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CA Foundation

Shishya's tracker has no announced CA Foundation exam date yet. Official site: icai.org.

CA Foundation (ICAI)

Entry-level examination of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India for the CA course (New Scheme of Education and Training). Four papers of 100 marks each: Paper 1 Accounting and Paper 2 Business Laws are subjective (3 hours each); Paper 3 Quantitative Aptitude (Business Mathematics, Logical Reasoning, Statistics) and Paper 4 Business Economics are objective — 100 multiple-choice questions in 2 hours, one mark each, 1/4 mark deducted for each wrong answer. Pass: 40% in each paper and 50% in aggregate at one sitting. Held three times a year — January, May and September.

97 days to exam(expected)📅 Dates & updates🎯 Expected cutoff🧠 Tricks & mnemonics📖 How to crack it
~90,000 vacancies(indicative / typical)✓ Verify on Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) ↗

Updated 26 Aug 2026 ·Vacancy counts change every cycle — always confirm the exact number in the latest official notification before applying.

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Sourced

Source: official exam authority notification · refreshed weekly. How this works →

CA Foundation — key facts

The conducting body's site is linked. Dates are announced ones only, each with its tier: official (the body's own notice) or reported (a secondary source).

Conducting body
Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) www.icai.org ↗
Dates

No date for the next cycle is announced yet.

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There are no CA Foundation practice questions on Shishya yet.

Ask the AI tutor about CA Foundation — the pattern, the syllabus, eligibility — in English and 18 Indian languages, free.

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CA Foundation eligibility

Verified against the official notification. Source ↗ · last reconciled 2026-05.

Education
Class 12 pass (any stream) from a recognised board. Candidates appearing in Class 12 can register but must clear the board before attempting CA Foundation.
  • Registration with ICAI is mandatory; valid for 4 years (extendable).
  • ICAI accepts CBSE, ICSE, all state boards, and equivalent international qualifications.
Attempts
Unlimited attempts within the 4-year registration validity period (extendable by paying revalidation fee).
Nationality
Indian citizen + foreign nationals (foreign candidates write the same paper).

CA Foundation cutoffs

Historical cutoffs are a guide, not a prediction. Use them to set a realistic target, not to predict next year's exact number.

Passing criteria (ICAI rule — all candidates same)

out of 400 marks (4 papers × 100 each)

CA Foundation has a flat qualifying bar — no relative ranking, no cutoff curve.

YearCategoryCutoff
2024Per paper minimum≥ 40%
2024Aggregate minimum≥ 50%
2024Pass rate — May 2024~22-25% (typical)
2024Pass rate — Nov 2024~20-23% (typical)

Source: official ↗ · verified 2026-05.

CA Foundation paper analysis — what actually got asked

Topic-by-topic weightage averaged across 2022-2024 papers. Use this to decide where to invest study hours, not where to skim. Source ↗ · verified 2026-05.

Paper 1 — Accounting

100/400 marks avg

  • Accounting Standards + Theoretical Framework + Capital + Revenue

    ~40 marks(10%)

  • Partnership + Company Accounts + Subsidiary Books

    ~60 marks(15%)

Paper 2 — Business Laws + BCR

100/400 marks avg

  • Indian Contract Act + Sales of Goods + Partnership Act + Companies Act

    ~60 marks(15%)

  • Business Correspondence & Reporting (Communication)

    ~40 marks(10%)

Paper 3 — Quantitative Aptitude

100/400 marks avg

  • Business Mathematics + Statistics

    ~60 marks(15%)

  • Logical Reasoning

    ~40 marks(10%)

Paper 4 — Business Economics + BCK

100/400 marks avg

  • Micro + Macro Economics

    ~60 marks(15%)

  • Business + Commercial Knowledge

    ~40 marks(10%)

Takeaways for prep planning

  • Accounting + Business Laws are the high-stakes papers — Accounting is the highest-yield prep return (concepts apply directly to Inter + Final).
  • ICAI's own study material is sufficient — coaching adds revision discipline, not new content.
  • Pass rate ~20-25% sounds harsh, but those who FAIL repeatedly typically fail just one paper. Targeted re-attempt on that paper is the standard recovery.

CA Foundation — Frequently asked questions

Is Shishya free for CA Foundation preparation?
Yes. Everything Shishya has for CA Foundation is free — no subscription and no credit card: the exam dates tracker, the facts on this page and the AI tutor. There are no CA Foundation practice questions or mock tests on Shishya yet.
What is the expected cutoff for CA Foundation?
Cutoffs change every cycle with paper difficulty and vacancies. Shishya maintains indicative score-to-rank bands and category-wise (General/EWS/OBC/SC/ST) expected cutoffs — not official figures — at https://shishya.in/exams/CA_FOUNDATION/cutoff
How can I prepare for CA Foundation for free?
Shishya offers CA Foundation preparation 100% free: subject-wise memory tricks (https://shishya.in/exams/CA_FOUNDATION/tricks) and an AI tutor in 18 Indian languages.

What can I get from CA Foundation?

Mock-score → expected rank → likely outcome. Use the mocks below to find your current band, then plan how many marks you need to climb.

AI-curated from historic cut-off patterns. Always verify with the latest official notification before making decisions.

News & timeline

See older updates →

Latest news

Important dates

  1. ✦September 2026 exam — Paper 2 (Business Laws and Business Correspondence)

    passed

    Sat, 5 Sept, 2026

    Officialresource.cdn.icai.org ↗

    Paper 2 held 2 PM to 5 PM · no key published for this stage

  2. ✦September 2026 exam — Paper 3 (Business Mathematics and Logical Reasoning)

    passed

    Mon, 7 Sept, 2026

    Officialresource.cdn.icai.org ↗

    Paper 3 held 2 PM to 4 PM (no advance reading time) · no key published for this stage

  3. ✦September 2026 exam — Paper 4 (Business Economics and Business & Commercial Knowledge)

    passed

    Wed, 9 Sept, 2026

    Officialresource.cdn.icai.org ↗

    Paper 4 held 2 PM to 4 PM (no advance reading time) · no key published for this stage

  4. January 2027 notification (expected)

    5 days away

    Thu, 15 Oct, 2026

    Expected

    Next cycle notification expected mid-October 2026

  5. January 2027 application start (expected)

    22 days away

    Sun, 1 Nov, 2026

    Expected

    Application window typically opens early November for January session

  6. September 2026 result (expected)

    27 days away

    Fri, 6 Nov, 2026

    Expected

    Results typically declared 45-60 days after exam completion

  7. ✦January 2027 exam (expected)

    98 days away

    Sat, 16 Jan, 2027

    Expected

    January session typically held mid-January across 4 days · no key published for this stage