CA Inter MCQ practice: how the 30 MCQ marks work and how to practise them
In the CA Intermediate exam every one of the six papers has 30 marks of multiple choice questions (MCQs) and 70 marks of descriptive questions. The MCQs carry 1 or 2 marks each, have four options with one correct answer, are compulsory with no choice, and carry no negative marking. This has been ICAI's pattern since the May 2024 examinations, and it is the pattern in ICAI's guidance notes for September 2026. Free MCQ practice for every paper is on our site: Paper 1 at /exam/ca-intermediate and Papers 2 to 6 at /exam/ca-intermediate/p2, p3, p4, p5 and p6. This article explains how the MCQ part works, what ICAI's own question papers look like, and how to practise it.
The MCQ rules, from ICAI
The guidance notes for the Intermediate examination say:
| Rule | What it means for you |
|---|---|
| 30 marks of MCQs in each 100-mark paper | 30% of every paper is objective |
| Each MCQ carries 1 or 2 marks | ICAI does not fix how many of each |
| 4 options, 1 correct | Darken exactly one circle |
| Compulsory, no internal or external choice | You cannot skip a hard case scenario for another |
| Knowledge-based or application-based | Skill level is "knowledge and comprehension" or "application and analysis" |
| No negative marking | A blank scores the same as a wrong answer: zero |
| No reasoning required | Only the circle you darken counts |
The MCQs and the descriptive questions are in one question paper booklet and share the same three hours, 2.00 p.m. to 5.00 p.m. There is no separate time for the MCQ part.
How ICAI's papers actually look
ICAI's question paper for Paper 4, Cost and Management Accounting, of 8 September 2026 shows the layout:
- Part I, 30 marks: fifteen MCQs of 2 marks each. Ten of them came in two case scenarios of five questions each (a few paragraphs and tables, then five questions on them), and five were standalone questions.
- Part II, 70 marks: six descriptive questions; Question 1 is compulsory and you answer any four of the other five, 14 marks each.
ICAI's mock test paper of August 2025 for Paper 1, Advanced Accounting, also used fifteen 2-mark MCQs. So a case scenario is worth 10 marks: misread one table and five answers can go wrong together.
In Papers 3 (Taxation) and 6 (Financial Management and Strategic Management) the paper is split into two sections of 50 marks, written in two answer books. The guidance notes do not say how the 30 MCQ marks fall between the two sections.
The OMR sheet: where marks are lost for nothing
MCQ answers are marked only on the OMR sheet on the cover page of the descriptive answer book. From ICAI's guidelines and the instructions printed on its question papers:
- Write and darken your 7-digit Question Paper Booklet Number correctly on the OMR portion. ICAI warns that a wrong number can make many correct answers count as wrong. Write the number with a pen and darken the circles with a pencil, and check it twice.
- Use an HB pencil to darken the answer circles, completely.
- To change an answer, erase it completely with a good eraser so that no mark is visible.
- One circle per question. No mark is given if no circle or more than one circle is darkened.
- Answers written inside the answer book are not evaluated. Only the OMR sheet counts.
- The OMR sheet is in English only, for Hindi-medium candidates too.
Since there is no negative marking, never leave a circle blank. If you are out of time, darken your best guess for every remaining MCQ before you hand in the book.
What the MCQs cover in each paper
MCQs come from the same syllabus as the descriptive questions. ICAI's Intermediate syllabus gives section-wise weightage for some papers:
| Paper | Topics and weightage (ICAI syllabus, May 2024 onwards) |
|---|---|
| 1. Advanced Accounting | Accounting Standards 55%–65%; company accounts (Schedule III, buy-back, reconstruction) 30%–35%; branches including foreign branches 5%–10% |
| 2. Corporate and Other Laws | Company law and LLP law 70 marks; other laws (General Clauses Act, interpretation of statutes, FEMA) 30 marks |
| 3. Taxation | Section A Income-tax Law 50 marks; Section B GST 50 marks |
| 4. Cost and Management Accounting | Overview and cost sheets 10%–15%; material, employee cost, overheads, ABC, cost systems 35%–40%; methods of costing 20%–25%; standard and marginal costing, budgets 25%–30% |
| 5. Auditing and Ethics | Standards on Auditing, planning, evidence, risk and internal control, audit of items, company audit, reports, ethics |
| 6. FM and SM | Section A Financial Management 50 marks; Section B Strategic Management 50 marks |
For Paper 3, ICAI states which Finance Act applies to each attempt. ICAI says the Income-tax Act, 2025 is examined from the May 2027 examination; January 2027 still follows the Income-tax Act, 1961. Practise tax MCQs only on material for your own attempt.
How to practise CA Inter MCQs
1. Practise MCQs in timed sets, not one by one. Fifteen MCQs and 30 marks in a three-hour paper with 70 descriptive marks leaves roughly 45 to 55 minutes for Part I if you divide time by marks. Take sets of 15 in 50 minutes, so the exam pace becomes normal.
2. Practise case scenarios as a unit. Read the questions first, then the case, so you know which figures matter. Write the key numbers in the margin of the booklet once, and work all five questions from them.
3. Keep an error log. For each wrong answer, note whether it was a concept gap, a misread figure, or a trap option (for example, a correct calculation on the wrong base). Concept gaps go back to the study material; misreads need slower first reading.
4. Tie MCQs to the descriptive work. In Paper 1, an MCQ on an Accounting Standard and a 14-mark question on it test the same rule. Revise a topic, then do its MCQs and one descriptive question together.
5. Use ICAI's own material for the real style. ICAI's Board of Studies publishes mock test papers and past question papers for the Intermediate course. Sit them in three hours, Part I first, and mark your OMR answers on a printed sheet.
6. Decide your order before the exam. Some students do Part I first while fresh; others do the compulsory Question 1 first. Try both in mocks and keep what scores more. Either way, fill every OMR circle before the end.
Passing: why 30 MCQ marks matter
To pass a group you need at least 40 marks in each paper of the group and at least 50% of the group's total (150 of 300) at one sitting. A score of 60 or more in a paper of a group you did not pass can be carried forward as an exemption under ICAI's conditions. With no negative marking, the MCQ part is the steadiest place to secure marks towards each paper's 40.
Free CA Inter MCQ practice
Practise with the free tests: Paper 1 Advanced Accounting (a full paper and an MCQ pool), Paper 2 Corporate and Other Laws, Paper 3 Taxation, Paper 4 Cost and Management Accounting, Paper 5 Auditing and Ethics and Paper 6 FM and SM. For the January 2027 dates and the exam form, read CA Intermediate January 2027: exam dates, pattern, syllabus and how to apply.