Financial Planners and Advisers
Code of Ethics
Compliance with the Code of Ethics is a requirement for all financial advisers from 1 January 2020.
The Code issued by FASEA and managed by Treasury is a set of principles and core values that lays the foundations for a true profession to emerge. It is a principles based model providing a powerful framework to shape and reinforce ethical conduct and encourage a deeper engagement by the individual with their duties to their client as well as wider society.
As such, those who formerly provided a commercial service, are now committed to offering a professional service – informed by a Code of Ethics that is intended to shape every aspect of their professional conduct. This Code and the Standards within it are a matter of legal obligation and provide a foundation for conduct for all financial advisers.
Standard 1
Standard of Ethical BehaviourStandard 1
An adviser must act in accordance with all applicable laws, including the Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics, and not try to avoid or circumvent their intent.
Standard 2
Standard of Ethical BehaviourStandard 2
An adviser must act with integrity and in the best interests of each of their clients
Standard 3
Standard of Ethical BehaviourStandard 3
An adviser must not advise, refer or act in any other manner where they have a conflict of interest or duty.
Standard 4
Standard of Client CareStandard 4
An adviser may act for a client only with the client’s free, prior and informed consent.
Standard 5
Standard of Client CareStandard 5
All advice and financial product recommendations that are given to a client must be in the best interests of the client and appropriate to the client’s individual circumstances.
The adviser must be satisfied that the client understands the advice, and the benefits, costs and risks of the financial products that have been recommended, and the adviser must have reasonable grounds to be satisfied.
Standard 6
Standard of Client CareStandard 6
An adviser must take into account the broad effects arising from the client acting on your advice and actively consider the clients broader, long-term interests and likely circumstances.
Standard 7
Standard of Quality ProcessStandard 7
The client must give free, prior and informed consent to all benefits the adviser and Australian Financial Services License (AFSL) holder will receive in connection with acting for the client, including any fees for services that may be charged.
Except where expressly permitted by the Corporations Act 2001, an adviser may not receive any benefits, in connection with acting for a client, that derive from a third party other than an advisers AFSL.
An adviser must satisfy themselves that any fees and charges that the client must pay to the adviser or the advisers AFSL, in connection with acting for the client are fair and reasonable, and represent value for money for the client.
Standard 8
Standard of Quality ProcessStandard 8
An adviser must ensure that their records of the client, including former clients, are kept in a form that is complete and accurate.
Standard 9
Standard of Quality ProcessStandard 9
All advice given, and all products recommended to a client must be offered in good faith and with competence and be neither misleading nor deceptive.
Standard 10
Standard of Professional CommitmentStandard 10
An adviser must develop, maintain and apply a high level of relevant knowledge and skills
Standard 11
Standard of Professional CommitmentStandard 11
An adviser must cooperate with ASIC and monitoring bodies in any investigation of a breach or potential breach of the Code of Ethics
Standard 12
Standard of Professional CommitmentStandard 12
Individually and in cooperation with peers, an adviser must uphold and promote the ethical standards of the profession, and hold each other accountable for the protection of the public interest.