Checked 29 September 2026. From MSO para 9.8.2, the Kerala, Punjab and DGA (I&CA) call circulars of 2022-2026, the Kolkata Office Procedure Manual and the Exam Wing date sheets of 2025 and 2026. The next sitting had not been notified on 29 September 2026; Exam Wing names April as the cycle, but 2026 was held on 13 May. A new call circular from your office would override this page.
Eligibility for the Incentive Examination for Senior Auditors is short: one year of continuous service in the grade of Senior Auditor on the first of the month in which the exam is scheduled to be held, which the circulars have applied as 1 April every year we checked, including 01.04.2026 for the sitting of 13 May 2026. Field offices also invite Assistant Supervisors (Level 7) who have not passed the exam while serving as Senior Auditors, on the authority of a Headquarters circular of 30 March 2021. This guide takes each part of that rule from the documents, lists the sittings we could find from 2022 to 2026 in selected offices, prints the points where the documents disagree, and ends with a date checker. ProSyllabus is an independent study site, not part of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India or the Indian Audit and Accounts Department. Every rule here is quoted or summarised from the MSO (Administration) and Exam Wing and field-office circulars; your own office and Exam Wing decide individual cases.
Where other pages get this wrong
The service needed is one year in the grade, counted on the first of the exam month. It is not three years.
Commonly published instead: The three-year rule printed in MSO (Admn) Vol. I para 9.8.2 and in office manuals that copy it.
The same MSO paragraph carries a Note: "From the examination to be held in April 1994 and onwards ... will be one year." The call circulars of 2022 to 2026 that we read all apply one year.
MSO para 9.8.2 and Note; Kerala Circular 13 of 2026; Kolkata OPM para 6.7; Punjab orders 2023-2025; DGA (I&CA) circular 2024; Circular 05 of 2026 (all official).
The rule, part by part
| Part of the rule | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Senior Auditors | The grade in audit offices of all branches. The A&E counterpart, Senior Accountant, has its own paper on the same day | MSO para 9.8.1; date sheet of 09.04.2025 (official) |
| one year continuous service in the grade | One year as Senior Auditor, not one year in IA&AD. "Continuous" is the MSO's word; how a break is treated is not explained | MSO para 9.8.2 Note; Punjab orders (official) |
| on the first of the month in which the examination is scheduled to be held | The circulars wrote 01.04.2022, 01.04.2023, 01.04.2024, 01.04.2025 and, for the exam of 13.05.2026, 01.04.2026 | MSO para 9.8.2; Kolkata OPM para 6.7; Kerala Circulars 70 of 2022 and 13 of 2026; Punjab orders; DGA (I&CA) circular (official) |
| Assistant Supervisors who have not passed as Sr. Auditors | Level 7 staff who missed or failed the exam as Senior Auditors can still earn the increment once. The circulars state no service condition for them. The Kerala circulars list Assistant Supervisors without the "not passed" words | Kolkata OPM para 6.7, citing Headquarters Circular No. 624-Staff (App)-I/13-2021 of 30.03.2021; Kerala Circulars 2022, 2026; Punjab orders 2023-2025; DGA (I&CA) circular 2024 (official). We did not find the Headquarters circular itself |
| Senior Auditors on ACP/MACP | Senior Auditors "placed in the next higher scale of pay" under ACP/MACP are also eligible; the increment is in the scale they draw at the time of the exam | Kerala Circulars 70 of 2022 and 13 of 2026 (official) |
| Where you sit | At your station of posting, if there is an IA&AD office there. For deputationists the cadre-controlling office sends the question paper to the borrowing office | Circular 01 of 2024; date sheets of 09.04.2025 and 24.04.2026 (official) |
| How you apply | A proforma to your own office's exam cell by a local last date (for example 18.03.2025 in Punjab, 02.04.2024 in DGA (I&CA) New Delhi). The proforma asks for date of promotion, service as on 1 April, SC/ST status and Hindi or English | Punjab letter of 12.03.2025; DGA (I&CA) circular (official) |
One year in the grade means a Senior Auditor reaches the rule by the second April counting date after joining the grade, or the first if they joined on or before 1 April of the year before. The other hurdle is the last date: each office sets its own (18.03.2025 in Punjab, 30.04.2026 in Kerala), and the circulars say applications received late will not be entertained.
Sittings we could find (selected offices)
| Sitting | Date | Counting date | Who set the paper | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 25.04.2022 (Kerala); 27.04.2022 (Punjab) | 01.04.2022 | Locally, MCQ | Kerala Circular 70 of 08.03.2022; Punjab increment order of 13.07.2022 (official) |
| 2023 | 17.04.2023 (Punjab); 21.04.2023 (Odisha) | 01.04.2023 | Locally, MCQ | Punjab orders of 24.02.2023 and 07.07.2023; Odisha result declaration (official) |
| 2024 | 23.04.2024 (DGA I&CA, New Delhi); 29.04.2024 (Punjab); different by office | 01.04.2024 | Locally, MCQ | DGA (I&CA) circular; Punjab orders (official) |
| 2025 | Tuesday 29.04.2025, 11 AM to 1 PM | 01.04.2025 | Exam Wing, first centralised sitting | Exam Wing letters of 22.01.2025 and 09.04.2025; Punjab letter of 12.03.2025 (official) |
| 2026 | Wednesday 13.05.2026, 11 AM to 1 PM | 01.04.2026 (Kerala circular) | Exam Wing | Circular 05 of 2026; Kerala Circular 13 of 29.04.2026 (official) |
| Next | Not notified by 29.09.2026 | Not published | Exam Wing, if the 2024 decision holds | Exam Wing circulars list (official) |
This is not a full list: before July 2024 each office fixed its own date and we read only some offices' papers, which is why 2022 to 2024 show several dates. From 01.07.2024 Exam Wing conducts the exam centrally, so there is now one date for the whole department, printed in an Exam Wing date sheet a few weeks ahead. The 2025 date sheet came on 09.04.2025 for an exam on 29.04.2025; the 2026 one came on 24.04.2026 for an exam on 13.05.2026.
April or May?
Exam Wing Circular 01 of 2024 says the exam is held "once in a year i.e. April", matching MSO para 9.8.1, which says "every year in April". The 2026 sitting was nevertheless held on 13 May, in a week when all the centralised departmental exams were bunched together from 11 to 14 May. We do not know whether May was a one-off. The practical point for eligibility is the counting date. Read literally, the MSO counts your year on the first of the month in which the exam is scheduled, which for a May sitting would be 1 May. That is not what was applied in 2026: the Kerala audit office's circular of 29.04.2026 for the 13 May exam asked for one year in the grade "as on 01.04.2026". We print both and follow the circular, because it is what an office actually applied; your own office's call circular settles it for you. The increment itself still takes effect from the first of the month in which the exam is held, which the same Kerala circular repeats.
Check your date
Incentive Exam eligibility checker
Pick your grade, enter the date your continuous service as Senior Auditor began, and pick a sitting. The checker adds one year and compares it with that sitting's counting date. This is our arithmetic on MSO para 9.8.2 and the call circulars, not your office's decision.
MSO para 9.8.2 and Note; Kerala Circular 13 of 2026; Punjab orders 2023-2025; DGA (I&CA) circular 2024; Circular 01 of 2024 (official). One year is counted as a calendar year from the start date; how an office counts a start date part-way through a month is not published.
For readers without JavaScript, here is how the rule works for some start dates against the counting dates actually used.
| Service as Sr. Auditor began | One year completes | Counting date 01.04.2025 (sitting 29.04.2025) |
|---|---|---|
| 01.04.2024 | 01.04.2025 | Eligible, exactly one year (our arithmetic) |
| 02.04.2024 | 02.04.2025 | Not eligible, one day short |
| 15.04.2024 | 15.04.2025 | Not eligible; eligible on 01.04.2026 for the 13.05.2026 sitting (Kerala counting date) |
| 15.04.2025 | 15.04.2026 | Not eligible; not eligible either on 01.04.2026 for the May 2026 sitting, although the MSO wording read literally (01.05.2026) would have admitted it |
| Assistant Supervisor who never passed as Sr. Auditor | No service condition stated | Invited by the 2025 Punjab letter |
| Already passed as Sr. Auditor | - | No second increment is provided for (our reading) |
Where the documents disagree
| Question | One document says | Another says | Our reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| How much service? | 3 years (MSO para 9.8.2) | 1 year from April 1994 (MSO Note; 2023-2025 circulars) | 1 year |
| Which month? | "every year in April" (MSO 9.8.1; Circular 01 of 2024) | 13.05.2026 (Circular 05 of 2026) | April is the nominal cycle; the actual date is whatever Exam Wing's date sheet says |
| Counting date for a May sitting? | The first of the month in which the exam is scheduled (MSO 9.8.2): 01.05.2026 read literally | "as on 01.04.2026" (Kerala Circular 13 of 2026) | 01.04.2026, the date an office applied; your call circular decides |
| Who sets the paper? | "set locally" by the Head of Department (MSO 9.8.3; Circular 12 of 2020) | Exam Wing, centrally, from 01.07.2024 (Circular 01 of 2024) | Exam Wing since the 2025 sitting |
| Can a Sr. Auditor at the maximum of the scale sit? | No (Jharkhand manual para 6.14.3, citing 1988-1992 circulars) | No such bar in MSO 9.8 or any 2022-2026 circular | Unresolved; ask your exam cell |
Not published
What no document we read answers
- The fee, if any. No fee clause appears in the MSO or any circular.
- The number of chances. Circular 01 of 2024 says "the existing number of chances will continue" and the count starts afresh from central conduct, but no document states the number for this exam. The "six" chances in Circular 10 of 2022 are stated for the Departmental Exam for Auditors, not this one.
- Any SC/ST or PwBD relaxation. The DGA (I&CA) proforma asks whether you are SC/ST, but no relaxation is stated.
- The text of the Headquarters circular that extended eligibility to Assistant Supervisors. The Kolkata Office Procedure Manual cites it as No. 624-Staff (App)-I/13-2021 of 30.03.2021; we did not find the circular itself.
- The date of the next sitting.
Our search of the MSO, Exam Wing circulars 2020-2026 and field-office circulars, 29 September 2026.
Who is eligible for the CAG Incentive Examination for Senior Auditors?
Senior Auditors with one year of continuous service in the grade on the counting date (01.04.2026 for the May 2026 sitting, in the Kerala circular), Senior Auditors in a higher scale under ACP/MACP (Kerala circulars), and Assistant Supervisors in Level 7 who have not passed the exam while serving as Senior Auditors.
Is it one year or three years of service?
One year. The MSO's three-year rule was changed to one year from the April 1994 exam by the Note under the same paragraph.
When is the next Incentive Exam for Senior Auditors?
Not notified as of 29 September 2026. Exam Wing names April as the yearly cycle; the 2025 exam was on 29 April and the 2026 exam on 13 May.
Can I sit if I am on deputation?
Yes, on the date sheets' wording: your cadre-controlling office provides the question paper to the borrowing office.
Can an Assistant Supervisor sit?
Yes, if they have not passed the Incentive Exam while serving as Senior Auditors.
How many chances do I get?
Not published for this exam. Circular 01 of 2024 says existing chances continue and the count restarted with central conduct.
Is there an application fee?
Not published. No document we read mentions one.
Where do I apply?
To your own office's exam cell in its proforma, by the last date in your office's call circular.
Sources
- official — CAG Manual of Standing Orders (Administration) Vol. I, Third Edition, Chapter 9: para 9.8 (Incentive Examination for Senior Auditors/Senior Accountants) and para 9.9 (Incentive Examination for SOs/AAOs of A&E offices)
- official — O/o Director General of Audit (Central) Kolkata: Office Procedure Manual, 4th edition, para 6.7 (quotes MSO 9.8 and cites Headquarters Circular No. 624-Staff (App)-I/13-2021 of 30.03.2021 for Assistant Supervisors who have not passed as Senior Auditor)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Kerala: Circular No. 70 of 08.03.2022 (exam 25.04.2022; one year in the grade as on 01.04.2022; ACP/MACP Senior Auditors and Assistant Supervisors also eligible)
- official — O/o Accountant General (Audit) Kerala: Circular No. 13 of 29.04.2026 (exam 13.05.2026; one year in the grade as on 01.04.2026; ACP/MACP Senior Auditors and Assistant Supervisors also eligible; increment in the scale drawn at the time of the exam; last date 30.04.2026)
- official — Odisha audit offices: declaration of result of the Incentive Examination for Senior Auditors/Asst. Supervisor held on 21.04.2023 (date only used here)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: office order of 24.02.2023 inviting applications (one year as Sr. Auditor as on 01.04.2023; Assistant Supervisors in Level 7 who have not passed)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: office order of 04.03.2024 inviting applications (as on 01.04.2024)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: letter of 12.03.2025 inviting applications (as on 01.04.2025; last date 18.03.2025)
- official — O/o Director General of Audit (Industry & Corporate Affairs), New Delhi: circular "Incentive Examination for Sr. Auditor/Assistant Supervisor April 2024" (exam 23.04.2024)
- official — Exam Wing Circular No. 01 of 2024, No. 15/15-Exam/Exam Conducting Centrally/2023 (17.01.2024): four categories of departmental examinations conducted centrally w.e.f. 01.07.2024, incl. the IE for Sr. Auditors/Sr. Accountants "once in a year i.e. April"
- official — Exam Wing letter No. 48/06-Exam/CDEP/2025 (22.01.2025): centralised schedule February to June 2025 (IE 29.04.2025)
- official — Exam Wing No. 146/06-Exam/OCDEP/2025 (09.04.2025): "Centralised Departmental Incentive Exam for Sr. Auditors/Sr. Accountants 2025", 29.04.2025, 11 AM to 1 PM, offline at field offices
- official — Exam Wing Circular No. 05 of 2026, No. 343/06-Exam/OCDEP/2025 (24.04.2026): date sheet of centralised departmental examinations 11.05.2026 to 14.05.2026 (IE for Sr. Auditors/Sr. Accountants 13.05.2026)
- official — Exam Wing Circular No. 12 of 2020 (20.10.2020): Heads of Department competent to hold the IE for Sr. Auditors/Sr. Accountants locally
- official — Exam Wing Circular No. 04 of 2024 (13.09.2024): other exams left local till 31.10.2024; the IE is not in its list
- official — Exam Wing Circular No. 10 of 2022, No. 145/07-Exam/Clarification MCQ Pattern/2022 (24.03.2022): 2 hours, no books, 100 MCQ, pass 50% in the IE, negative marking 0.25
- official — AG (Audit) Jharkhand Office Manual, Chapter VI para 6.14 (2020 upload): the older rules, including the "maximum of their pay scales" bar, citing CAG circulars of 1988, 1991 and 1992
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: result order of 07.07.2023 for the exam of 17.04.2023 (counts only used here)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: result order of 01.07.2024 for the exam of 29.04.2024 (subject line prints 27/04/2022; counts only used here)
- official — O/o Pr. Accountant General (Audit) Punjab: office order of 13.07.2022 granting the advance increment for the exam of 27.04.2022, pay fixed under FR-27 with the normal date of increment unchanged subject to FR-26 (pay cells only used here, no names)
- official — CAG Exam Wing circulars list (current and archive), read 29 September 2026: no notice for the next IE sitting
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
