According to the Economic Times, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), the exam conducting authority, has approached the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to improvise the CA curriculum, introduce electives, new subjects, and open book tests in a few papers.

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

Alongside, it has been noticed that with time, the business rules and language are changing including a new indirect tax rule like GST (goods and services tax). Hence, it is important for chartered accountants to have the complete knowledge of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), the latest uniform global accounting order that compares the books and financial statements of companies across the globe.

Considering the ever-changing requirements and the thoughts of various stakeholders, the institute has proposed some changes in the CA Courses at Foundation and Intermediate Level. Every years, lakhs of students appear in the CA Examination, however, only few thousands qualifies the same.

Proposed Changes

• At entry-level examination, both subjective type questions and multiple-choice questions will be asked.
• Two papers will be introduced at the Foundation Level, named Business Correspondence & Reporting and Business & Commercial Knowledge. Whereas a complete new subject will be introduced at the Intermediate Level, named Economics for Finance.
• At the Final Level, electives will be introduced as an eighth paper that include Economic Laws, Risk Management, International Taxation, Financial Services and Capital Markets, Multi-Disciplinary Case, and Global Financial Reporting Standards.
• To tackle questions based on case studies of the electives, students have to appear in an open-book exam.
• The exam paper on Information System Control and Audit will be retitled as Information System Risk Management and Audit and will include the advanced integrated course on information technology and soft skills.
• Students will be able to register after appearing for the Class 12^th examination (not Class 10), and they can appear for the Foundation exam after a 04-month study period following the Class 12 examination where they’ll have to pass.
• Students may register for a 03-years practical training after qualifying either one or both groups of the Intermediate Exam.
• Now, to become Chartered Accountant, students of the Foundation Course will take approx. 4.5 years and those qualifying for the direct admission will take approx. 3.5 years.