ASIC confirms financial adviser registration requirement delay

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) said in a statement on Wednesday it is extending the date by which relevant providers – financial advisers who provide personal advice to retail clients on relevant financial products – must be registered.

Relevant providers will now need to be registered by 1 February 2024, instead of the previously said 1 October 2023 because the Treasury Laws Amendment (2023 Measures No. 1) Bill remains before Parliament.

The corporate regulator noted that a further extension to the registration requirement will allow additional time for Parliament to consider the improvements proposed by the bill, while also enabling ASIC to lend further assistance to advisers to understand and comply with the new requirement.

A central registration requirement for financial advisers was originally introduced in the Financial Sector Reform (Hayne Royal Commission Response – Better Advice) Act 2021 and was due to come into force from 1 January 2023.

However, in November 2022, the government delayed the financial adviser registration requirement until 1 July 2023.

Registration was proposed to occur in two stages, beginning with a one‑off registration process administered by ASIC using the Financial Advisers Register (FAR).

The second stage was then set to commence once the FAR transitions to the Australian Tax Office as part of the Australian Business Registry Service.

In May, the registration requirement was delayed again, with ASIC extending the deadline until 1 October 2023.

Speaking in Sydney earlier this year, Leah Sciacca, a senior executive leader for financial advisers at ASIC, hinted at uncertainty regarding the launch date of the new registration obligations.

“There are currently some amendments to the Better Advice Act before Parliament that relate to financial adviser registration, and this may impact the timing of ASIC launching its registration system,” Ms Sciacca said.

“In addition to ensuring our IT infrastructure is ready, we’ve prepared guidance for industry about the registration requirements, including how to register a relevant provider, what happens when a registration ceases, and the declarations that will be required to be made by licensees as part of the registration process.”

Ms Sciacca added at the time that ASIC would continue to monitor the amendments before Parliament and assist the industry in understanding its obligations in relation to registration.