30 Days Study Plan for CA Foundation May 2026 Exam; Prep Tips & Strategy
ICAI CA Foundation Exam 2026 ( CA Foundation )
Registration - 19 Mar '26
Students preparing to take CA Foundation exam for the upcoming session must have a proper preparation and revision strategy to clear the exam. Shiksha here brings you CA Foundation 30 days revision strategy for May 2026 exam to be conducted between May 14 and May 20.
30 Days Study Plan for CA Foundation
CA Foundation Exam 30 Days Plan: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India will conduct the CA Foundation May 2026 exam on May 14, 16, 18 and 20, 2026, in offline mode. Candidates who have applied for ICAI CA Foundation May 2026 must complete their syllabus at least 60 days before the exam. The last month is crucial for every student and it is essential for them not to panic and prepare a proper study plan for the last 30 days, to make the best use of the remaining time. The last month should only be for revision. Now the question arises, how and where should I start the revision for CA Foundation exam.
Scroll down and check out the 30 days study plan for CA foundation exam. Students can always tailor the plan based on their preparation level and confidence in a subject.
- CA Foundation Exam May 2026 Exam
- CA Foundation 30 Days Study Plan
- ICAI CA Foundation Study Material
- CA Foundation Preparation Books
CA Foundation Exam May 2026 Exam
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has announced the exam dates for CA Foundation May 2026. According to the exam schedule, the May 2026 session will be administered on 14th, 16th, 18th and 20th May 2026.
CA Foundation May 2026 exam is the first level of Chartered Accountancy Training programme in India. A candidate can apply for CA Intermediate exam, only if he/she has cleared the Foundation course. There are four papers in CA Foundation exam – Paper 1 (Accounting), Paper 2 (Business Laws), Paper 3 (Quantitative Aptitude) and Paper 4 (Business Economics). To clear this course, candidates have to obtain a minimum of 40% marks in each subject and 50% aggregate marks in all subjects.
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Commonly asked questions
Yes, it is possible to clear CA Foundation in first attempt but for that one requires a strong study plan and dedicated execution. Coverage of CA Foundation syllabus is all about getting the concepts right and building strong foundation. Develop a strong foundation in basic concepts, prepare a daily time table to cover topics, practice questions and revision. Start preparation at least 6 months in advance.
If we compare CA Foundation with the other two levels of CA course, the difficulty level of CA Foundation papers is easy to moderate. But, as this is the first level of CA course, students might find the paper tough to crack.
The total pass percentage of CA Foundation exam conducted in January 2026 was only 19.23%. This means that candidates usually take more than one attempt to clear the exam.
The difficulty level of CA Final exams is the highest among all the as the course is vast and extensive. The CA Final exam includes papers such as Corporate & Economic Laws Part I: Corporate Law, Economic Laws, Strategic Cost Management and Performance Evaluation, Direct Tax Laws & International Taxation, Goods and Services Tax, Direct Tax Laws & International Taxation, etc. which are tough to crack. The pass percentage of CA Final exams is low as low as 25 per cent in a particular session and students need multiple attempts to clear this level. Even after completing the CA Foundation and CA Intermediate levels, candidates find it tough to clear the CA Final level.
CA Foundation 30 Days Study Plan
Time management and focused preparation are essential for clearing CA Foundation exam. Check below to get one month preparation strategy tailored for CA Foundation here:
- First of all, if you have only 30 days left, you must have completed your syllabus and started practicing past papers and mock tests by now.
- Now, divide your CA Foundation subjects by giving 7 days of preparation to each subject. As there are 4 subjects in CA Foundation exam, you will be able to cover all subjects in 28 days, with 2 days still left.
- Further divide your plan into two parts. Practice Multiple Choice Questions for Quantitative Aptitude and Business Economics together, and consider Business Law and Accounting as the second part of your preparation plan.
- For Multiple Choice Questions preparation, solve at least 100 questions per chapter for one subject. This means, you must solve 200 MCQs per day.
- Give 4 hours a day for multiple choice questions practice.
- For the second part of the preparation plan, give 6-8 hours a day to Business Law and 8 hours a day to Accounting.
- Complete one chapter per day thoroughly.
- For Paper 1 Accounting, give one day each to Partnership, Company Accounts, Final Accounts & NPO, Incomplete Records & Bills of Exchange, Bank Reconciliation Statement, Depreciation and Inventory.
- Now, you have 2 days remaining after giving 7 days each to all four subjects. In these two days, revise and practice only theory and true/false questions of Accounting. This can help you score 20-30 marks in your exam.
ICAI CA Foundation Study Material
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has released ICAI CA Study Material for Foundation exam on its official website. Check below to download the official study material for each subject. Candidates must note that these study materials are applicable from May 2026 onwards.
| CA Foundation Subject | ICAI Study Material |
|---|---|
| Paper-1: Accounting | CA Foundation Accounting Study Material |
| Paper-2: Business Laws | CA Foundation Business Law Study Material |
| Paper-3: Quantitative Aptitude | CA Foundation Quantitative Aptitude Study Material |
| Paper-4: Business Economics | CA Foundation Business Economics Study Material |
Commonly asked questions
The difficulty level of CA Foundation syllabus can be considered lower than CA Intermediate and CA Final but it is challenging as the syllabus is vast. Since it is the beginner's level course, it has topics that requires understanding of core concepts and principles. Given the extremely low pass percentage, CA Foundation is definitely not easy. It requires conceptual clarity of a number of topics related to business, accounting, taxation, laws, etc. and rigorous practice.
It is not neccessary to have studied commerce in class 12 for clearing CA Foundation. Student from any stream can pursue CA course. Having studied Commerce with Maths in class 12, can be an advantage, as the student will have a strong base in several topics related to accounting, taxation, economy, etc.
Candidates need to score 40 per cent in each paper of every group/course level and 50 per cent in aggregate in all the papers of a group/course level. This minimum mark criterion is applicable to all three courses - CA Foundation, CA Intermediate and CA Final. Candidates cannot move to the next level of the Chartered Accountancy course until they clear the previous level. A very few percentage of candidates get a high score as the scores of All India toppers are usually below 75%. Candidates can take any number of attempts to clear a course level. The process includes practical training as well.
CA Foundation Preparation Books
Check below to get books and authors' names for the CA Foundation exam:
- CA Foundation Books for Paper 1- Principles and practice of Accounting by PC Tulsian and Bharat Tulsian.
- CA Foundation Books for Paper 2- Business laws and business correspondence and reporting by PC Tulsian, Tushar Tulsian and Bharat Tulsian
- CA Foundation Books for Paper 3- Business mathematics, statistics and logical reasoning by Kailash Thakur
- CA Foundation Books for Paper 4- Business Economics and Business and commercial knowledge by Bharat Tulsian. P.C Tulsian
- CA Foundation scanner cum compiler by Dr S.K Agarwal, CA Manmeet Kaur
- Fundamentals of Accounting by Grewal's Accountancy
- Fundamentals of Accounting PC Tulsian and Bharat Tulsian
- Mercantile Law by MC Kucchal, Vivek Kucchal
- Mercantile law study Material by ICAI
- General Economics by PM Salwan, Pranjal B Deshpande
- General Economics by SK Agrawal
- General Economics by ICAI
- Quantitative Aptitude by Dr T Padma and KCP Rao
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Student Forum
Anything you would want to ask experts?Answered a week ago
Check below to find CA Foundation May 2026 exam timings for centres at different locations:
| Paper | Domestic Centres (IST) | Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Muscat (UAE Local Time) | Doha (Qatar Local Time) Bahrain, Kuwait & Riyadh | Kathmandu (Nepal Local Time) | Thimpu (Bhutan Local Time) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | 2.00 PM to 5.00 PM | 12.30 PM to 3.30 PM | 11.30 AM to 2.30 PM | 2.15 PM to 5.15 PM | 2.30 PM to 5.30 PM |
| Paper 2 | 2.00 PM to 5.00 PM | 12.30 PM to 3.30 PM | 11.30 AM to 2.30 PM | 2.15 PM to 5.15 PM | 2.30 PM to 5.30 PM |
| Paper 3 | 2.00 PM to 4.00 PM | 12.30 PM to 2.30 PM | 11.30 AM to 1.30 PM | 2.15 PM to 4.15 PM | 2.30 PM to 4.30 PM |
| Paper 4 | 2.00 PM to 4.00 PM | 12.30 PM to 2.30 PM | 11.30 AM to 1.30 PM | 2.15 PM to 4.15 PM | 2.30 PM to 4.30 PM |
N
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
Yes, candidates will get up to 15 minutes of late entry to CA Foundation Paper 1, 2, 3, and 4. However, students are advised to reach the exam centre early to avoid getting late.
R
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
No, ICAI will not send physical admit card to any candidate for CA Foundation exam. Eligible candidates will have to download and take a print out of their admit card on their own.
V
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
Candidates applying to appear for CA Foundation exam at Indian centres will have to pay INR 1500 as registration fee. The late fee to be paid for Indian centres is INR 600.
N
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
There are four papers in CA Foundation exam. According to exam pattern, Paper 1 & 2 have subjective type questions, and Paper 3 & 4 have objective type questions. ICAI will only give 15 minutes advance reading time for Paper 1 and Paper 2.
The question paper seal for Paper 3 and 4 will be opened at
N
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India will conduct upcoming session of CA Foundation exam in May 2026. The exam dates have been released. The ICAI CA Foundation May 2026 exam will be conducted on 14th, 16th, 18th & 20th May 2026.
S
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
ICAI released CA Foundation Jan 2026 pass percentage on March 08, 2026. Check below for pass percentage:
CA Foundation Group | Candidates appeared | Candidates passed | Pass percentage | Number of Exam Centres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | 57238 | 11523 | 20.13% | 566 |
| Female | 52456 | 9576 | 18.26% | |
| Total | 109694 | 21099 | 19.23% |
S
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
Check below to know exam duration for all papers of CA Foundation exam:
- Paper 1 & 2 - 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM
- Paper 3 & 4 - 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM
A
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
There are two types of questions asked in CA Foundation exam. Paper 1 and Paper 2 have subjective type questions. Paper 3 and Paper 4 have objective type questions.
There is negative marking of 0.25 for every incorrect answer in Paper 3 and Paper 4 only.
Y
Contributor-Level 6
Answered a week ago
To clear CA Foundation exam, a candidate must score at least 40% in each of the four papers and overall 50% in aggregate in all papers. If a candidate fails to do so, he/she will have to retake the exam.
Y
Contributor-Level 6
What are the CA Foundation exam timings for all locations?