Lawyers at Buddle Findlay say the new disclosure regime financial advisers will work under from 15 March next year is substantively different from the current one.
“Most notably, disclosures are now given (or made available) at three distinct times in the adviser’s interaction with the client,” they say in a company blog post.
In addition, there will be a new requirement for certain disclosures to be publicly available on a website at all reasonable times.
The company says that while the new disclosure regime aims to make disclosures available as-and-when they are “most appropriate” to the client, “…the timing and content of each of those disclosures reflects a stated purpose”.
“This can be contrasted with the current regime which relied mainly on a single disclosure statement given to the client at the commencement of the financial advice interaction,” says the firm.
This can be contrasted with the current regime which relied mainly on a single disclosure statement…
However, the law firm says financial advice providers will welcome a slight relaxation in some areas.
“Complaint disclosure is only required if the complaint remains unresolved after two business days and the 12 month time limit for relying on previous disclosures has been removed,” it says.
The FMA says AFAs will not be required to submit their annual information returns this year.
Its consultation on proposed licence classes and standard conditions for full licensing of financial advice providers closes on 7 August 2020 and advisers wanting a transitional licence should apply to the FMA sooner rather than later.
See the guidance from MBIE – here.