Commenting on FASEA’s proposals for ongoing education requirements for advisers, Licensing for Accountants chief executive Kath Bowler said the number of hours designated for each knowledge or skills area is inflexible and “out of touch with reality”.
As reported by SMSF Adviser yesterday, the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority released draft guidance which proposed a 50-hour minimum for CPD under the new standards.
It also listed a breakdown of the number of hours it believes should be dedicated to each skill or knowledge area.
For example, the guidance proposes that 10 hours be dedicated as a minimum to regulatory compliance and consumer protection.
“There seems to be no flexibility for years where there’s no regulatory change. In those years you will still have to do ten hours,” said Ms Bowler.
“At some point people do come up to speed with the rules, and yes there does need to be ongoing CPD, but it’s not like professionals need to re-learn everything every year.”
Ms Bowler also considers the number of hours required to be excessive, especially when considering it’s higher than what is currently required for a professional accountant and is the same amount of CPD hours that would be required by a medical practitioner.
“It just seems over the top. I’m just not sure what the gains are by imposing this requirement,” she said.
“The only people set to gain are education providers. They have kept the providers that can deliver training quite broad so there’s a lot of scope for providers to deliver poor quality training so it will [end up being] 50 hours of poor quality training as opposed to 10 hours of quality training.”
So far, accountants providing limited financial advice in particular have not received the new standards well, given they will have to complete the same level of training as a fully licensed financial adviser.
I’ve always been confident giving strategic super advice. To cover myself I went through the hassle of a full financial planning diploma and paying to operate under a licence despite not learning anything new. Now with bridging courses and 50 hours cpd I will simply give it away.
Seems to me like the cost of advice will simply go up and less will receive quality advice. Surely experienced advisors, advising on strategy and not products, via a SOA are already doing a great job.
Now accountants will leave this to full planners who I’ve found are more interested in products than strategy.
Just wish I’d know this would happen before wasting hundreds of hours of time and thousands in costs doing a diploma.
No winners here except full advisors who prove time and time again they don’t look after their client interests well enough.
Hours are fine – for general practitioners but it’s excessive for anyone specialized. I personally prefer to operate as a generalist adviser but I think there is a place for specialist SMSF advisers, specialist risk advisers and specialist portfolio managers – each category of advice really needs to be thought of separately.
Spot on. The 50 hour proposal is absurd.
When will this clows learn – practical experience and clietn first attitude is what is required.Having done the RG 146 and Fin Planning yearly CPD ritual, FAESA – let me in on a secret – the training is rubbish – do not learn a single thing – its like sitting in a non mathemathical economics lecture – what is this ??? this is rubbish – FAESA – take note and put eyes back into your socket as you people see the eye watering
consultancies you think you will be offered by the banks and investment forms.
Whatever level of training is imposed it should be the same for all professionals providing that advice whether they be accountants or financial planners. What is good for the goose is good for the gander!
I think the hours are excessive. Between the hours as an accountant and a tax agent and now add this lot of hours it is ridiculous. It is expensive when you live in regional Australia to get quality training and it costs a small fortune in conference fees, airfares, accommodation and then time out of the office to travel and whilst out of the office just to attend the training. Small businesses just can not afford to do this. Fine for those employed by banks and big institutions and live in the big cities. Try to do webinars and Kaplan but you miss the interaction of people commenting at a seminar. I don’t know when I am supposed to actually have time to work and make money to pay all the regulatory bills which are starting to add up.