Familiarise yourself with the client consent obligations for advisers in section 962G(2) of the Corporations Act. It is important to ensure that you fully comply with these requirements, as the failure to do so will result in the automatic termination of your ongoing fee arrangement.

Take care when using product provider forms to ensure that all the information advisers must include in the client consent form is included. 

In the early stages of the introduction of these reforms, advisers may need to continue to use one form for their own obligations and another to meet the requirements of the product providers.

Technically under the law, 10 January is the ‘commencement’ of the ‘transition arrangements’ for these reforms. The transition arrangements mean that the changes commence at different times for each client based on the anniversary when the OFA was entered into with that client. What this means is that when you renew an OFA with a client on or after 10 January:

• You are not required to provide an FDS
• You must meet the new client consent obligations
• You have 150 days from the date of the anniversary of the OFA to obtain your client’s consent to renew your OFA and deduct fees from an account. After this period, if consent has not been provided, your OFA will terminate.

Please note that while you no longer have to provide an FDS, the information required in the new consent form includes the ‘look forward’ information (previously required in your FDS) about the services your client is entitled to receive in the coming 12 months.

Access the FAAA’s client consent guidance. ASIC guidance on the new client consent obligations will also be helpful:

• FAQs: Ongoing fee arrangements and consents | ASIC
• FAQs: Non-ongoing fee requests or consents | ASIC