Examination – November / December 2023, the correction window for the examination forms already filled will be available during 1st September 2023 [Friday] to 7th September 2023 [Thursday].

Examination Fee

The examination fee(s) for various courses are as under: —

Foundation Course Examination
For Indian Centre(s)	₹ 1500/-
For Overseas Centre(s) – Excluding Bhutan & Kathmandu Centre(s)	US$ 325
For Bhutan & Kathmandu Centre(s)	INR ₹ 2200

The late fee for submission of examination application form after the scheduled last date would be ` 600/- (for Indian / Kathmandu / Bhutan Centres) and US $ 10 (for Abroad Centres) as decided by the Council.

OPTION TO ANSWER PAPERS IN HINDI:

Candidates of Foundation, Intermediate and Final Examinations will be allowed to opt for English / Hindi medium for answering papers. Detailed information will be found in guidance notes hosted at https://eservices.icai.org 

Understanding Syllabus of CA Foundation

ICAI has prescribed detailed syllabus w.r.t. each paper and content which will be part of the test. Following are the topics and subjects which are required to be part of the test. Students are expected to understand and have a proper grip on the topics. A proper SWOT analysis should be done by the students w.r.t. topics. The focus should be more on the topics/ subjects which seems tough or difficult for them.

PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF ACCOUNTING	Theoretical FrameworkAccounting ProcessBank Reconciliation StatementInventoriesConcept and Accounting of DepreciationAccounting for Special TransactionsIntroduction to Company AccountsFinal Accounts of Sole ProprietorsPartnership AccountsFinancial Statements of Not-for-Profit Organizations
BUSINESS LAWS AND BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCEAND REPORTING	The Indian Contract Act, 1872: An overview of Sections 1 to 75 covering the general nature of contract, consideration, other essential elements of a valid contract, performance of contract, breach of contract, Contingent and Quasi Contract.The Sale of Goods Act, 1930: Formation of the contract of sale, Conditions and Warranties, Transfer of ownership and delivery of goods, Unpaid seller and his rights. The Indian Partnership Act, 1932: General Nature of Partnership, Rights and duties of partners, Reconstitution of firms, Registration and dissolution of a firm.The Limited Liability Partnership Act, 2008: Introduction- covering nature and scope, Essential features, characteristics of LLP, Incorporation and differences with other forms of organizations.The Companies Act, 2013 : Essential features of company, corporate veil theory, Classes of companies, types of share capital, Incorporation of company, Memorandum of Association, Articles of Association, Doctrine of Indoor ManagementCommunicationSentence Types (Direct-Indirect, Active -Passive Speech)Vocabulary Root Words, Synonyms, Antonyms, Prefixes, Suffixes), Phrasal verbs, Collocations and Idioms.Comprehension Passages and Note MakingIntroduction to Basic WritingPrécis WritingArticle WritingReport WritingWriting Formal LettersWriting Formal MailsResume WritingMeetings
BUSINESS MATHEMATICS, LOGICAL REASONINGAND STATISTICS	Ratio and Proportion, Indices and LogarithmsEquations and MatricesLinear Inequalities with Objective Functions and Optimization w.r.t. objective function.Time value of MoneyPermutations and CombinationsSequence and SeriesSets, Relations and FunctionsBasic applications of Differential and Integral calculusLogical ReasoningStatistical description of DataMeasures of Central tendency and DispersionProbabilityTheoretical DistributionsCorrelation and RegressionIndex Numbers and Time Series
BUSINESS ECONOMICS AND BUSINESS ANDCOMMERCIAL KNOWLEDGE	Introduction to Business EconomicsTheory of Demand and SupplyTheory of Production and CostPrice Determination in Different MarketsBusiness CyclesBusiness and Commercial Knowledge – An IntroductionBusiness EnvironmentBusiness OrganizationsGovernment Policies for Business GrowthOrganizations Facilitating BusinessCommon Business Terminologies

CA foundation cut off/Passing Criteria

ICAI has established a passing criteria which is minimum of 40% marks in each part i.e., Paper- 1, Paper -2, Paper -3 and Paper -4 separately as the case may be, and 50% marks in aggregate of all parts put together for passing the Test . 40 % marks in each subject or 50 % marks in aggregate

Following methodology is suggested for achieving the passing criteria and cracking the exam

1. Understanding the Syllabus
2. Making a Study Plan
3. Journals and Bulleteins released by ICAI
4. Books
5. Attending Classes
6. Giving Tests periodically
7. Self Practice