Planner education: when a degree isn’t enough

Treasury and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) have again missed a trick by failing to address the integration of education standards for financial planners.

While welcoming the proposed raising of training standards generally, Dante De Gori, general manager of policy and conduct at the Financial Planning Association (FPA), expressed frustration with ASIC’s Consultation Paper 212 Licensing: Training of financial product advisers, released this week.

The proposal outlines the road ahead for increased training standards under Regulatory Guide 146: Licensing: Training of financial product advisers (RG 146) including the establishment of a professional development framework for financial advisers.

However, despite the future demands of the Tax Agents Services Act (TASA) being front of mind for many licensees, there is no mention made by ASIC of how advisers will meet the Tax Board’s education and experience competency requirements.

“At a minimum, a plan to streamline tax training should be part of the ASIC consultation paper,” said De Gori. “At the moment we potentially have a situation where a planner needs to be degree-qualified by 2019 to provide advice but there is no pathway let alone any guarantee that they will meet the Tax Board’s requirements.”

He added that getting this right is critical in light of the Financial Planning Education Council (FPEC) last year launching its approved national accreditation and curriculum framework for financial planning degrees.

While further fine-tuning on TASA compliance and transition periods for financial advisers will be ongoing over the next 12 months, with education and experience requirements still to be determined for even established planners, those currently studying could be left in limbo.

“The industry has consistently raised the issue of education and how this can be streamlined but, to date, this hasn’t been acknowledged by the regulator,” said De Gori.

Under Consultation Paper 212 Licensing there will be a staged implementation of new standards with different training requirements depending on when an adviser began, or begins providing financial product advice, and whether the adviser changes advice activities.

Advisers who become RG 146-compliant before January 1, 2015 will not have to comply with the new requirements unless they change advice activities after that date.

Click here for a summation of CP 212. Submissions close on September 30 2013.