Key points
- Four financial advisers have been given reprimands by the FSCP for failing to comply with their CPD requirements.
- CPD is important for maintaining competency and improving knowledge and skills.
- ASIC will continue to act where financial advisers disregard their CPD obligations.
Five financial advisers have been brought before the Financial Services and Credit Panel (FSCP) for failing to comply with their continuing professional development (CPD) requirements.
ASIC convened multiple sitting panels between March and May 2025. The panel decided:
- to give four financial advisers reprimands; and
- to take no action in relation to one financial adviser.
A summary of each decision is available in the FSCP Outcomes Register.
ASIC reminds financial advisers that continuing professional development is not merely a compliance obligation to tick off, it is important to maintain competency and improve knowledge and skills.
ASIC will continue to act where financial advisers fail to comply with, or disregard their CPD requirements, including issuing a warning or reprimand or referring financial advisers to the FSCP.
Important reminders to financial advisers and AFS licensees:
- Financial advisers need to be aware of their CDP requirements including the mandatory categories and hours and keep accurate records of CPD hours completed.
- Completion of CPD requirements should not be left to the last minute and should be spread throughout the CPD year, as good practice.
- Australian financial services (AFS) licensees must ensure their are adequately trained (including by complying with the CPD requirement, for financial advisers).
- AFS licensees must notify ASIC at the end of their CPD year if their financial advisers have not complied with the CPD requirement during that year.
CPD requirement
All relevant providers (except for provisional relevant providers) are required to participate in development programs and activities that ensure they maintain and extend their professional capabilities, knowledge and skills, including keeping up to date with all regulatory, technical and other developments relevant to the provision of financial advice.
Relevant providers must comply with the CPD requirements set by the Minister in the Corporations (Relevant Providers Continuing Professional Development Standard) Determination 2018 (CPD Determination). Relevant providers must complete a minimum of 40 hours, during their licensee’s CPD year. The 40 hours must include minimum hours across the following mandatory categories:
- Technical Competence (5 hours);
- Client Care and Practice (5 hours);
- Regulatory Compliance and Consumer Protection (5 hours);
- Professionalism and Ethics (9 hours); and
- Tax (financial) advice (5 hours where the financial adviser is authorised to provide tax (financial) advice services to retails clients).
For more information on CPD requirements refer to the ASIC website on Continuing professional development (CPD).
Background
The FSCP makes administrative decisions on matters referred to it by ASIC that relate to the conduct of financial advisers. The FSCP is a pool of industry participants, appointed by the Minister, that ASIC draws upon when forming individual sitting panels. Each sitting panel comprises an ASIC staff member and at least two members of the FSCP. The FSCP has a range of powers to enable it to consider and respond to a range of financial adviser misconduct.
