Paper 1 · 100 marks · 3 hours

CA Foundation Accounting

The full ICAI syllabus for Accounting, every past paper with official Suggested Answers, and free AI-graded practice so you know exactly where you stand before exam day.

ICAI Study Material

Syllabus — Accounting

All 12 chapters, per ICAI's New Scheme of Education and Training.

1 Theoretical Framework
2 Accounting Process
3 Bank Reconciliation Statement
4 Inventories
5 Depreciation and Amortisation
6 Bills of Exchange and Promissory Notes
7 Preparation of Final Accounts of Sole Proprietors
8 Financial Statements of Not-for-Profit Organisations
9 Accounts from Incomplete Records
10 Partnership and LLP Accounts
11 Company Accounts
12 Old Scheme topics (not in the New Scheme syllabus)

How to study Accounting

Where the marks tend to concentrate

Accounting Process and the Framework of Accounting typically carries the single largest share of marks — expect it woven through nearly every paper.
Final Accounts of Sole Proprietors is consistently one of the two or three heaviest chapters, often the anchor problem in Part A.
Partnership Accounts (admission, retirement, dissolution) and Company Accounts (share/debenture issues) together make up a large recurring block.
Bank Reconciliation Statement, Inventory Valuation, and Depreciation Accounting show up almost every attempt as shorter, scoring questions.

Common mistakes to avoid

Skipping working notes — ICAI awards marks for correct workings even when the final figure is wrong; students who jump straight to the answer lose easy marks.
Weak grip on journal entries under the New Scheme's specific formats, especially for less-drilled areas like consignment and joint venture accounts.
Running out of time on Company Accounts because share/debenture calculations are treated as an afterthought rather than practised repeatedly.

How ICAI marks this paper

Accounting is a fully subjective, descriptive paper — every question is answered in your own words with full workings. ICAI's examiners award marks step-by-step: correct format, correct working, and correct final figure are each credited separately, so a wrong final answer with sound method and workings still earns significant partial credit. There is no negative marking.

Weightage patterns are aggregated from past ICAI papers, not an official ICAI table — treat as directional guidance.