CA Foundation Result September 2026: 18.93% Pass Rate, Toppers and Next Steps

ICAI declared the CA Foundation result for September 2026 on 6 November 2026, and it is live on caresults.icai.org. You need your six-digit roll number and your registration number. Of 1,04,240 candidates who appeared, 19,736 passed, an overall pass percentage of 18.93%, according to ICAI's press release.

Fewer than one in five passed, yet no September Foundation exam under the new scheme has produced more passers.

TL;DR

• Result: declared 6 November 2026 on caresults.icai.org; enter roll number and registration number.
• Pass rate: 18.93% (19,736 of 1,04,240). Men 20.47%, women 17.32%.
• AIR 1 is shared by Kansika (Hisar) and Mahek Gupta (Hyderabad), with 361 out of 400.
• Over all eight sessions of the 2023 scheme, 18.12% of candidates passed. September 2026 is 0.81 points above that.
• Not through? Foundation papers for January 2027 are on 3, 5, 7 and 9 January, and the form closes on 16 November without a late fee.

How do you check the CA Foundation result for September 2026?

ICAI's notice of 1 November 2026 says a candidate has to enter the registration number along with the roll number. The result page asks for both, plus the characters shown in a captcha box. There is no PIN.

1. Open caresults.icai.org and click Foundation : September 2026.
2. Type the six-digit roll number from your admit card, then your registration number.
3. Enter the characters shown, submit, and save the marks statement as a PDF or a screenshot.

The merit list link on the same page asks for the roll number alone. If the page stalls in the first hour, wait a few minutes before trying again.

What is the CA Foundation September 2026 pass percentage?

The overall figure is 18.93%. ICAI's press release breaks it down like this:

• All candidates: 1,04,240 appeared, 19,736 passed.
• Male: 53,398 appeared, 10,931 passed, 20.47%.
• Female: 50,842 appeared, 8,805 passed, 17.32%.

Men passed at a rate 3.15 points higher. On the other side of the result, 84,504 candidates did not pass. That group alone is larger than the 70,437 who sat the whole September 2024 exam.

How does 18.93% compare with earlier CA Foundation results?

The 2023 scheme's first Foundation exam was in June 2024. The figures for every session since then:

• June 2024: 14.96% (13,749 of 91,900).
• September 2024: 19.67% (13,858 of 70,437).
• January 2025: 21.52% (23,861 of 1,10,887).
• May 2025: 15.09% (12,474 of 82,662).
• September 2025: 14.78% (14,609 of 98,827).
• January 2026: 19.23% (21,099 of 1,09,694).
• May 2026: 20.09% (18,124 of 90,217).
• September 2026: 18.93% (19,736 of 1,04,240).

Source: ICAI result press releases, June 2024 to May 2026; September 2026 press release of 6 November 2026; Gradehunt analysis.

Three things stand out. Pooled over the eight sessions, 1,37,510 of 7,58,864 candidates passed, or 18.12%, and September 2026 ranks fifth. The swings have narrowed: the first five sessions ran from 14.78% to 21.52%, while the last three all fall between 18.93% and 20.09%. And against September 2025, this session had 5,413 more candidates and 5,127 more passers.

A rate below one in five does not mean ICAI passes a fixed share. The rule is absolute, so the figure counts how many cleared both bars, 40 in every paper and 200 in total. So 260 out of 400 still fails if one paper is at 38, and 49 in all four papers fails on the aggregate.

Gradehunt's CA Foundation pass percentage tracker lists every session back to May 2018, including the 2017 scheme years, when rates ran from 18.58% to 44.12%.

Who are the CA Foundation September 2026 toppers?

Two candidates share AIR 1 and two share AIR 2, all out of 400:

• AIR 1: Kansika, Hisar, 361 (90.25%).
• AIR 1: Mahek Gupta, Hyderabad, 361 (90.25%).
• AIR 2: Sparsh Khandelwal, Ajmer, 359 (89.75%).
• AIR 2: J Jayanth, Chennai, 359 (89.75%).
• AIR 3: Vaibhavi Singhal, Gwalior, 358 (89.50%).

Their paper-wise marks show where even the top five dropped marks. They averaged 96.4 in Business Economics, 92.8 in Quantitative Aptitude and 91.4 in Accounting, but 79.0 in Business Laws, and none of them went above 82 in it.

Source: toppers' paper-wise marks as reported on 6 November 2026; averages by Gradehunt.

Business Laws is the only paper written as long theory answers: Accounting is numerical, and Papers 3 and 4 are MCQs. Marks ride on how each answer states the provision, applies it to the facts and reaches a conclusion. Reading the sections again will not fix that; writing timed answers will.

What marks do you need to pass CA Foundation?

ICAI's FAQ on the new scheme says a student passes with at least 40% in each paper and 50% in the aggregate of all papers, at one sitting. With four 100-mark papers, that is 40 in each and 200 overall. Papers 3 and 4 are objective, and each wrong answer there costs 0.25 mark.

Passed CA Foundation: how do you register for CA Inter?

Per the same FAQ, once you have passed Foundation and Class 12 you can register for the Intermediate course through the Foundation route. Our guide to CA Inter registration after CA Foundation has the steps and the fee.

Did not pass: can you write CA Foundation in January 2027?

Yes, and it is close. ICAI's announcement of 23 September 2026 puts the Foundation papers on 3, 5, 7 and 9 January 2027. The form on eservices.icai.org is open until 16 November 2026 at the normal fee and until 19 November with a ₹600 late fee. Our January 2027 exam form post has the fees and the steps.

From result day to 3 January is 58 days, a little over eight weeks. Our last 8 weeks plan for January 2027 splits that time paper by paper.

Your Foundation registration stays valid for four years from your first eligible attempt, and ICAI does not allow revalidation at this level. Our post on CA attempt limits works through what that means for each session.

Should you wait for a certified copy of your answer book?

No. A certified copy costs ₹100 a paper on the SSP, as per ICAI's fee notice of 18 December 2025. ICAI's exam FAQ lets you apply within 30 days of the result and says it aims to send the copies within 30 days of a complete application. ICAI had not posted the Foundation September 2026 window when this page went up. Its windows since September 2024 opened the day after the result and closed 29 or 30 days later, so the last date is expected around 5 or 6 December 2026. Either way, the copies would reach you after the 16 November form deadline, and the same FAQ says the exam form date is not extended for anyone waiting on a verification. Fill the form first, then read the copy to see what to fix. Our certified copy guide has the steps.

Before 3 January, try to write each paper in full at least twice, at 2 PM, with the clock running. The Gradehunt CA Foundation test series has full papers in all four subjects. You write by hand and upload, and ex-examiners check every sheet, MCQ papers included, within 48 hours of upload. Your first paper is checked free.