CA exam to be upgraded; expect major changes

To keep up with the changing business environment, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has decided to upgrade the CA exam.

According to a report in Economic Times, the CA exam, which is considered to be the toughest examination in India is all set to undergo a change after 10 years as the ICAI has approached the ministry of corporate affairs to overhaul the exam. The curriculum is expected to be improved along with introduction of subjects, electives, and open book tests in a few papers.

The institute’s decision to change the CA exam has been taken keeping in view, the changes that the business world is undergoing and the new auditing challenges.

In the changed scenario, the chartered accountants will have to understand the nuances of a new indirect tax regime like goods and services tax (GST), and master the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS).

“Globalisation has brought to the fore not only opportunities in areas of national and international financial reporting, taxation, finance and corporate laws but also challenges to the chartered accountancy profession,” ICAI President M Devaraja Reddy was quoted as saying.

“The institute has been conscious and proactive towards the ever-changing needs. We have proposed the revision of the curriculum after considering the views of various stakeholders. We are awaiting the views of the ministry,” he added.

List of colleges for CA exam

The changes that the ICAI has suggested is listed below. (These are not the final changes).

• The entry-level exam is likely to see introduction of subjective questions over and above the regular questions.
• Two new papers Business Correspondence and Reporting and Business and Commercial Knowledge are likely to be introduced at the Foundation level. One new subject, Economics for Finance, may be included at the Intermediate level.
• At the Final level, Electives would be introduced as the eighth paper, with open-book examination to tackle questions of case studies. The electives offered include Risk Management, International Taxation, Financial Services and Capital Markets, Global Financial Reporting Standards, Economic Laws and Multi-Disciplinary Case.
• The paper on Information System Control and Audit may be renamed as Information System Risk Management and Audit. It will be a part of the Advanced Integrated course on Information Technology and Soft Skills.
• It has been proposed to allow registration after Class XII. Currently, students can register for CA course after completing Class X.  It has also been proposed that the student can appear for the Foundation exam following a four-month study period after passing the Class XII examination.
• The ICAI has also suggested that the students may register for three years of practical training on passing either or both groups of the Intermediate examination, from now on.
• In the changed programme, students going through the Foundation course will take 4.5 years to become CAs while those through direct admission will take 3.5 years.