From 1 January next year, ASIC said the new professional requirements for financial advisers will progressively replace the training standards in Regulatory Guide 146.
RG 146 will not apply to new entrants to the industry seeking to become a relevant provider from 1 January 2019. They will need to meet the new professional standards requirements, it said.
“RG 146 will continue to apply to financial advisers who are authorised by their Australian financial services (AFS) licensee as an existing provider until the new requirements apply to them,” ASIC stated.
“Generally, existing providers are those who have a status of ‘current’ on the financial advisers register, and not prohibited from providing advice on 1 January 2019.”
ASIC has also confirmed that the no-action position that was announced in 2013 following ASIC’s decision to replace the ASIC Training Register, will remain relevant for existing advisers until 1 January 2021, the date by which they are required to complete the exam.
This means that ASIC will not take any action against an AFS licensee for breach of the licence conditions 7(a) and 7(b) set out in PF 209, provided that the licensee is satisfied that each existing provider has satisfied certain requirements.
It will also apply a no-action position for licensees who authorise provisional financial advisers to address inconsistencies between the licence conditions and the new training requirements in the professional standards reforms.
“We will not take any action against an AFS licensee for breach of conditions 7(a) or 7(b) of PF 209 in relation to provisional relevant providers, provided that the licensee is satisfied that a provisional relevant provider meets the education and training requirements in s921B(2), s921B(3) and s921F of the Corporations Act,” ASIC stated.
ASIC said it intends to consult on a legislative instrument in 2019 to formalise the no-action positions in relation to AFS licence conditions and financial product advice training.
