ASIC squares adviser double-registration
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) has played down suggestions that financial advisers will need to be registered twice.
Reacting to discussion at the recent Financial Planning Association (FPA) national congress, the Association of Independently Owned Financial Professionals (AIOFP) sought clarity from ASIC about financial advisers needing to be registered twice.
ASIC’s response, provided by ASIC senior executive leader for Financial Advisers, Leah Sciacca pointed to the situation which arises from the Financial Adviser Register (FAR) being transferred from the Australian Taxation Office.
The response said that “financial advisers who were registered with the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) as a tax (financial) adviser as at 31 December 2021 will generally be deemed to be registered with ASIC under stage one”, it said.
“Licensees are not required to apply to ASIC to register advisers who are deemed to be registered or pay a registration fee.”
“Stage two commences once the Financial Advisers Register transitions to the Australian Tax Office (ATO) as part of the Australian Business Registry Service (ABRS).”
ASIC pointed to the Government’s announcement earlier this month that there would be a six-month delay to the requirement to register financial advisers with ASIC.
It said that financial advisers would now need to be registered by 1 July, 2023, and that it was important to note that the new registration requirement was “separate to the pre-existing requirement for a licensee to appoint a financial adviser that they authorise to the FAR.
It may be too early in the morning for common sense to prevail, but can someone please clarify whether the FAR is being transferred to or from the ATO?
And why a second register is needed at all?
Thanks ASIC for answering nothing.
The most basic question is WHY do Advisers need ANOTHER REGISTRATION?
WHY, what is the purpose?
WHY, isn’t FAR used to transfer ALL Advisers to some other Registry.
WHY do ASIC duplicate everything.
So Advisers pay another Fee $$$ and waste more time.
Come on Mike at least try to get a decent answer that makes some sense, if there is any.
Money for ASIC is the answer but you already knew that
clear as mud 🙂 so do i need to do anything?