ASIC confirms further delays to financial adviser registration requirement

In a statement this week, the corporate regulator confirmed it would extend the date by which relevant providers — financial advisers who provide personal advice to retail clients — must be registered to 1 October.

A further delay to the registration requirements will allow for several things to occur beforehand, including for Parliament to consider the improvements proposed by the Treasury Laws Amendment (2023 Measures No. 1) Bill 2023 and for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) to issue subsequent regulatory guidance and conduct webinars.

The bill in question, among other things, proposes to allow ASIC to approve applications from one or more licensees to register on the Financial Advisers Register (FAR) the same relevant provider, and to allow assisted decision making to be used for any purpose for which ASIC may make decisions in the performance or exercise of its functions or powers to register a relevant provider.

ASIC reiterated that the registration requirement is “new” amid some confusion among financial advisers regarding whether they’re obliged to register. The corporate regulator further stressed that it is separate and in addition to the pre-existing requirements for an AFS licensee to appoint a relevant provider to the FAR after they have been authorised.

Speaking in Sydney earlier this month, Leah Sciacca, a senior executive leader for financial advisers at ASIC, hinted at uncertainty regarding the launch date of the new registration obligations.

“There are currently some amendments to the Better Advice Act before Parliament that relate to financial adviser registration, and this may impact the timing of ASIC launching its registration system,” Ms Sciacca said.

“In addition to ensuring our IT infrastructure is ready, we’ve prepared guidance for industry about the registration requirements, including how to register a relevant provider, what happens when a registration ceases, and the declarations that will be required to be made by licensees as part of the registration process.”

Ms Sciacca added at the time that ASIC would continue to monitor the amendments before parliament and assist the industry in understanding its obligations in relation to registration.

The registration requirement has already been pushed back once, with Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones noting at the time that: “ASIC has been engaging closely with industry about how best to implement stage one, with a view to ensuring the obligation on licensees to register financial advisers operates as efficiently as possible.

“Through this engagement, ASIC has identified ways to improve the operation of the stage one registration process with benefits for licensees.”