Home/Blog/CA Foundation Exam-Day Checklist: The Complete Pre-Exam Playbook

CA Foundation Exam-Day Checklist: The Complete Pre-Exam Playbook

22 April 2026·6 min·By CA Saarthi

CA Foundation exam dayExam day checklistICAI exam hall

# CA Foundation Exam-Day Checklist

Every year, students lose 5–10 marks to pre-exam chaos — forgetting their calculator, showing up late, mis-reading instructions. This checklist eliminates that entirely.

Night before the exam

Lay out your clothes, admit card (printed + backup printed copy), and stationery.

Keep a light dinner. No experiments with food.

Set **two alarms** (phone + clock, or two phones). Don't rely on one.

Review only the **cheatsheet** for tomorrow's paper — no new topics.

Lights out by 10:30 pm. 7 hours of sleep matters more than 2 extra hours of study.

What to carry — non-negotiable

✅ Admit card — printed copy. ICAI does not accept screenshots.

✅ Photo ID — Aadhaar / PAN / Driving License / Passport.

✅ **Blue or black ball pens** — 3 of each. Never gel pens (bleed through).

✅ Pencil, eraser, sharpener, 15 cm scale.

✅ Non-programmable calculator (for Papers 1 and 3). Test it the day before.

✅ Transparent water bottle.

✅ Analog wristwatch — **smartwatches not allowed.**

✅ A light snack (energy bar / biscuits) for between papers.

What NOT to carry

❌ Mobile phone, earphones, smartwatch, fitness band.

❌ Scientific or programmable calculators.

❌ Textbooks or notes (you can't read them inside anyway).

❌ Bag inside the exam hall — leave it at the designated area.

❌ Food/drinks except transparent water.

Timing strategy

Reach the exam centre **at least 60 minutes early.**

30 minutes before — locate your seat, get comfortable.

15 minutes before — the question paper is distributed. Spend 5 minutes reading instructions carefully.

Inside the hall — first 10 minutes

Fill in roll number + signature on the answer sheet IMMEDIATELY.

Read ALL instructions. They tell you total questions, choice options, and marking scheme.

Quick skim of the entire paper — mark easy questions with a star.

Start with starred questions first — builds confidence and locks easy marks.

During the paper

MCQs (Papers 2, 3, 4): — attempt every question. No negative marking ≠ attempt carelessly; read each option, eliminate systematically.

Descriptive (Paper 1): — show working notes. A right final answer with no workings gets 40%; a wrong final answer with correct workings gets 60%.

Skip a question if stuck for >2 minutes. Come back in the final sweep.

Last 10 minutes

Stop attempting new questions.

Recheck roll number, signature, OMR bubble completeness.

Verify calculations on your top 3 numerical questions.

Submit confidently — don't second-guess changes.

Between papers (multi-day exam)

No post-mortem discussions with friends. It tanks confidence and doesn't change marks.

Eat light, hydrate, short walk.

That evening: revise only the next day's cheatsheet.

The goal isn't to know more — it's to convert what you already know into marks. This checklist ensures no friction between your knowledge and the answer sheet.