To guide stakeholders in interpreting and implementing the Code, FASEA released guidance in October 2019, December 2019 and further released the Financial Planner and Advisers Code of Ethics 2019 – Guide in October 2020 (the Guide).

Pursuant to section 921U(1)(b) FASEA is required to review instruments regularly.

Based on feedback received from a range of stakeholders on standard 3 since the Code was registered and more recently during the consultation process conducted on the Guide, FASEA is considering amendment to the wording of Standard 3 to align the wording of the Standard to its intent as explained in the Guide. FASEA would welcome stakeholder input on the amended Standard 3 wording options being considered.

“The Code of Ethics provides an ethical framework of values and standards to assist advisers in exercising their professional judgement in the best interests of their clients.  FASEA understands that some stakeholders have raised concerns regarding the wording of Standard 3 and welcomes stakeholder feedback on proposed options to align the wording of the Standard with the intent of the standard.” FASEA Chief Executive Stephen Glenfield said.

Read the Consultation Paper.

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The post Over 16,850 pass the Financial Adviser Exam appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Result highlights include:

• Over 14,850 advisers have passed the adviser exams held to date representing 74% of advisers on ASIC’s Financial Adviser Register (FAR).
• Overall, 89% of advisers who have sat the exam have passed.
• To date, 1918 unsuccessful candidates have re-sat the exam with 65% passing at a re-sit.
• 74% of candidates sitting the exam for the first time passed the May exam (compared with an average of 82.4% across all exams)
• 69% of candidates passed the May exam
• 1894 advisers sat the exam compared with an average of 1437 across all exams
• The exam is marked to a credit standard and the pass rate varies with each exam
• The exam was subject to ACER’s comprehensive marking approach and was set at a consistent standard to prior exams

“FASEA congratulates successful candidates on completing an important component of their education requirements under the Corporations Act.

Over 16,700 advisers have sat the exam with 9 in 10 demonstrating they have the skills to apply their knowledge of advice construction, ethics and legal requirements to the practical scenarios tested in the exam.

In recognition of their achievement, passing candidates who give consent, will have their names added to the successful candidates list on the FASEA website” FASEA Chief Executive Officer Stephen Glenfield said.

Candidates who were unsuccessful in this exam will receive additional individual feedback to highlight the curriculum areas where they have underperformed. They will also receive an invitation to a FASEA led webinar to help them understand their results and provide guidance on how to prepare for their next sitting.

Further analysis of the May exam data has highlighted areas for improvement, particularly amongst unsuccessful candidates.  Exam question areas advisers have underperformed on the May exam are set out below (categorised by curriculum areas): 

Financial advice regulatory and legal obligations

• Demonstrating knowledge of when practitioners are required by law to provide a retail Client with key documentation i.e. FSG/SOA
• Demonstrating knowledge of the components of key advice documentation that is provided to the client
• Evaluating case studies and identifying breaches of financial disclosure obligations
• Applying relevant sections of the Corporations Act when identifying responsible provider obligations, including breaches of those obligations
• Evaluating client scenarios in terms of legal requirements of privacy legislation

Applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication

• Identifying sources of judgement and biases and their influence on financial advice
• Effectively applying the FASEA code to various client scenarios and identifying compliance and non-compliance

 Financial advice construction

• Demonstrating an understanding of advising on complex family structures in constructing the advice.

Existing advisers have until the end of 2021 to pass the exam. FASEA is offering 3 further sittings in 2021 both online and in physical locations (subject to COVID protocols). Exam booking information can be found on the FASEA website.

Over 2700 advisers have booked for the July exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 15 to 20 July 2021. Over 230 advisers have booked for the September exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 9 to 14 September 2021, bookings close on 20 August 2021.

To assist advisers preparing for the exam, FASEA provides preparation resources, including practice questions, online. Practice questions are regularly updated and can be found on the FASEA website or via the adviser’s exam account.  Feedback received from past re-sit participants in the exam indicated these resources were useful for their preparation.

Additional background

Section 921B (3) of the Corporations Act 2001 requires advisers to pass an exam approved by the standards setting body. The Act requires existing advisers to pass the exam before 1 January 2022.

On the 24 June 2021 the Minister for Superannuation, Financial services and the Digital Economy and the Minister for Women’s Economic Security announced Government’s intention to extend the transition date to 30 September 2022 for existing relevant providers who have attempted the exam unsuccessfully at least twice prior to 1 January 2022.

New entrants are required to pass the exam before becoming a Provisional Relevant Provider.

The exam tests three domains of knowledge and skill:

• financial advice regulatory and legal obligations
• applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication: and
• financial advice construction

FASEA, with the support of the Exam administrator (ACER), has successfully offered 12 exam sittings to date on more than 60 exam days and 858 exam sessions. Since June 2019, exams have been offered in capital cities and in 23 regional locations across Australia (with the April and June 2020 exams being remote only exams due to COVID-19 restrictions).

Candidates are required to demonstrate professional reasoning and apply knowledge acquired to financial advice scenarios at AQF7 level of reasoning.

FASEA is offering three further exam sittings in 2021. Unsuccessful candidates may re-sit the exam during this period.

The post FASEA releases May exam results appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Result highlights include:

• Over 12,000 advisers have passed the adviser exams held to date representing 57% of advisers on ASIC’s Financial Adviser Register (FAR).
• Overall, 89% of advisers who have sat the exam (irrespective of how often it was sat) have passed.
• 73% of candidates sitting the exam for the first time passed the January exam (compared with an average of 83.6% across all exams)
• 46% of advisers re-sitting the exam passed on their second attempt compared to 55% re-sitters across all exams
• 67% of candidates passed the January exam (compared with an average of 78% across all exams)
• 1079 advisers sat the exam compared with an average of 1323 across all exams
• The exam is marked to a credit standard and the pass rate varies with each exam
• The exam was subject to ACER’s comprehensive marking approach and was set at a consistent standard to prior exams

“FASEA congratulates successful candidates on completing an important component of their education requirements under the Corporations Act.

Over 13,440 advisers have sat the exam with 9 in 10 demonstrating they have the skills to apply their knowledge of advice construction, ethics and legal requirements to the practical scenarios tested in the exam.

In recognition of their achievement, passing candidates who give consent, will have their names added to the successful candidates list on the FASEA website” FASEA Chief Executive Officer Stephen Glenfield said.

Candidates who were unsuccessful in this exam will receive additional individual feedback to highlight the curriculum areas that they have underperformed.  They will also receive an invitation to a FASEA led webinar to help them understand their results and provide guidance on how to prepare for their next sitting.

Further analysis of the January exam data has highlighted areas for improvement, particularly amongst unsuccessful candidates.  Exam question areas advisers have underperformed on the January exam are set out below (categorised by curriculum areas).

Financial advice regulatory and legal obligations

• Demonstrating an understanding of different types of advice (eg. personal advice, general advice and factual information) and how they apply to different client scenarios
• Demonstrating knowledge of the components of key advice documentation that is provided to the client i.e. FSG/SOA
• Applying relevant sections of the Corporations Act when identifying responsible provider obligations, including breaches of those obligations

Applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication

• Demonstrating a practical application of due diligence in financial advice
• Identifying sources of judgement and biases and their influence on financial advice
• Applying best interest duty and associated ethical obligations when providing financial advice
• Effectively applying the FASEA code to client various scenarios

Financial advice construction

• Demonstrating an understanding of the context in which financial advice is given and requested and how this impacts decision making.

Existing advisers have until the end of 2021 to pass the exam.  FASEA is offering 5 further sittings in 2021 both online and in physical locations (subject to COVID protocols). Exam booking information can be found on the FASEA website.

Over 2300 advisers have booked for the March exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 25 to 30 March 2021.    Over 800 advisers have booked for the May exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 20 to 25 May 2021.

To assist advisers preparing for the exam, FASEA provides preparation resources, including practice questions, on the FASEA website.  Practice questions are regularly updated and can be found on the FASEA website or via the adviser’s exam account.  Feedback received from past re-sit participants in the exam indicated these resources were useful for their preparation.

Additional background

Section 921B (3) of the Corporations Act 2001 requires advisers to pass an exam approved by the standards setting body. The Act requires existing advisers to pass the exam before 1 January 2022.  New entrants are required to pass the exam before becoming a Provisional Relevant Provider.

The exam tests three domains of knowledge and skill:

• financial advice regulatory and legal obligations
• applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication: and
• financial advice construction

FASEA, with the support of the Exam administrator (ACER), has successfully offered 10 exam sittings to date on more than 50 exam days and 650 exam sessions. Since June 2019, exams have been offered in capital cities and in 23 regional locations across Australia (with the April and June 2020 exams being remote only exams due to COVID-19 restrictions).

Candidates are required to demonstrate professional reasoning and apply knowledge acquired to financial advice scenarios at AQF7 level of reasoning.

FASEA is offering five further exam sittings in 2021.  Unsuccessful candidates may re-sit the exam during this period.

• See the list of passing candidates.
• See the Exam booking information.
• See the Practice questions.

The post FASEA releases January exam results appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Result highlights include:

• over 10,460 advisers have passed the adviser exams held to date
• overall, 89.5% of advisers who have sat the exam (irrespective of how often it was sat) have passed, representing 49% of advisers on ASIC’s Financial Adviser Register (FAR).
• 80.6% of candidates sitting the exam for the first time passed the October exam (compared with an average of 85.8% across all exams)
• 60% of advisers re-sitting the exam passed on their second attempt compared to 57% across all exams
• 76% of candidates passed the October exam (compared with an average of 83% across all exams)
• 625 advisers sat the exam compared with an average of 1540 across all exams
• the exam is marked to a credit standard and the pass rate varies with each exam
• the exam was subject to ACER’s comprehensive marking approach and was set at a consistent standard to prior exams

“FASEA congratulates successful candidates on completing an important component of their education requirements under the Corporations Act during the current extraordinary circumstances.

The overall pass rate of 76% may be attributed to several factors. Firstly, the October exam attracted a much smaller cohort of advisers in general, combined with a higher than usual proportion of re-sitters. For first time exam sitters during October, the pass rate remained at the 80% average.

Over 11,690 advisers have sat the exam with 9 in 10 demonstrating they have the skills to apply their knowledge of advice construction, ethics and legal requirements to the practical scenarios tested in the exam,” FASEA Chief Executive Officer Stephen Glenfield said.

Further analysis of the October exam data has highlighted areas for improvement, particularly amongst unsuccessful candidates.  Exam question areas advisers have underperformed in the October exam are set out below (categorised by curriculum areas).

Financial Advice Regulatory and Legal Requirements

• Assessing whether the adviser has appropriately scoped the advice
• Assessing whether advice recommendations meet the client’s best interests
• Demonstrating knowledge of when key advice documentation is provided to the client i.e. FSG/SOA
• Demonstrating knowledge of the consequences of breaches of financial disclosure obligations for themselves, for clients and for the industry.

Applied Ethical and Professional Reasoning and Communication

• Applying the Code of Ethics to advice scenarios identifying compliance and non-compliance
• Demonstrating an understanding of an adviser’s ethical obligations when advising on complex family structures

Existing advisers have until the end of 2021 to pass the exam. FASEA is offering 6 sittings in 2021 both online and in physical locations (subject to COVID protocols). To maximise the number of potential sittings an adviser may have in 2021, FASEA encourages advisers to register for early sittings next year. Advisers who sit either the January or March 2021 exams will have up to 3 sittings to pass next year. Exam registration information can be found on the FASEA website (link).

Over 1000 advisers have registered for the January exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 28 January to 2 February.

To assist advisers preparing for the exam, FASEA provides preparation resources, including practice questions, online at: – https://www.fasea.gov.au/prepare/. Practice questions are regularly updated and can be found on the FASEA website or via the advisers’ exam account. Feedback received from past re-sit participants in the Exam indicated these resources were useful for their Exam preparation

Additional background

Section 921B (3) of the Corporations Act 2001 requires advisers to pass an exam approved by the standards setting body. The Act requires existing advisers to pass the exam before 1 January 2022.  New entrants are required to pass the exam before becoming a Provisional Relevant Provider.

The exam tests three domains of knowledge and skill:

• financial advice regulatory and legal obligations
• applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication: and
• financial advice construction

FASEA, with the support of the Exam administrator (ACER), has successfully offered 9 exam sittings to date on more than 45 exam days and 600 exam sessions. Since June 2019, exams have been offered in capital cities and in 22 regional locations across Australia (with the April and June 2020 exams being remote only exams due to COVID-19 restrictions).

Candidates are required to demonstrate professional reasoning and apply knowledge acquired to financial advice scenarios at AQF7 level of reasoning.

FASEA is offering six further exam sittings in 2021.  Unsuccessful candidates may re-sit the exam during this period.

The post FASEA releases October exam results appeared first on AdviserVoice.

The draft guide provides an explanation of the intent and application of the Code’s values and standards. It uses fundamental questions to help illustrate the Code and highlights the requirement for advisers to exercise their professional judgement in the best interests of their client guided by the values and standards of the Code.

“The Code of Ethics provides an ethical framework of values and standards to assist advisers in exercising their professional judgement in the best interests of their clients.  FASEA understands that advisers and other stakeholders are seeking additional support in understanding the practical application of the Code of Ethics and welcomes stakeholder feedback on this draft guide.” FASEA Chief Executive Stephen Glenfield said.

The draft guide builds on the Preliminary Response to Submissions released in December 2019 and the case study examples contained in FG002 Financial Planners & Advisers Code of Ethics 2019 Guidance.

Read the draft Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics 2019 Guide.

All feedback and submissions are welcomed on the draft guide and can be submitted through FASEA’s dedicated consultations email consultation@fasea.gov.au until 2 November 2020.

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The post FASEA releases August exam results appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Advisers who complete this course of study will meet the education standard.

In addition, FASEA has approved the following two (2) bridging units offered by the University:

• Ethics for Professional Advisers; and
• Behavioural Finance Advice

FASEA’s review of the courses follows an application from the University. The approvals are recognition of the alignment of the listed courses with FASEA’s required curriculum and standards.

The approved courses will be added to a future Degree, Qualifications and Courses legislative instrument.

“The approval of these additional courses builds on the body of courses approved by FASEA and provides additional choice to advisers seeking to meet the education standard,” FASEA Chief Executive Officer Stephen Glenfield said.

FASEA has since 2017 approved a wide range of courses that meet required curriculum standards including 73 Historical Courses, 56 current Bachelor or higher degrees and 35 Bridging courses.

FASEA is committed to continuing to assess any further applications received from Higher Education Providers in respect of courses to meet FASEA’s education standard.

The full list of FASEA approved degrees, Bridging Courses and Graduate Diplomas is available on the FASEA website .

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Result highlights include:

• due to COVID-19 restrictions, the exam was held online from 11 to 16 June
• 84 percent of candidates passed the June exam (compared with 79% in April)
• 2,282 advisers sat the exam compared with 470 advisers sitting the April exam
• the exam is marked to a credit standard and the pass rate varies with each exam
• the exam was subject to ACER’s comprehensive marking approach and was set at a consistent standard to prior exams
• 10,239 advisers have sat 6 adviser exams held to date
• overall, 85% of advisers who sat the exam have passed, representing 40% of advisers on ASIC’s Financial Adviser Register (FAR).

“FASEA is pleased to present the outcomes of the sixth exam and congratulates successful candidates on completing an important component of their education requirements under the Corporations Act during the current extraordinary circumstances.  Over 10,000 advisers have sat the exam with close to 9 in10 demonstrating they have the skill to apply their knowledge of advice construction, ethics and legal requirements to the practical scenarios tested in the exam.” FASEA Chief Executive Officer Stephen Glenfield said.

Whilst the average pass mark of 85% across exams held to date demonstrates a strong performance by advisers, analysis of exam data has highlighted areas for improvement, particularly amongst unsuccessful candidates.
Exam question areas advisers have underperformed in are set out below (categorised by curriculum areas).

Financial Advice Regulatory and Legal Requirements:

• Advice documentation (including Financial Services Guide (FSG), Statement/Record of Advice (SOA/ROA), Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and Fee Disclosure Statement (FDS)) – the exam tests an understanding of when to issue these to clients and what is required to be included (eg. Fees and disclosures).
• Advice Types – understanding the difference between personal advice, general advice and information and how they apply to different client scenarios
• Privacy Act – understanding the difference between personal and sensitive information and whether consent has been appropriately obtained before using information
• Anti-money Laundering (AML) Act – identifying potentially suspicious transactions and required reporting in client advice scenarios

Financial Advice Construction:

• Identification of client biases and how they may influence clients’ financial decisions and/or investment choices

Applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication

• Understanding the application of the Code of Ethics and the Corporations Act to advice scenarios.

Over 1600 advisers have registered for the August exam, to be held in metropolitan and regional locations and online from 13 to 18 August.   The Melbourne exams will only be online due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Registration is open for the October exam, to be held from 8 to 13 October and the November exam to be held from 5 to 10 November 2020.  Subject to COVID-19 restrictions, the exams will be offered in physical locations as well as online.   Over 600 advisers are currently registered for the October exam and over 300 for the November exam.

To assist advisers preparing for the exam FASEA provides preparation resources, including practice questions, online here.  Practice questions are regularly updated on the FASEA website or through the advisers exam account.  Feedback received from past re-sit participants in the Exam indicated these resources were useful for their Exam preparation.

The FASEA website also provides information on registration (link).

Additional Background

Section 921B (3) of the Corporations Act 2001 requires advisers to pass an exam approved by the standards setting body. The Act requires existing advisers to pass the exam before 1 January 2022.  New entrants are required to pass the exam before becoming a Provisional Relevant Provider.

The exam tests three domains of knowledge and skill:

• financial advice regulatory and legal obligations
• applied ethical and professional reasoning and communication: and
• financial advice construction

FASEA, with the support of the Exam administrator (ACER), has successfully offered 6 exam sittings to date on more than 30 exam days and 341 exam sessions. Since June 2019, exams have been offered in capital cities and also in 22 regional locations across Australia (with the April and June 2020 exams being remote only exams due to COVID-19 restrictions).

Candidates are required to demonstrate professional reasoning and apply knowledge acquired to financial advice scenarios at AQF7 level of reasoning.

FASEA is offering six exam sittings in 2020 and 2021.  Unsuccessful candidates may re-sit the exam.

The post FASEA releases June exam results appeared first on AdviserVoice.

Existing advisers now have until 1 January 2022 to pass the Exam and 1 January 2026 to meet the Education requirements.

“FASEA welcomes the certainty the extension of timeframes provides to existing advisers seeking to pass the Exam and meet the higher Education Standards. FASEA notes the strong performance of nearly 8,000 advisers who have sat the exam and received results to date, with a majority of 86% successfully passing”, FASEA CEO Stephen Glenfield said.

An additional 2,250 advisers sat the exam over five days commencing 11 June 2020 and will receive their results in July. In excess of 2200 advisers have registered to sit the upcoming August exam. Registration for the August exam remains open until 24 July 2020.

Mr Glenfield further noted, “It is encouraging that there are many advisers who have commenced their education requirements with nearly 3,000 advisers enrolled in bridging courses and over 6,500 individual bachelor or higher degree subjects being undertaken by existing advisers.  These are encouraging signs for both consumers and industry.”

FASEA has approved over 160 historic (dating back to 1996) and current degrees and bridging courses, and recognised 15 courses of study to attain professional designation (dating back to 1972).

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