Policy Platform

Guiding the FAAA’s advocacy efforts until 2030

The FAAA Policy Platform is an important resource which aims to keep members updated on the progress of each of the our policy objectives.

Explore the themes, goals and objectives below and click ‘Learn more’ to see the specific recommendations and progress related to each of the objectives.

Theme 1

Improved ease of servicing clients with accessible advice

Goal: A single set of easy-to-understand rules that govern how to deliver professional financial advice in a clear, concise and engaging way for clients which is affordable to provide and access.

Theme 2

Continued professionalisation of financial advice

Goal: Financial advice is recognised and operates as a self-regulated profession

Theme 3

Ongoing enhancement of the profession and advice practices through the use of technology and innovation
Goal: Future-proofing the profession for advisers and their clients through better use of data and technology.

Use the filters to personalise the Policy Platform

Theme




Regulatory Body or Government Department











Impacted Audience




Timeframe of the goal




Objective 1.1

The Code of Ethics be adopted as the principles-based rules for financial advice

Regulatory Body or Gov't Department/s:

Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 1.2

Rationalise the Best Interests Duty, and related obligations including the removal of ‘Safe Harbour’

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Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 1.3

Better regulation of advice documentation

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Objective 1.4

Simplify the regulatory regime, reduce the cost of advice and create a consumer-focused profession

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Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 1.5

Take action to better enable the delivery of life insurance advice to facilitate more Australians being adequately covered

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Objective 2.1

The removal of regulatory impediments to individual adviser responsibility and better protection of the rights of advisers and their practices

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Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 2.2

Establish the framework to move toward self-regulation of the profession

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Objective 2.3

Maintain effective and appropriate education standards across all financial advice providers

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Objective 2.4

Increase the understanding of the value and nature of advice for society and consumers

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Objective 2.5

Increased flexibility for new entrants to meet the education standard

Regulatory Body or Gov't Department/s:

Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 2.6

Providing pathways for foreign nationals to practice financial advice in Australia

Regulatory Body or Gov't Department/s:

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Objective 3.1

Deliver a better user experience of digital platforms for consumers and advisers

Regulatory Body or Gov't Department/s:

Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 3.2

Make data capture, storage and utilisation more streamlined across financial services

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Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 3.3

Work with government to secure planner access to client data via government portals

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Impacted Audience/s:

Objective 3.4

Support regulatory reform that encourages the use of new technology and specifically AI to deliver better service and outcomes for clients

Regulatory Body or Gov't Department/s:

Impacted Audience/s:

The united voice for financial advice professionals

Recommendations:

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The following areas should be seen as stepping stones on the way to the achievement of the above objective.

Recommendations:

FAAA should ensure the profession owns the management of:

in a progressive manner in the years to 2030, so that financial advice becomes a fully self regulatory profession.

We recognise that this will take the form of co-regulation in the initial phases.

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This should include:

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This should include:

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Progress

  • Fixing the Code of Ethics is a key priority as part of our advocacy on DBFO 
  • Throughout 2025 we continued to raise the need to fix the Code of Ethics as part of our ongoing DBFO consultation with Treasury 
  • We have briefed the new Minister for Financial Services and Shadow Minister on our concerns about the Code of Ethics as part of our DBFO briefing 
  • Visit the DBFO Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases 

Progress

  • The rationalisation of the BID and promoting reliance on adviser professional judgement, are key priorities in our DBFO tranche 2 advocacy  
  • Ongoing DBFO consultation with Treasury throughout 2024/25 has focused on this issue 
  • We have briefed the new Minister for Financial Services and Shadow Minister on our key priorities for DBFO tranche 2 
  • Visit the DBFO Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases 

Progress

  • Advocated for significant changes to the government’s proposed changes to advice documentation under DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Met with the Minister and Shadow Minister regarding our concerns with DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Participated in Treasury’s ongoing consultation on DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Included in FAAA’s five ‘key election asks’ with advocacy with candidates from all parties   
  • Visit the DBFO Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases 

Progress

  • Achieved removal of fee disclosure statements 
  • Achieved single client consent – advocacy continues for a Minister approved standardised consent form 
  • Released members guidance on DBFO tranche 1 reforms 
  • Achieved release of revised ATO tax determination (TD) for tax deductibility of financial advice 
  • Ongoing advocacy to achieve full tax deductibility for all financial advice 
  • Gained improvements in breach reporting obligations, including ASIC regulatory relief 
  • Advocated for significant changes to the government’s proposed changes to advice documentation under DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Met with the Minister and Shadow Minister regarding our concerns with DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Participated in Treasury’s ongoing consultation on DBFO tranche 2A 
  • Visit the DBFO Hub, CSLR Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases 

Submissions

Progress

  • Successful advocacy to reduce the practice of upfront life insurance premium discounting 
  • Successful advocacy on the practice of genetic testing in life insurance 

Submissions

Progress

  • Successfully advocated for a public inquiry into Dixons Advisory and its impact on the CSLR 
  • Facilitated FAAA member campaign resulting in over 250 members sending more than 2,700 individual letters to nearly every federal parliamentarian, and resultant meetings 
  • FAAA wrote to every parliamentarian encouraging them to support our campaign for a public inquiry into Dixons Advisory and its impact on the CSLR 
  • Met with Minister, Shadow Minister and key crossbenchers on several occasions regarding the impact of the CSLR  
  • CSLR was one of FAAA’s five ‘key election asks’ with advocacy with candidates from all parties during the federal election 
  • Met with AFCA regarding membership of companies in liquidation, and its approach to complaint decisions involving product failures, financial advice, and/or general advice 
  • Held regular meetings with the CSLR Operator 
  • Met with the administrators of companies that created ‘black swan’ events 
  • Raised awareness of the CSLR issue via media and social media 
  • Met with AUSTRAC and the Attorney-Generals’ Department on several occasions to improve the regulatory requirements and reasonable operation of AML/CTF reliance arrangements between product providers and licensees 
  • Ongoing advocacy for improvements in the regulation of reliance arrangements as part of AML/CTF reforms 

Progress

  • Discussed with Minister as part of QAR/DBFO  

Submissions

Progress

Progress

  • Successfully advocated for the occupation classifications in the ANZSCO/OSCA to be updated to ‘financial planner’ / financial adviser’, and for the inclusion of paraplanner 
  • Actively engaged with government on the role of financial advice and financial advisers’ in identifying and assisting victims of financial abuse 
  • Met with AUSTRAC and the Attorney-Generals Department to improve their understanding of financial advice and the low ML/TF risk of advice, to protect the item 54 exemptions under the AML/CTF reforms  
  • Visit the AML/CTF Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases

Submissions

Progress

  • Support for new entrant was one of five ‘key election asks’ with advocacy with candidates from all parties during the federal election 
  • Advocated with JAWG members to improve the flexibility of the education standard for new entrants (ongoing) 
  • Successful in advocating for a government review into the education standard for new entrants to improve its flexibility  

Media Releases

Progress

  • Successfully advocated for financial advisers to be included in the Core Skill Occupation List (CSOL) as in shortage  

Submissions

Progress

  • Successfully advocated for improvements to the back-end technology and ASIC data entry process and guidance to ensure the FAR can consistently record up to 10 adviser qualifications

Progress

  • Several meetings with AUSTRAC and the Attorney-Generals’ Department to advocate for regulatory efficiency and use of digital verification under the AML/CTF reforms 
  • Ongoing advocacy for improvements in the regulation of reliance arrangements as part of AML/CTF reforms 
  • Visit the AML/CTF Hub for more detail, our submissions and media releases 

Progress

  • Continued advocacy for ATO portal access in meetings with Minister, Commission of Taxation, ATO and Board of the TPB 
  • ATO Portal access included in FAAA’s five ‘key election asks’ with advocacy with candidates from all parties  and pre-budget submission 
  • Gained support of JAWG members, including key accounting associations, for financial adviser access to the ATO Portal 
  • Met with Minister for Social Services to increase understanding of financial advice and advocate for improved access to Centrelink data and customer service staff for financial advisers 

Submissions

Further reading

Progress

  • Continued advocacy on the need to improve advice efficiencies through ATO portal access in meetings with ATO, Taxation Commissioner and TPB 
  • ATO Portal access included in FAAA’s five ‘key election asks’ with advocacy with candidates from all parties   

Submissions

Further reading