General Information about CA Intermediate (erstwhile CA IPCC)

The CA Intermediate Exam comes into picture with the Implementation of – 
Revised Scheme of Education & Training for CA Course.

The CA Intermediate Exam is the 2nd level of exam of students pursuing the Chartered Accountancy Course (CA).

With this exam, often abridged as CA Inter, the students can appear for the CA Inter Exam after clearing the CPT Exam or the CA Foundation Exam (which is the entrance exam for CA Students). In some scenarios, there is a direct entry to the CA Intermediate. (Read below for more on direct entry to CA Intermediate).

The CA Inter Exam is classified in two groups covering 8 subjects as follows –

Group I

• Paper-1: Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-2: Corporate Laws & Other Laws (100 Marks)
  • Part I: Company Law (60 Marks)
  • Part II: Other Laws (40 Marks)
• Paper-3: Cost and Management Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-4: Taxation (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Income-Tax Law (60 Marks)
  • Section B: Indirect Taxes (40 Marks)

Group II

• Paper-5: Advanced Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-6: Auditing and Assurance (100 Marks)
• Paper-7: Enterprise Information Systems & Strategic Management (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Enterprise Information Systems (50 Marks)
  • Section B: Strategic Management (50 Marks)
• Paper-8: Financial Management & Economics for Finance (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Financial Management (60 Marks)
  • Section B: Economics for Finance (40 Marks)

When is the CA Intermediate Exam conducted?

The 1st CA Intermediate Exam will be held in the month of May 2018. As such students who might have given the CPT Exam in June 2017, will register for the CA Intermediate Course and take the exam in May 2018 and not in Nov 2017.

CA Inter Exam replaces the erstwhile CA IPCC Exam. However, many students are already registered in the CA IPCC Exam & have their exam dues in the forthcoming attempts. Considering this, the ICAI has notified that the existing CA IPCC Exam will be conducted till May 2019 and as such there will 3 parallel attempts for CA Intermediate and IPCC in the month of May 2018, Nov 2018 and May 2019.

There is another reason for keeping such parallel attempts. If a student who is registered for the IPCC Exam and is not able to succeed the exam in 1st attempt, he should have a fair chance of giving the exam again and as such the provision of such multiple attempts have been kept for.

In nutshell, the CA Inter and CA IPCC parallel attempts will be as follows –

CA Intermediate (CA Inter) Exam Pattern -

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) released a new notification about "CA New Syllabus 2017". This notification contains Implementation of Revised Scheme of Education and Training for CA Course w.e.f. 1st July 2017.

Please note that the Revised Scheme of Education and Training for CA course will come into effect from 1st July 2017. Students who are eligible to register in the CPT/IIPCC/Final under the existing scheme may register on or before 30th June 2017. With effect from 1st July 2017, the registration in the CA CPT/ CA IPCC/CA Final under the existing scheme will discontinue.

As such Existing CA IPCC Course has now been changed to CA Intermediate (CA Inter) with certain changes in the CA Course & Syllabus. However, students who are already registered under the CA IPCC and have their exams due, will continue under the same scheme. If they wish to convert into the new syllabus that is CA Intermediate, they can contact the ICAI for the same.

The subjects of Intermediate Course are classified into two groups which a student can study and appear in the examination group-wise or both the groups together. Students aiming for a Rank in CA Intermediate Exam should give both the groups together. There are total 50 All India Ranks given by the ICAI on the CA Intermediate Exam Level.

Subjects covered in Intermediate Course – 

Group I

• Paper-1: Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-2: Corporate Laws & Other Laws (100 Marks)
  • Part I: Company Law (60 Marks)
  • Part II: Other Laws (40 Marks)
• Paper-3: Cost and Management Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-4: Taxation (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Income-Tax Law (60 Marks)
  • Section B: Indirect Taxes (40 Marks)

• Paper-5: Advanced Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-6: Auditing and Assurance (100 Marks)
• Paper-7: Enterprise Information Systems & Strategic Management (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Enterprise Information Systems (50 Marks)
  • Section B: Strategic Management (50 Marks)
• Paper-8: Financial Management & Economics for Finance (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Financial Management (60 Marks)
  • Section B: Economics for Finance (40 Marks)

CA Intermediate Course registration is valid for 4 years and can be revalidated any number of times for further 4 years period by paying revalidation fee of Rs.400/- or as decided by the Council from time to time.

For comparison purpose, following were the subjects in the CA IPCC Exam –

Group I

• Paper-1: Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-2: Business Law Ethics & Communication
• Paper-3: Cost Accounting & Financial Management (100 Marks)
• Paper-4: Taxation (100 Marks)
  • Section A: Income-Tax Law (60 Marks)
  • Section B: Indirect Taxes (40 Marks)

• Paper-5: Advanced Accounting (100 Marks)
• Paper-6: Auditing and Assurance (100 Marks)
• Paper-7: Information Technology & Strategic Management (100 Marks)

Initially, there was a possibility that ICAI will remove Information Technology and Strategic Management Paper in CA IPCC Group – 2 but that didn’t happen and the subject name has been changed to Enterprise Information Systems & Strategic Management

No need for CA Foundation or CA CPT, Direct Entry to CA Intermediate (erstwhile CA IPCC)

In Nutshell, Commerce graduates with minimum 55 percent marks and other graduates with minimum 60% marks can get a direct admission into CA Intermediate (very much similar to CA IPCC) which is the 2nd level of CA (Chartered Accountancy). 

In Broad manner, students who satisfy the following conditions are not required to give the CA Foundation Exam (or the CPT Exam) & can directly enter the 2nd level of CA Course which is CA Intermediate (erstwhile CA IPCC) – (This is referred as the Direct Entry Route to the Chartered Accountancy Course) -

• Candidates who are Graduates/ Post Graduates in Commerce having secured in aggregate a minimum of 55% of the total marks or its equivalent grade in the examination conducted by any recognized University (including open University) by studying any three papers carrying a minimum of 50 marks in a semester/year and cumulatively 100 or more marks over the entire duration of the concerned course out of Accounting, Auditing, Mercantile Laws, Corporate Laws, Economics, Management (including Financial Management), Taxation (including Direct Tax Laws and Indirect Tax Laws), Costing, Business Administration or Management Accounting or similar to the title of these papers with different nomenclatures or other than those falling under Commerce stream having secured in aggregate a minimum of 60% of the total marks or its equivalent grade in the examination conducted by any recognized University (including Open University) are exempted from qualifying Foundation and are eligible for straight away registration to Intermediate Course and undergo ICITSS. They can register for practical training after completing ICITSS and need not wait for clearing any group of Intermediate Examination. They are eligible to appear in the Intermediate Examination after completion of nine months of practical training.

• Students who are pursuing the Final year Graduation Course can also register for the Intermediate Course on provisional basis and such students’ registration would be regularised and they can commence practical training only on submission of satisfactory proof of having passed the Graduation examination with the specified percentage of marks within six months from the date of appearance in the final year Graduation examination. During the provisional registration period, a student can undergo and complete ICITSS. If such student fails to produce the proof within the aforesaid period, his provisional registration shall stand cancelled and the registration and other fees, as the case may be, paid by him shall not be refunded/ adjusted and no credit shall be given for the theoretical education undergone.

Read – CA Intermediate Registration 

Read – CA Intermediate Syllabus and Course 

Read – FAQs of Revised Scheme of Education and Training for CA Course w.e.f. 1st July 2017