The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has released a new schedule for the CA Intermediate and Final exams, which were initially postponed because of the tense security situation in the country. The exams that were originally scheduled to be conducted from May 9 to May 14, 2025, are now scheduled to be conducted from May 16 to May 24, 2025. The notification issued by ICAI was the confirmation of this change and offered crucial updates to candidates who are preparing for the same exams.

The new schedule is in accordance with the need to maintain the safety and security of the examiners and the candidates, and ICAI has guaranteed that the exams are now being conducted at the same examination centers and during the same time slots originally allocated. What this implies is that the candidates will continue to sit for their exams at the same centers they had been assigned earlier, and the time will also not change, with exams being held from 2 PM to 5 PM or 2 PM to 6 PM, depending on the paper.

One of the most important points highlighted by ICAI is that the older admit cards will remain active for the rescheduled exams. This is a relief for candidates who had already obtained their admit cards prior to the first postponement and were worried about any inconvenience or necessity for re-issue. Candidates do not need to do anything further regarding their admit cards; the ones that were previously issued will hold good for the new dates of the exam.

In addition to the CA Intermediate and Final exams, ICAI also issued a statement concerning the Chartered Accountants Foundation exams, which are set to be conducted as per schedule on May 15, 17, 19, and 21, 2025. There is no alteration in the schedule of these exams, and candidates appearing for the Foundation exams are requested to follow the already notified dates.

ICAI has also issued a clarification regarding how it will address public holidays. If any public holiday is announced by the Central or State Government or local authorities during the examination period, ICAI has informed that there will be no alteration in the date of examination. This implies that the examinations will go on as per the new schedule, even if some days fall on a declared holiday. Aspirants need to plan accordingly and make sure that they stay updated on any such notifications by local authorities, but the aggregate exam dates will remain unchanged.

The rescheduled CA Final and Intermediate course exams will take place according to the changed dates, with certain papers now being rescheduled as follows:

For the CA Final (Group II) exams, the paper on Indirect Tax Laws/INTT-AT Paper 1, initially scheduled on May 10, 2025, will now be conducted on May 16, 2025. Further, the Integrated Business Solutions/INTT-AT Paper 2, scheduled on May 13, 2025, will now be conducted on May 18, 2025.

For the CA Intermediate (Group II) examinations, the Cost & Management Accounting paper, which was previously scheduled for May 9, 2025, has now been rescheduled to May 20, 2025. The Auditing & Ethics paper, which was previously scheduled for May 11, 2025, will now be conducted on May 22, 2025. The Financial Management & Strategic Management paper, which was previously scheduled for May 14, 2025, has now been rescheduled to May 24, 2025.

Aspirants writing these exams should go through the new schedule carefully and make the required changes in their study material. Now that the new dates have been finalized, ICAI has requested all aspirants to go ahead with the preparation and be ready to write the exams. The new dates give aspirants more time to go through their studies and practice well.

In summary, the ICAI has made efforts to fit the security requirements into the schedule and at the same time ensure the timely conduct of the exams. The new schedule of the revised exams is now confirmed, and the candidates need to be familiar with the revised dates, places, and timing. By following the revised instructions, candidates can move forward with preparing for the exam in a clearer fashion knowing their exam dates and keeping confusion from previously distributed admit cards at bay. ICAI continues working on maintaining an equable and safe examination setup for all pupils, and these re-organized dates demonstrate just that.