Chartered Accountant (CA) – How to become CA, Work & Salary

In order for an economy to grow at a rapid pace it requires proper guidance, and chartered accountants are truly the pillar of economic national building. The chartered accountants have a very important role to play in the economy of India, they are the watchguards of our economy and it won’t be wrong to say that they are the caretakers of our economy. They have a wide range of services to provide ranging from the very basic company registration to the audit of the financial statements of the company.

Who is Chartered Accountant (CA)?

Chartered Accountant is a qualified professional from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). ICAI is the mother body of Chartered Accountants, headquartered in New Delhi. ICAI is formed by an act of parliament and is governed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs(MCA). Chartered Accountants have high expertise in several matters ranging from Financial Reporting, Direct Tax, Indirect Tax, Litigation matters, Auditing and Assurance, Forensic Audits, Due Diligence, and etc., CA’s are the backbone for maintaining financial well-being in society as they not only service the private sectors but they also play a vital part in formulating public policies.

Geeky Takeaways:

• Chartered accountants play a vital role in the formulation of Accounting Standards and Indian Accounting Standards which are the base for the framework for accounting.
• CA’s also plays an important role in the drafting of the union budget.
• CA’s are an essential connecting element in Globalisation as well as in the private sector. CA’s provide services in matters of mergers & acquisitions, transfer pricing, tax planning, managing inflows and outflows of foreign currencies, authorizing international transactions, and the ambit carries on.
• Scope of CA’s service also extends to serving individuals, as they require time to time financial advice, tax filing, investing advice, or sometimes litigation advisory as well.

How to Become CA?

Step 1: Determine the Eligibility Criteria

ICAI has following eligibility criteria for a student to appear in CA exams:

• In case a student is cleared his/her 12^th Class in the commerce stream than an aggregate of 55% is required, and in case student is from any other stream than an aggregate of 60% is required for an student to be eligible to appear in CA foundation route.
• Pass graduation or post-graduation in the commerce stream with at least an aggregate of 55% to be eligible for the direct entry route, and for Other streams students have to score at least 60% in graduation or post-graduation to be eligible for a direct entry route.

Step 2: Register for CA Foundation Exam

In case the students opt to appear via foundation route Student is required to clear his class 12th from a recognized board of education, than the student can register with ICAI to appear in CA foundation exams which are held twice in a year in the month of June and December. CA foundation has Four subjects in CA foundation namely:

• Paper-1: Principles and Practice of Accounting
• Paper-2: Business Laws and Business Correspondence and Reporting
• Paper-3: Business Mathematics, Logical Reasoning and Statistics
• Paper-4: Business Economics and Business and Commercial Knowledge

Each paper weighs 100 Marks individually, out of which Paper-1 and Paper-2 are subjective type of papers and Paper-3 and Paper-4 are objective type of papers with negative marking. Student is required to score a minimum of 50% in aggregate and 40% in individual papers.

Step 3: Register for CA Intermediate Exam

There are two available entries routes to CA intermediate, either after clearing CA foundation exam or via direct entry route. Two attempts are held for CA intermediate exam i.e. in the month of May and November. There should be a study period gap of 8 Months from the date of clearing of CA foundation exam. Students can register for CA intermediate by the month of march and September. CA intermediate exam has six subjects which are grouped under Two Groups. It is on student whether he/she want to pursue both groups simultaneously or one group at a time. The subjects under CA Intermediate are:

Group-1:

• Paper-1: Advanced Accounting
• Paper-2: Corporate and Other Laws
• Paper-3: Taxation
  • -Section A: Income-tax Law (50 Marks)
  • -Section B: Goods and Services Tax (50 Marks)

Group-2:

• Paper-4: Cost and Management Accounting
• Paper-5: Auditing and Ethics
• Paper-6: Financial Management and Strategic Management
  • -Section A: Financial Management (50 Marks)
  • -Section B: Strategic Management (50 Marks)

Under CA intermediate, each paper individually totals 100 marks, student is required to clear with an aggregate of 50% in individual group and 40% in individual subjects. There is a reward for students who scores more than 60 marks in individual paper, there paper will be considered as ‘Exempted’ in case of subsequent appearance. After appearing in CA intermediate, student is required to appear in ICITSS (Integrated Course on Information Technology and Soft Skills ) training which is a 4 week training program to give students knowledge of IT and soft skills. This is a mandatory training before appearing for practical training.

Step 4: Register for Articleship

After clearing both groups of CA intermediate and completing ICITSS training, students have to undergo a practical training for a tenure of 2 years under a registered member of ICAI i.e. a practicing Chartered Accountant. Articleship is one of the most important phase of CA curriculum, as it gives idea to student about the practical working environment. It gives exposure to student about the domains in which a CA usually works. During Articleship students are also eligible to receive stipend as per ICAI guidelines. During Articleship students are also required to complete there four self paced assessment modules and clear the online assessment test. Students than are required to complete there Advance ICITSS training before appearing in CA final examinations.

Step 5: Register for CA Final Examinations

After completing self passed module assessment and Advance ICITSS training students are eligible to appear for CA final examinations. CA final examinations are conducted twice in a year in the month of May and November. CA final consist of six papers which are divided among two groups. Subjects in CA final are:

Group-1:

• Paper-1: Financial Reporting
• Paper-2: Advanced Financial Management
• Paper-3: Advanced Auditing, Assurance and Professional Ethics

Group-2:

• Paper-4: Direct Tax Laws & International Taxation
• Paper-5: Indirect Tax Laws
• Paper-6: Integrated Business Solutions (Multidisciplinary Case Study with Strategic Management)

Under CA Final, each paper individually totals 100 marks, student is required to clear with an aggregate of 50% in individual group and 40% in individual subjects. There is a reward for students who scores more than 60 marks in individual paper, there paper will be considered as ‘Exempted’ in case of subsequent appearance. After clearing CA final exams a student shall be considered as a member of ICAI and the student may chose to practice by obtaining a COP(Certificate of practice) or may chose service industry.

Work of a CA

1. Accounting: The scope of CA in accountancy ranges from the very basic preparation of book of accounts to proper financial reporting of the financial statements. CA’s have to ensure that proper accounting standards or IND AS are applied by the management in preparation of books of accounts.

2. Auditing: Adding value to client’s business is the base of CA profession, and audit is one of the most prominent service provided by CA’s. In any business it is important to ensure that there are no material mistakes in your prepared books of accounts or in your general business operations. CA’s go through the financial statements of their clients to check that proper regulatory and reporting framework are deployed and the financial statements actually present the true and fair view of the business. Audit can either be statutory or voluntary.

3. Taxation: Taxation is one of the forte of the CA’s, role of CA’s has increased with the adoption of GST, now there are two major bifurcation of taxation namely direct taxation and indirect taxation. Taxation contains both compliance and litigation matters. It is important for CA to be aware of recent tax amendments and statutory taxes in order to discharge better services to their clients.

4. Tax Management: Experts in tax management, CAs properly manages the company’s financial structure. They examine the tax implications of the new plan of action and modify the financial structures of the business. They also serve as consultants on the effects of taxes on business and shapes the business structure in way that will help the business.

5. Non-traditional Fields: Other than the above mentioned service industry CA’s also provide several services in other different aspects of corporate finance and management which are Management accounting, cost management, private equity, research, valuation, mergers and acquisitions, investment banking, etc. CA’s have excelled in these industries in recent times, the role of CA’s are seen as an crucial one as these roles are very important for the well-being of client’s business.

Abilities of Chartered Accountant (CA)

1. Technical Knowledge: A CA should possess a deep understanding of accounting principles, taxation laws, and financial reporting standards in order to provide better service to the client. CAs must be updated with the latest amendments and new developments in the industry to provide correct resolution to their clients.

2. Communication Skill Set: The main and major skill set of a CA is to communicate his ideas and advise to its client in the most effective way which solves the clients problem. They should communicate in most clear and concise way which will not only help in acquiring new client base but will also help in establishing good business relations with other stakeholders of the industry.

3. Problem Solving Skills: The client expectations from any service provider is to solve there key problem areas, similarly client approach CA’s with problems related to Taxation, Litigation, Investment consultation, etc. to engage the expertise of CA, so that the expertise could help the client in achieving it’s objectives effectively. CA is require to develop an effective course of action that could minimize the client’s problem area, CA’s are required to provide better advisory to client which can add value to client’s business.

4. Leadership Skills: A CA leads a team of assistants and fellow managers, who takes down the problem areas of the client. CA is require to properly plan and execute his human resources which would ultimately lead to achieve the pre-established objectives. CA is required to monitor the progress and fix responsibility among his staff. A good team leader can turn out to bring effective results from human resource.

5. Professional Ethics: CA are engaged with a large set society ranging from shareholders, government, public, investors, etc. and it is important to build trust among all the stakeholders regrading the CA profession at large. Code of ethics and code of conducts are set on CA’s by there regulatory body ICAI to ensure transparency and smooth conduct of ethical requirements. ICAI has a motto ‘Ya Esha Supteshu Jagrati’ which means external vigilance.

Resources Availability for CA Exams

1. ICAI Website: ICAI has set up an online facility for students, where all the study material is available online. ICAI modules, RTP, MTP, and past year papers are available on the ICAI website. ICAI has also launched BOS portal where free online coaching classes are conducted for all three levels of CA exams.

2. Youtube: Several teachers have used Youtube to connect to students, they have uploaded several online classes on there respective channels free of cost. Teachers uploads classroom topics, amendments discussion, past paper analysis, exam strategy on there channels. Youtube can be a very useful tool for CA students.

3. Telegram: On telegram, several teachers have uploaded there study materials on there telegram channel. Even there are several channels of CA students which are available where student can find study material, teacher’s notes, suggested papers, etc.

4. Toppers Interview: Students are advised to go through toppers exam strategy where they have shared there resource list. Topper interviews will give students an idea of how to approach such a big exam

Salary of CA in India

Being the master of their fields CA’s get a handsome salaries in service industry, their salaries are basically proportionate to the years of experience and there exposure. In case of freshers, as per the reports of 58th campus placement programme organized by ICAI, 5813 jobs were offered to CA students with an average CTC of 12.45 LPA, also recording 28 LPA as the highest salary offered for domestic operations. As per the data the highest ever salary offered was 76 LPA offered for overseas operations. CA’s have global demands but as per the trends observed. CA’s get huge salary offers from Middle East and Arab countries. CA’s have a good opportunities in public sectors as well where the package offered to CA’s depends upon years of experience, but average packages in public sectors ranges some where around 12-20 LPA. In normal cases average packages offered by big 4 ranges from around 6-9 LPA.

For CA’s who chose practice, the sky is the limit when we talk about remuneration. CA industry offers wide domain of expertise to Private and Public sectors, and the consumers for CA advisory are available throughout the Globe. Remuneration of CA’s who are in practice depends upon the services they offers and the client base they have. A practicing CA who has set up his practice is easily seen to make 50 LPA.

Notable Alumni from Chartered Accountancy

1. CA Harish Salve, A senior Indian advocate who has also hold the position of Solicitor general of India.

2. CA Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, also known as Warren Buffet of India, A billionaire investor and also founder of Akasa airlines.

3. CA Naina Lal Kidwani, Country head of HSBC group.

4. CA Piyush Goyal, he is a very famous politician currently the minister of textile and minister of commerce and industry.

5. CA Kumar Manglam Birla, he is the chairman of Aditya Birla Group, one of the biggest business houses in India.

6. CA Motilal Oswal, chairman and managing director of Motilal Oswal financial services ltd.

7. CA Aman Gupta, Co-founder BOAT Lifestyle, a leading brand in wearables and audio gadgets.

8. CA Arun Poorie, founding Chairman and former Editor-in-chief of India Today Group.

FAQs on Chartered Accountants

1. Who can become a CA?

Answer:

In case a student has cleared his 12^th Class in the commerce stream than an aggregate of 55% is required, and in case student is from any other stream than an aggregate of 60% is required for an student to be eligible to appear in CA foundation route and in case a student has Pass graduation or post-graduation in the commerce stream with at least an aggregate of 55% to be eligible for the direct entry route, and for Other streams students have to score at least 60% in graduation or post-graduation to be eligible for a direct entry route.

2. What is the registration fees chargeable to register for CA exams?

Answer:

Following fees is chargeable under CA exams

• Foundation Registration Fee ₹9,000
• Intermediate Registration Fee ₹18,000
• Final Registration Fee ₹22,000
• ICITSS Registration Fee ₹13,500
• Advance ICITSS Registration Fee ₹14,500

3. Is there any maximum age limit to clear CA Exams?

Answer:

NO, there is no maximum age limit under CA Exams. Student can enroll in CA exams at any age phase.

4. Who conducts placement programme for qualified CA’s?

Answer:

ICAI, the mother body of CA’s conducts placement programme every year. Companies all over the globe register for the placement programme and offers both domestic and oversea operations opportunities. Leading recruiters are BIG 4’s, Financial institutions, Private equity companies, CA firms, etc.

5. How many qualified CA’s are there in India?

Answer:

As per the latest annual report released by ICAI, there are 3,51,232 members as on 31^st March, 2022.

6. What are the primary services provided by CA?

Answer:

There is wide domain of services which are provided by CA’s. However, the major services provided by CA’s are Auditing and Assurance, Transfer Pricing, Valuation, Taxation, Litigations, Advisory, etc.