ASIC has announced that Australian financial services (AFS) licensees are no longer required to flag the professional year arrangement between themselves and a new financial adviser.
Licensees were previously required to notify the former Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority (FASEA) within 30 days of a new adviser commencing their professional year.
Despite the change, ASIC said licensees are still required to notify the corporate regulator if they grant a new adviser accelerated professions through quarter 1 and or 2 and when they issue a final completion certificate of the new adviser’s professional year.
ASIC has also stated that it must assess the eligibility of new and foreign advisers sitting the financial year exam before they book.
New financial advisers will receive “further guidance” doing their professional year in the coming months.
The decision comes less than a month after ASIC confirmed that 882 advisers, who had attempted the exam at least twice before the end of 2021, have qualified for an extension until 30 September 2022.
ASIC is also conducting a review of the Financial Adviser Register (FAR) to ensure all advisers who did not pass the exam by 31 December 2021 and did not qualify for the extension have been updated to a “ceased” status.
In March, it was revealed that just over 30 per cent of candidates passed the February exam, with 73 per cent resitting the exam for at least the second time.
The next exams are set to go ahead between Thursday, 12 May, and Monday, 16 May.
No problems with taking an exam as a professional year entrant. But why cant we get the marks and the pass mark. I thought ASIC would be trying to help professional year candidates as much as possible
So an OPAQUE exam created by a defunct entity is still the measure of success to being an adviser despite no commitment to further study or considering experience as something worthwhile. The industry continues to suffer under a regime created by bufoons and endorsed by the moronic on a power trip. These are at the instiution world who care less, at the association world especially the FPA and those other band of fools….Labor and Liberal politicians, who act with impunity arrogance and incompetance. and after May 21, will retire or resign and walk away with scorched earth for our industry as a legacy and a nice fat pension for the rest of their miserable days. Somehow the loss of valued experienced advisers who have not sat an exam for say 20 to 40 years will be the casualty as will their clients. Shame as I thought this industry and those in charge at any level had people of integrity at the helm. Guess Im wrong. My bad.
Sterling words and all so true – well put. But yes, sadly in your last sentence, you’re wrong.
Just another useless barrier to replace the huge number of existing advisers. The professional year is simply a book keeping exercise that will not lead to any better outcomes for advisers or clients. In a few years time ASIC will sit back and look at the 13,000 or less advisers left and ask for submissions on how to fix the mess they made. How about you listen now.
Anyone else thinking we might have a influx of professional year incumbents over the next few months?
Nope. PY is still far too risky and onerous for potential supervisors. And financial planning as a career is still far too unattractive for potential new entrants. There needs to be far more regulatory fixes than this minor tweak to make any difference.
Hi Anonymous, I doubt it. I just walked away from the professional year having finished my approved degree in June 2021. The education standard is not a problem but the speed and lack of consideration on how the professional year looks and is managed was enough for me. It appears it was a knee jerk reaction on the back of a few rotten apples, and those rotten apples seem to have moved on without a care in the world. Now I have a nice degree hanging on my wall that is unfortunately unlikely to be used.
This whole thing is a disgrace. Some of us worked hard to achieve a pass long before the deadline and now its extensions for those that didn’t. Is there a standard or isnt there?