ICAI Observer Empanelment Sep 2025: Eligibility, Honorarium, Duties and Application Guide

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has announced the empanelment of eligible members to act as Observers for the Chartered Accountants Examinations scheduled in September 2025.

As per the official notification, members must meet specific eligibility criteria related to age, membership status, absence of conflicts of interest, and professional conduct. Observers will receive an honorarium of ₹3750 per session along with conveyance reimbursement, and their duties include overseeing the secure handling and distribution of examination materials.

Applications must be submitted online between July 14 and August 3, 2025, via the official ICAI portal. Here at AUBSP.com you will find the examination schedule, eligibility norms, city-wise centers, and all essential information for prospective observers.

ICAI Observer Empanelment for CA Exams – September 2025

Empanelment of Chartered Accountants: The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has officially opened the empanelment of eligible members to act as Observers for the Chartered Accountants (CA) Examinations scheduled in September 2025. If you’re a member of ICAI and meet the required eligibility conditions, this is a unique opportunity to contribute to the profession while earning an honorarium.

You may read the official announcement 13-CA (Exams)/Observer Empanel /September 2025 dated 8th July, 2025. Therefore, you may apply to act as Observers for CA Foundation SEP 2025 Exam, CA Intermediate SEP 2025 Exam and CA Final SEP 2025 Examinations.

Please read the eligibility conditions and make sure that you are eligible to apply for acting as observer at the examination centres for the Chartered Accountants examinations September 2025.

Examination Schedule

Here are the official dates for the CA Examinations (September 2025):

Act as Observers at ICAI Exam Centres

Following are the eligibility criteria for empanelment of a Chartered Accountants to act as observer in CA Foundation, CA Inter and CA Final exams September 2025:

Age Limit

Your age should not be more than 65 years as on the date of empanelment i.e. 14th July, 2025.

Member of ICAI

Your name should have been borne on the Register of Members of ICAI as on 1st March, 2023 and continues to be so.

Appearing for CA Exams

Neither you nor your relatives or dependent will be appearing in the ensuing Chartered Accountants Examinations for students or Post – Qualification Course Examinations in September 2025 in any examination centres in India or Abroad.

The term “relative” or “dependant” for the purpose shall include, in relation to an individual:

1. wife,
2. husband,
3. son,
4. daughter-in-law,
5. daughter,
6. son-in-law,
7. grandson,
8. granddaughter,
9. brother,
10. brother’s wife,
11. brother’s son,
12. brother’s daughter,
13. sister,
14. sister’s husband,
15. sister’s son,
16. sister’s daughter,
17. wife’s brother,
18. wife’s sister,
19. husband’s brother,
20. husband’s sister.

However, applying or appearance in ISA – AT will not be considered a disability for observership for September 2025 Examinations.

Coaching CA Students

Must not be involved in coaching activities—whether private or through institutions—including ICAI branches and regional councils.

You are not coaching students for any of the examinations/ test conducted by the Council of the CA Institute in any institutions/ organization including Regional Councils/ Branches of the ICAI and also private coaching.

Professional Ethics

You have not been convicted by any court of Law and no disciplinary proceedings are pending against you, either by the ICAI / Disciplinary Directorate or by any other organization, both in India or abroad.

Associated with ICAI

You are not associated with the Institute as an elected/co-opted member of the Council/ Regional Council / Managing Committee of any Branch of the ICAI.

Guidelines for Observer

You shall abide by the Guidelines for Observer and / or any other instructions.

Children or Relative

He/she will not visit any of the examination centre where children or relative/s of his/her partners, employees, other associates, articled assistants, whether current or former, are appearing in a particular centre for September 2025 CA Examinations.

Duties of Observer

A member will be allotted duties in the city of his professional address only as per Institute’s records.

Once empanelled, an Observer must perform the following duties diligently:

1. Paper Collection & Distribution
   • Collect sealed question papers from the designated bank.
   • Be present at the center until completion of exams, including:
     • Opening of code keys
     • Distribution of papers
     • Reconciliation & packing of answer sheets
     • Handing over to the courier
2. Timely Reporting
   • Submit daily report via portal immediately after exam.
3. Billing & Communication
   • Submit honorarium bills post-exam.
   • If duties cannot be performed, decline through portal and inform ICAI immediately.
4. Compliance Obligations
   • Failure to comply or unauthorized absence may result in action under the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949.

Honorarium

Honorarium of ₹3750/– per day / per session and ₹500/– as conveyance reimbursement for ‘A’ class cities and ₹400/– for other cities per day (to cover cost of local travel) besides reimbursement of postal, stationery, telephone expenses, if any, will be paid.

The list of A class cities is as under:

Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi/ New Delhi, Hyderabad/ Secunderabad, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kolkata/Howrah, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, and Pune.

How to empanel to Act as Observer in ICAI Exams

If you fulfill the above mentioned eligibility criteria, desirous of empanelling yourself for the assignment, may do so, online at the following official website i.e. observers.icaiexam.icai.org.

You have to provide your ICAI membership number along with Date of Birth for login to the official website i.e. Observers.ICAIexam.icai.org for empanelment of CA as observer for CA 2025 examinations. Note that applications made by Chartered Accountants by any other mode will not be entertained by ICAI.

Please do not send the hard copy of the Observers Application to the Institute. However you can retain a copy of the same for your reference.

Allotment of assignment of Observer for the CA Main Examinations to be held in September 2025 will be hosted on observers.icaiexam.icai.org.

Following are the important dates related to empanelment of CA to act as observer in ICAI examinations:

Examination Cities

Examinations will be held in hundreds of cities across five regions of India, including major zones. Below is a regional snapshot:

🟠 Western Region: Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, Surat, Rajkot, Aurangabad, Thane, Vasai, Nashik, Kolhapur, etc.

🟢 Southern Region: Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Kochi, Madurai, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Tirupati, etc.

🔵 Eastern Region: Kolkata, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Dibrugarh, Agartala, Port Blair, Durgapur, Rourkela, etc.

🔴 Central Region: Lucknow, Kanpur, Jaipur, Indore, Bhopal, Ranchi, Patna, Allahabad (Prayagraj), Varanasi, etc.

⚪ Northern Region: Delhi/New Delhi, Chandigarh, Amritsar, Jammu, Gurgaon, Ludhiana, Shimla, Rohtak, Faridabad, etc.

AUBSP Tip: Zones are specifically defined in major cities. Members should ensure their professional address is updated in the SSP portal for proper duty allocation.

Kindly note that, The Examination Committee in its 648th Meeting held on 8th and 9th May 2024 among others has decided that there should be a cooling off period for one attempt after three (3) consecutive attempts for Observership duties.

Please read the eligibility conditions and make sure that you are eligible to apply and that you will be able to undertake the assignment during the relevant period. For any further clarifications, you may write to us at observer@icai.in or call 0120- 3054829 / 3054846.