On the eve of the Federal Parliament voting on the Future of Financial Advice (FOFA) changes, a document has been circulated purporting to be a joint position between the Financial Planning Association (FPA) and the Industry Super Network (ISN) trading agreement to opt-in for a range of concessions to financial planners, including exclusive use of the term ‘financial planner’.
FPA chief executive Mark Rantall has denied any change to the FPA’s approach to FOFA, particularly with respect to opt-in.
He said the FPA’s position remained unchanged from that put to the independents in the House of Representatives last week.
The document suggests opt-in only apply to new clients and that provided financial planners meet all their professional requirements in adhering to opt-in for four years they will be granted class order relief from opt-in thereafter.
Financial planners not meeting professional standards would not get the relief.
Money Management has viewed the document which not only goes to the trade-off around opt-in being in place for a period of at least four years, but is conditional on the Government agreeing to legislation enshrining the term "financial planner" in law and changes to the best interests test.
