The SMSF Association, Deakin University and AccountantsIQ have combined their efforts to deliver practitioners a cost-effective and time-efficient offering aimed at providing an avenue that will allow them to meet their educational requirements to remain on the Financial Adviser Register (FAR) more easily before the 31 December 2025 deadline.
To this end, the Ethics Financial Services (Intensive), run by Deakin University, and the SMSF Specialist Advisor Program, run by the SMSF Association, both listed as approved units towards meeting the legislated requirements, are being made available to advice professionals in conjunction with one another.
The two courses in combination will offer participants up to 77 continuing professional development hours.
AccountantsIQ founding director Bronny Speed will be leading the Deakin University course and noted the initiative will provide both accountants and advisers the ability to fast-track their outstanding mandatory education requirements.
Commenting on the ethics program, Speed said: “Given ethics is a compulsory bridging unit and many still need to complete it, by offering this subject in a practical, structured and intensive format, many advice professionals will benefit.”
The SMSF Specialist Advisor Program has an established history and is expected to be popular among individuals requiring an additional accredited subject along with the ethics course.
“The SMSF Association’s SMSF Specialist Advisor program remains the pinnacle of specialist SMSF education within the sector and completion of this course has been recognised as a credit towards meeting these mandatory education requirements,” association chief executive Peter Burgess said.
Speed has implored practitioners not to leave compliance with these educational requirements until the last minute – a conclusion reached as a result of AccountantsIQ’s Cram 4 Exam programs provided for practitioners looking to pass the Financial Adviser Standards and Ethics Authority exam.
“This is a practical and time-effective solution for advice professionals to remain on the FAR by meeting the ASIC (Australian Securities and Investments Commission) educational requirements well before the 31 December 2025 deadline,” she noted.
The Deakin University Ethics for Financial Services (Intensive) course will be available over four half-days during November 2024, with enrolments closing on 21 October 2024.
Individuals can complete the SMSF Specialist Advisor Program 12-week online course at their own pace and new participants who complete the course will also have an SMSF Association associate membership available to them.
An information sheet has been posted on both the AccountantsIQ and SMSF Association websites for practitioners interested in the initiative.
