CA – Chartered Accountant is one of the most respectful career fields in India & it is conducted by ICAI – Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. It is a national level exam. ICAI conducts exams for every level twice a year. In this article, we will be discussing the CA eligibility criteria for every level in detail.

To be a qualified Chartered Accountant one needs to clear 3 major stages – 

1. CA Foundation
2. CA Intermediate
3. CA Final

CA Eligibility

In this article, you will get to know about- 

1. CA Foundation Eligibility
2. CA IPCC / Inter Eligibility
3. CA Final Eligibility

CA Foundation Eligibility– 

1. Overview – 
   1. This level consists of four papers. 
   2. This exam was previously recognized as CA – CPT exam.
2. Eligibility – 

Following candidates are eligible – 

• • Candidate must have passed or appeared in this year for class 12 or any equivalent examination carried out by recognized board – CA Foundation course is only for 10+2 class. A student who has appeared in the class 12 examination may register for this level. 
  • Candidate must have undergone a minimum of 4 months of the study period before appearing for the exam – This is after the registration process which every student has to undergo for a minimum of 4 months of study.
  • Exception – Candidates who have completed graduation need not register for this exam. Graduates are exempted from CA Foundation registration, they can directly register for CA Intermediate Course.

CA IPCC/Inter Eligibility – 

1. Overview – 
   • This level consists of seven papers.
   • This is the second level of the CA course conducted by ICAI.
2. Eligibility –

• • Candidate must have passed foundation examination – Candidates who have passed CA Foundation examination with a minimum of 40% marks in each paper & a minimum of 50% marks in aggregate of all papers, subject to the principle of negative marking.
  • Candidate must possess a graduate/post-graduate degree in commerce stream with a minimum of 55% in the examination conducted by a recognized university (It includes Open University) – This is an exception clause to directly enroll for IPCC/Inter level.
  • Candidates who have passed Intermediate level examination conducted by the Institute of Cost Accountant of India or by The Institute of Company Secretaries of India can directly join at this level (Exempted from Foundation level) – Candidates who are pursuing CS & CMA and have cleared intermediate level can directly enroll for this level.

CA Final Eligibility –

1. Overview – 

1. • This level consists of eight papers.
   • This is the final level of the CA course conducted by ICAI.
2. Eligibility – 

• • Candidate should have registered with the board of studies for the final course.
  • Candidate should have completed article training of prescribed period of 3 years or 3.5 years, as the case may be on the date of filing of final exam application form – Candidate can appear for the CA Final examination during the last six months of their ongoing articleship.
  • Candidate should have passed the Intermediate Examination or Professional Education Examination – II./PCE/IPCE/Intermediate (IPC) Examination

At last, I will conclude by saying that the CA course covers the advanced knowledge of Financial Reporting, Management Accounting, Strategic Financial Management, Professional Ethics, Information System Control & Advanced Auditing.  

We hope this article about CA eligibility has helped you in having a clear understanding of CA eligibility of all exam levels for the CA Exam.