ICSI CS Professional Programme 2026 — Complete New Syllabus Guide

The Company Secretary (CS) Professional Programme, governed by The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICAI Partner Statutory Body) under the Company Secretaries Act, 1980, is the final professional qualifying milestone for corporate law practitioners, corporate governance strategists, and secretarial auditors.

Under Syllabus 2022, the curriculum features pioneering modules in Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG), Insolvency & Corporate Restructuring, Drafting & Appearances before NCLT/NCLAT, and Open-Book Electives.

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1. ICSI CS Professional — At a Glance (Verified 2026)

Parameter	Official Verified Details
Statutory Authority	The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI)
Course Level	Final Stage of the Company Secretaryship Course
Exam Frequency	Biannually: June Session and December Session
Registration Fee	₹13,000 INR (Payable after clearing CS Executive)
Exam Form Fee	₹3,600 INR (Both Groups) / ₹1,800 INR (Single Group)
Total Number of Papers	7 Papers (Group 1: 4 Papers | Group 2: 3 Papers)
Total Marks	700 Marks (100 Marks per paper)
Exam Duration	3 Hours per paper (2:00 PM – 5:00 PM)
Elective Papers Format	Open Book Examination (Paper 4 and Paper 7)
Passing Criteria	40% minimum in each paper AND 50% aggregate per Group
Mandatory Post-Exam Training	21 Months Practical Training + CLDP Leadership Workshop
Designation Awarded	Associate Company Secretary (ACS Designation)

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2. The 7 Papers Detailed Syllabus Breakdown (Syllabus 2022)

Group 1 (4 Papers — 400 Marks)

Paper 1: Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) – Principles & Practice (100 Marks)

• Part I: Governance and Sustainability (65 Marks): Corporate Governance frameworks, OECD Principles, Board Effectiveness, Corporate Ethics, Stakeholder Relationship, BRSR (Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting) mandated by SEBI, ESG ratings, Integrated Reporting framework.
• Part II: Risk Management (20 Marks): Enterprise Risk Management (ERM), COSO framework, Fraud Risk Management, Cyber Risk.
• Part III: Environment & Sustainability (15 Marks): Climate change conventions, Carbon footprint, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Green finance and ESG investing.

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Paper 2: Drafting, Pleadings and Appearances (100 Marks)

• Judicial & Statutory Drafting Principles: General principles of drafting, Deeds, Commercial contracts, Loan agreements, Guarantees.
• Secretarial Drafting: Drafting of Notices, Agenda, Resolutions, Board Minutes, Explanatory Statements under Section 102.
• Pleadings & Court Documents: Drafting Petitions, Applications, Affidavits, Appeals before High Courts, NCLT, NCLAT, SEBI, SAT, and CCI.
• Appearances & Art of Advocacy: Rights of audience, Professional dress code, Etiquette, Cross-examination techniques.

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Paper 3: Compliance Management, Audit & Due Diligence (100 Marks)

• Part I: Compliance Management (40 Marks): Compliance framework, Automated compliance tracking mechanisms, KYC, Secretarial Audit mechanism under Section 204 of Companies Act 2013.
• Part II: Internal & Secretarial Audit (40 Marks): ICSI Auditing Standards (CSAS 1 to 4), Peer Review, Scope of Secretarial Audit.
• Part III: Due Diligence (20 Marks): Legal Due Diligence, Financial & Tax Due Diligence for Mergers, Acquisitions, and IPOs.

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Paper 4: Elective 1 (Open Book Examination — 100 Marks)

Candidates choose 1 of the following specialized open-book electives:

• 4.1: CSR and Social Governance
• 4.2: Internal and Forensic Audit
• 4.3: Intellectual Property Rights – Laws and Practice
• 4.4: Artificial Intelligence, Data Governance and Cyber Laws.

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Group 2 (3 Papers — 300 Marks)

Paper 5: Strategic Management & Corporate Finance (100 Marks)

• Part I: Strategic Management (40 Marks): Strategic analysis, Vision, PESTLE, Value chain, Strategic choice, Business models, ESG integration into corporate strategy.
• Part II: Corporate Finance (60 Marks): Advanced Capital Budgeting, Risk analysis, Real options, Cost of Capital, Capital Structure theories, Dividend decisions, Treasury management, Private equity and Venture capital funding.

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Paper 6: Corporate Restructuring, Valuation and Insolvency (100 Marks)

• Part I: Corporate Restructuring (40 Marks): Mergers, Amalgamations, Demergers, Fast-track mergers (Section 233), Cross-border mergers, Takeovers, Slump sale, Joint ventures.
• Part II: Valuation (20 Marks): Valuation standards, Business valuation models (DCF, Comparable Company Multiple, Asset-based), Regulatory valuation under Companies Act, SEBI, and FEMA.
• Part III: Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (40 Marks): IBC 2016 framework, Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP), Role of Resolution Professional, Committee of Creditors (CoC), Liquidation process, Pre-Packaged Insolvency for MSMEs.

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Paper 7: Elective 2 (Open Book Examination — 100 Marks)

Candidates choose 1 of the following specialized open-book electives:

• 7.1: Arbitration, Mediation and Conciliation
• 7.2: Labour Laws and Practice
• 7.3: Banking and Insurance – Laws and Practice
• 7.4: Insolvency and Bankruptcy – Law and Practice.

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3. Career Opportunities & Executive Salaries for ACS Professionals

Designation / Executive Role	Average Annual Compensation	Core Responsibilities
Company Secretary & Head of Compliance	₹14.0 LPA – ₹25.0 LPA	Board governance, SEBI LODR compliance, Secretarial audit sign-off
Corporate Legal Advisor / NCLT Counsel	₹18.0 LPA – ₹32.0 LPA	Mergers & Acquisitions drafting, insolvency dispute representation
Group General Counsel / KMP (Top Listed Firms)	₹40.0 LPA – ₹1.2+ Crore	Strategic enterprise risk, global shareholder governance, board advisory

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Source: The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) | Official Portal: icsi.edu