Section 5 – The Chartered Accountants Act, 1949

(1) The members of the Institute shall be divided into two classes designated respectively as associates and fellows.

(2) Any person shall, on his name being entered in the Register, be deemed to have become an associate member of the Institute and be entitled to use the letters A.C.A. after his name to indicate that he is an associate member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

¹[(3) A member, being an associate who has been in continuous practice in India for at least five years, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, or whether partly before and partly after the commencement of this Act, and a member who has been an associate for a continuous period of not less than five years and who possesses such qualifications as the Council may prescribe with a view to ensuring that he has experience equivalent to the experience normally acquired as a result of continuous practice for a period of five years as a chartered accountant shall, on payment of such fees, as may be determined, by notification², by the Council, which shall not exceed rupees five thousand and on application made and granted in the prescribed manner, be entered in the Register as a fellow of the Institute and shall be entitled to use the letters F.C.A. after his name to indicate that he is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants:

Provided that the Council may with the prior approval of the Central Government, determine the fee exceeding rupees five thousand, which shall not in any case exceed rupees ten thousand.]

Amendment

¹ Substituted, for the following, by the Chartered Accountants (Amendment) Act, 2006 and came into force w.e.f. 8^th August, 2006 :–

^A[“(3) A member, being an associate who has been in continuous practice in India for at least five years, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, or whether partly before and partly after the commencement of this Act, and a member who has been an associate for a continuous period of not less than five years and who possesses such qualifications as the Council may prescribe with a view to ensuring that he has experience equivalent to the experience normally acquired as a result of continuous practice for a period of five years, as a chartered accountant shall, on payment of the prescribed entrance fee, which shall not exceed rupees two hundred in any case, and on application made and granted in the prescribed manner, be entered in the Register as a fellow of the Institute and shall be entitled to use the letters F.C.A. after his name to indicate that he is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.”]

^AThis sub-section (3) was earlier substituted, for the following, by the Chartered Accountants (Amendment) Act, 1959 :-

“(3) An associate who has been in continuous practice in India for at least five years, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, or whether partly before and partly after the commencement of this Act, shall, on payment of the prescribed entrance fee which shall not exceed rupees two hundred in any case, and on application made and granted in the prescribed manner, be entered in the Register as a fellow of the Institute and shall be entitled to use the letters F.C.A. after his name to indicate that he is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.”

² For the notification, please see Appendix No. (9).