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The CPA brand is an established sign of excellence. Members of CPA Australia are recognised as leaders in business, finance and accounting advice.
The CPA Australia Financial Planning Specialisation (FPS) builds on this expertise and specifically recognises members who specialise in financial planning with a high level of experience and knowledge in the financial services industry.
To ensure the FPS remains a mark of expertise and professionalism, CPA Australia has reviewed the current requirements to attain the specialisation.
The guide (PDF) to the new pathway to FPS and the new application form (PDF) are now available.
New Pathway 2012
To ensure the financial planning specialisation (FPS) remains a mark of expertise and professionalism, CPA Australia has reviewed the current requirements to attain the specialisation. The criteria and the points system will be replaced with a new pathway which will focus on education and experience.
Under the new pathway, CPA Australia members will be required to complete a degree or postgraduate qualification majoring in financial planning to attain the specialisation. The FPA CFP Education Program will also be recognised as meeting this requirement.
In addition, members will be required to complete specific education in tax, either through their qualification or through completion of the "Taxation" or "Advanced Taxation" segments of the CPA Program professional level. Members who are registered tax agents will be exempt from this requirement.
Members will be required to have a minimum of three years experience in financial planning in the immediate past five years. This must include experience in:
- the personal financial planning process
- personal income tax planning
- risk management planning
- investment planning
The CPA Australia Financial Planning Specialisation guide (PDF) explains the new pathway to attain the specialisation. Members can apply for the specialisation under the new pathway using the new application form (PDF)
Existing pathway – the points system
Note: A transition period commenced on 1 February 2012, during which both pathways will be available to members. Applications for the specialisation under the existing criteria will close 30 June 2013.
The existing pathway to attain the specialisation is based on a points system, where a minimum of 100 points must be accrued. A minimum of 20 points each must be earned from these three areas: education and learning, experience and examination. The remaining 40 points can be obtained in either experience or education and learning.
The number of points earned will be based on a combination of the number of hours and the type of experience gained within the past five years. Experience falls into six categories: personal financial planning process, personal income tax planning, risk management planning, investment planning, retirement planning and estate planning. Points can be earned from training courses through to post-graduate degrees, with the number of points allocated according to the level of study completed. All courses must have an assessable component.
All members must pass an examination, worth 20 application points, based on existing legislation at the date of the exam. Before you enrol for the FPS exam, you should complete the online self-assessment tool to confirm that you meet both the experience and education criteria. The FPS exam is held in each state at CPA Australia divisional offices and the enrolment fee is $220.00.
The dates for the 2012 FPS examination are:
- Friday 25 May
- Friday 16 November
To register your interest for an examination please email your name and member number to finplan@cpaaustralia.com.au