ASIC levy relief ‘underscores’ need for collaboration with industry

On Monday, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced “temporary and targeted relief” for financial advisers by cutting the cost of recovery levies back to $1,142 per adviser for the next two years, which was originally to be increased to $3,138 per adviser per year.

The Advisers Association (TAA), which represents Australia’s largest institutional adviser group, welcomed the news. However, CEO Neil Macdonald said the government must work with stakeholders in the advice industry to develop sustainable solutions.

“It is vital to find a way for all vested interests in our community to genuinely collaborate so that we move forward,” Mr Macdonald said.

“We need to collectively agree on, and collectively design, a new model for financial advice; a model that has the client at its core, that is sustainable, enables the efficient and cost-effective delivery of financial advice to everyday Australians, and provides consumers with the right level of protections.

“Genuine collaboration requires not just a willingness on the part of the people within the profession and the industry to work together, but also policies, processes and technology.”

The levy relief announcement was widely praised by bodies and advisers within the industry including the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) which said it “will provide some certainty and stability to financial planners”.

“This is a significant milestone for the FPA and our members, as we have been calling for a review of the flawed model since it was first proposed and then introduced three years ago. We would like to thank the government for listening to our concerns and those of our members,” FPA chief executive Dante De Gori CFP said.

Meanwhile, the national president of the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA), Michael Nowak, said the relief was well timed.

“This is a much-needed move in the right direction, and I want to thank the Treasurer, the Hon. Josh Frydenberg, MP, and the Minister for Superannuation, Financial Services and the Digital Economy, the Hon. Jane Hume, and the government for finally listening to the AFA and the advice sector,” Mr Nowak said.

Local adviser and chief executive of Change Accountants and Advisers, Timothy Munro, also welcomed the announcement, noting that “we’re starting to see some common sense with the way financial advisers are treated”.

“This announcement will reduce the ASIC levy by approximately $2,000 per adviser, which is brilliant,” Mr Munro said.

“Any extra costs put onto advisers need to be charged to clients at the end of the day, so it’s a win for clients as well as for advisers.”

Neil Griffiths

Neil is the Deputy Editor of the wealth titles, including ifa and InvestorDaily.

Neil is also the host of the ifa show podcast.