CA Inter Auditing: Which Chapters Carry the Marks per Page

CA Inter auditing is Paper 5, Auditing and Ethics, in Group II of the CA Intermediate course. Group II is the second set of three papers (Papers 4 to 6). The paper is 100 marks in 3 hours. Part I is 30 marks of multiple-choice questions (MCQs) with no negative marking, and Part II is descriptive (ICAI, May 2026 booklet).

In the September 2026 paper, Part I had 15 MCQs of 2 marks each. Two case scenarios carried six questions each, and three questions had a scenario of their own. Part II made Question 1 compulsory and asked for any four of Questions 2 to 6. Each of the six questions was printed at 14 marks, so 14 + 4 × 14 = 70 (ICAI suggested answers).

As of November 2026, ICAI has set Group II for 8, 10 and 12 January 2027, 2 pm to 5 pm, with 15 minutes of advance reading time from 1.45 pm (ICAI notice, 23 September 2026). For forms and fees, see CA Inter Registration. For the chapter list and pass rules, see CA Intermediate Syllabus. For how many candidates clear Group II, see CA Inter Pass Percentage.

In ICAI's September 2026 Paper 5, chapters 6, 11, 7 and 1 returned the most marks per page (25.0, 23.2, 21.7 and 19.0 per 100 pages) and chapters 2, 5, 8 and 9 the least (5.9, 8.0, 8.8 and 9.6). This is one sitting, not a weighting ICAI publishes.

How we worked this out. We counted the pages in each of the 11 chapter files on ICAI's study material page, excluding the module's front pages. They total 846. We then tagged each of the 15 MCQs and each sub-part of Questions 1 to 6 in the September 2026 suggested answers to the chapter that covers its standard (the Standards on Auditing, or SAs, are the auditing standards ICAI issues). We checked the tags by counting where each standard appears across the chapter files. For example, SA 450, 560, 570 and 580 sit in Chapter 7, and SA 500, 550 and 610 in Chapter 4.

The tally covers 110 printed marks: 30 MCQ marks plus 80 descriptive marks. It leaves out the 4-mark either/or in Question 6(c), which is Chapter 2 or Chapter 5. A candidate answers 100 marks, because only four of Questions 2 to 6 count.

Three tags are judgement calls: the audit-risk part of Question 4(a) (Chapter 3), the two assertion MCQs (Chapter 4) and the client-integrity MCQ on SQC 1, the quality control standard for audit firms (Chapter 11). Moving any of them changes a chapter by a few marks, not the pattern. One sitting is a sample, not a rule.

Chapter order front-loads the heaviest reading. Module 1 (chapters 1 to 5) is 441 pages, or 52.1% of the module, but carried 51 of the 110 printed marks (46.4%). Module 2 (chapters 6 to 11) is 405 pages (47.9%) and carried 59 marks (53.6%). These are our counts from the same tagging.

A student who reads in order spends the first weeks on Audit Evidence and Audit of Items of Financial Statements, the two longest chapters.

If time then runs short, Module 2 is what gets rushed. It holds Completion and Review and Ethics, the compact chapters that paid best per page. That is our inference from one paper, but it is the pattern we would avoid.

Ethics is the clearest case. Chapter 11 alone had 14 descriptive marks: changing an audit to a lower-assurance engagement under SA 210, independence, and the familiarity threat (a threat to independence from a close relationship with the client). It also had a 2-mark MCQ on client integrity under SQC 1.

For a January 2027 sitting, use the edition ICAI labels for the May 2026 exam. ICAI's page for it is labelled for the May 2026 exam (ICAI). Its front matter reads "Edition: July, 2024; Reprint: August, 2025", and the files total 846 pages.

A newer edition, dated July 2026, is "Applicable for May 2027 Exam Onwards" (ICAI). We counted 965 pages in its 11 chapter files, with these chapter sizes:

Placing a January 2027 sitting under the first edition is our reading of ICAI's "onwards" wording. Check ICAI's Board of Studies announcements for your exam before buying or downloading. The tiers below hold on the new edition's page counts: chapters 1, 6, 7 and 11 are 228 of 965 pages (23.6%), and chapters 4 and 5 are 303 (31.4%). We have not tagged a paper set from it, so the marks column applies to the first edition only.

Read the compact, mark-dense chapters first and twice. Work Audit Evidence and Audit of Items through questions. Give chapters 3, 8, 9 and 10 one full read, and Chapter 2 one sitting. The tiers below come from the table above (first edition, September 2026 paper). This is our recommendation from that one paper alone, so do not drop any chapter.

Marks per 100 pages are 22.0 for Tier A, 9.7 for B, 11.4 for C and 5.9 for D. Chapter 10 is the cheapest of Tier C: 60 pages and 7 printed marks.

A schedule that scales. Split the days you have into four phases of 15%, 35%, 25% and 25%. This is our recommendation, not an ICAI figure. With 60 days:

Know the standards by number and name, because most descriptive answers in ICAI's September 2026 suggested answers cite a standard or section, for example "As per SA 610". The paper named SA 200, 210, 230, 315, 450, 500, 550, 560, 570, 580 and 610, and SQC 1.

By the chapters where the module discusses them:

• Chapter 7, Completion and Review: SA 450 (misstatements), 560 (subsequent events), 570 (going concern), 580 (written representations).
• Chapter 4, Audit Evidence: SA 500, 550 (related parties), 610 (using internal auditors).
• Chapter 6, Audit Documentation: SA 230.
• Chapter 11, Ethics and Terms: SA 210 (engagement terms) and SQC 1.
• Risk and basics: SA 200 and 315. Control environment questions come from SA 315.

Name the standard or section, apply it to the facts in the case, then close with a one-line conclusion. ICAI's suggested answers follow that shape. In Question 2(c) they end on "Conclusion: In the present case, the engagement partner should evaluate the threat and apply safeguards", after the rule.

The introduction to the module, in the front pages of the newer edition, says the paper asks for "a knack for applying conceptual knowledge to practical situations and ability to write concisely" (ICAI module, initial pages, July 2026 edition).

Our advice: if you are unsure of a number, state the requirement correctly in plain words rather than risk a wrong number. For MCQs, read the scenario once for facts, then answer each question from those facts, and answer every one, since wrong answers cost nothing.

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