ICAI MTP evaluation: how to check your own MTP honestly
ICAI does not check your Mock Test Paper. It publishes the question papers and, within 48 hours, the answers, and its announcement says students "can examine their answers with respect to the Answer Keys and self-assess their performance". So MTP evaluation is your job. This guide gives you a strict, step-by-step way to do it, a self-marking sheet you can copy, and what to do with the marks once you have them.
Does ICAI check MTP answer sheets?
No. Here is the exact wording from ICAI's announcement of the CA Final November 2026 Mock Test Papers (ICAI announcement, 10 August 2026, PDF (opens in a new tab)):
"Students are advised to download and attempt these papers in the stipulated time limit designated for the papers. The Answer Key to these papers will be uploaded within 48 hours from the date and time of commencement of the respective paper, as per the schedule. Students can examine their answers with respect to the Answer Keys and self-assess their performance."
The same sentence appears in ICAI's MTP announcements for CA Intermediate and Foundation (for example, Intermediate September 2026, PDF (opens in a new tab)).
What the announcement does say:
- Papers go up on the BoS Knowledge Portal (boslive.icai.org (opens in a new tab)) and the BoS MTP portal (bosmtp.icai.org (opens in a new tab)) on the scheduled day.
- For CA Final November 2026, Series I ran from 9 to 21 September and Series II from 23 September to 5 October 2026, each paper from 2 to 5 PM (see the paper-wise dates in CA Final November 2026 MTP dates).
- You can also write the tests in physical mode by approaching an ICAI branch or regional office.
What it does not say is that anyone will mark your copy. If you write at a branch, ask the branch what it offers; don't assume it.
Before you check: was the attempt real?
Self-checking only means something if the attempt was like the exam:
- Full time, in one sitting. 3 hours for Papers 1 to 5, 4 hours for Paper 6 (CA Final exam pattern).
- Handwritten, closed book. Paper 6 is open book in the real exam, so write it that way.
- No peeking at the answers until the whole paper is done.
If you stopped halfway or looked something up, mark that paper "practice", not "mock".
Step 1: check the MCQs first, and find the reason for each miss
Part I of CA Final Papers 1 to 5 is 23 MCQs in ICAI's November 2026 MTPs, 16 of 1 mark and 7 of 2 marks, with no negative marking. Tick or cross each one against ICAI's answer key and total them. That part is mechanical.
The useful part is the misses. For each wrong MCQ, write one line:
- Which fact in the case scenario did you miss or misread?
- Was it a concept gap (you didn't know the rule) or a reading gap (you knew it but read the case wrong)?
Count how many MCQs you left blank. With no negative marking in Final, a blank is a lost chance, so a blank is also a mistake to log.
Step 2: check descriptive answers step by step, like an examiner
This is where most students are too kind to themselves. Check each answer against ICAI's answer in this order, and only give marks you can point to on your page.
Numerical answers (FR, AFM, DT, IDT)
Break ICAI's answer into its steps: each adjustment, each working note, each figure that feeds the next. Then go line by line through yours.
- A step is yours only if it is written down. A figure that "you did in your head" is not on the page, so it gets nothing.
- Find the first step where you went wrong. Steps before it can still earn marks. Steps after it built on a wrong figure, so judge them strictly; don't assume an examiner will carry your error forward for you.
- Working notes count. ICAI's papers say "Working notes should form part of the answer." In the January 2026 CA Final Group I comments, examiners noted that "a significant number of examinees failed to present proper working notes and notes to accounts along with the consolidated balance sheet, often mixing them with the balance sheet or using incorrect formats" (examiners' comments, PDF (opens in a new tab)). If your working notes were missing or messy, mark that down.
- Format and rounding. The same comments note that some students "failed to round off figures to two decimal places, as required". If the question asked for a format or a rounding rule and you didn't follow it, deduct.
Theory, law and audit answers
Check three parts, separately:
- Provision. Did you state the correct rule, standard or section?
- Application. Did you apply it to the facts given, not in general?
- Conclusion. Did you answer the exact question asked, clearly?
An answer that writes the provision and then stops is incomplete. ICAI's examiners have marked down answers that were "vague, general and incomplete answers without addressing the specific requirements" (same comments, PDF (opens in a new tab)). If you are unsure whether your wording counts, our guide to step marking in CA exams explains how to think about part marks.
When your answer differs from ICAI's
Before you mark it zero, check whether ICAI's answer gives an alternative view, and whether you stated your assumption in writing. We cover this in detail in how to check your answers with ICAI suggested answers. A different answer with a stated, reasonable assumption is not the same as a wrong one. A different answer with no explanation usually is.
A simple self-marking sheet
Make one row per question part. The "Steps you got" column is the honest list of what is actually written on your page, not what you meant.
| Question | Max marks | Steps in ICAI's answer | Steps you got (written on your page) | Presentation (format, working notes, conclusion) | Marks you give |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 (MCQs) | 30 | 15 correct options | 11 correct, 1 blank | n/a | 22 |
| Q2(a) | 10 | 5 (3 adjustments, working note, final figure) | 3 adjustments, working note missing, final figure wrong | Format right, no working note | 5 |
| Q3(b) | 4 | Provision, application, conclusion | Provision right, applied to facts, no conclusion | Conclusion missing | 2.5 |
The numbers in this table are only an example of how to fill it in. A model answer shows the steps; unless it also shows a mark for each step, how you split the marks across steps is your own judgement. Make it strict: if you are unsure whether a step deserves its mark, give it less.
Two rules keep the sheet honest:
- Fill it in the same day, while you still remember what you were thinking.
- Never round up. If the total comes to 47.5, it is 47.5, not "about 50".
Where self-checking falls short
- You are biased toward your own answer. You know what you meant, so a vague line reads as clear to you. An examiner reads only what is on the page.
- You don't know every acceptable alternative. ICAI's answers sometimes show one alternative; there can be other reasonable approaches it doesn't print. You can't always tell whether yours would be accepted.
- Presentation blind spots. It is hard to see your own messy layout, unlabelled working notes, or a missing question number. ICAI's current CA Final papers say "Candidates are required to write the question number legibly", and these are exactly the things you skip over in your own copy.
- No one checks the checker. If you misunderstood a concept, you will likely misjudge your answer on it too.
Two things help: swap copies with a friend, and reread your own copy a day later, when it feels less like yours.
What to do with your MTP marks
The score matters less than the list of reasons behind it.
Keep one error log for all papers
After each checked paper, add every lost mark to one log:
| Paper | Question | Marks lost | Reason | Group | Fix |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FR MTP II | Q2(a) | 3 | No working note for deferred tax | Presentation | Write a labelled working note for every adjustment |
| DT MTP I | Q4(b) | 2 | Missed one fact in the case | Misread the question | Underline every figure and date before writing |
Use the four groups from how to check your answers with ICAI suggested answers: concept not known, misread the question, calculation error, presentation. After four or five papers, the log shows you where your marks are really going.
Re-attempt, don't just re-read
- Rewrite every question where you lost more than half the marks, from a blank page, without looking at the answer. If you can't, that topic goes back to revision.
- Turn each repeated mistake into a rule for your next paper ("working note under every adjustment", "conclusion as a separate line").
- Write the next paper in full time and check whether the same group of mistakes shows up again.
If you are still planning your last weeks before the exam, see our last 6 weeks study plan with RTPs and MTPs and the last 30 days mock test plan for CA Final.
Getting your practice papers checked
Our checking is for our own mock tests, which are new papers on ICAI's pattern: CA Final for November 2026, and CA Inter and CA Foundation for January 2027.
If you want some of your practice checked for you, our CA Final Group I mock tests and CA Final Group II mock tests give you three full-syllabus papers per subject. You write by hand, upload one PDF of your answer sheet, and get the checked copy within 24 hours: ICAI-style step-wise marks, the reason for every mark cut with the correct line to write, and question-wise analysis of concept, presentation and working notes. That takes care of the step-by-step marking and the presentation checks that are hardest to do on your own.
Frequently asked questions
Does ICAI evaluate MTP answer sheets?
No. ICAI's MTP announcement says the answer key is uploaded within 48 hours and "Students can examine their answers with respect to the Answer Keys and self-assess their performance" (ICAI announcement, PDF (opens in a new tab)). It does not mention ICAI checking your copy.
When is the ICAI MTP answer key released?
Within 48 hours from the date and time the paper starts, on the BoS Knowledge Portal and the BoS MTP portal, as per the same announcement.
Is my self-assessed MTP score close to my real exam score?
Don't rely on it as a prediction. Self-checking misses presentation problems and alternatives you don't know about. Use the score to find weak areas, not to forecast a result.
Can I get my ICAI MTP checked on ExamSeries?
No. We check only our own mock tests, which are new papers on ICAI's pattern. See the CA Final test series for November 2026, the CA Inter test series for January 2027 and the CA Foundation test series for January 2027.
Practise with checked CA Final mock tests
Keep writing ICAI's MTPs and check them with the method above. For papers you want checked for you, our CA Final mock tests are new papers on ICAI's latest pattern, with every chapter covered across three mocks per subject:
- CA Final Group I mock tests: FR, AFM and Audit
- CA Final Group II mock tests: DT & International Tax, IDT and IBS
- CA Final both groups: all six papers
You can read preview pages of the first mock of each subject on the plan page before you buy. ICAI's own MTPs, RTPs and past papers are listed with direct links on our CA Final free resources page.