The ability for accountants to provide simple superannuation advice should be reviewed given the proposed less qualified new class of advisers will be allowed to speak to clients on these matters, the Institute of Financial Professional Australia (IFPA) has stated.
IFPA head of superannuation and financial services Natasha Panagis said the limits on accountants providing guidance on superannuation for clients exposed a number of inconsistencies in the regulation of advice providers.
“We find it strange that accountants can’t provide simple, structural advice on superannuation when they have access to the ATO tax portal and can see all of a client’s information, whereas financial advisers, who can provide this assistance, don’t have access to client information on the portal unless they are registered tax agents,” Panagis said during a recent online discussion with IFPA members.
“It is one of the pet hates of accountants that clients might ask about making personal deductible contributions, but they can’t tell them what to do but go see an adviser and pay for a statement of advice.
“Yet the accountants know what taxable income their clients make because they do their taxes and also know what contributions they can make, but can’t tell them.”
She added IFPA had called on the government to review the ability for accountants to provide structural super advice after noting the new class of adviser will be able to give this type of help to clients, while accountants cannot do the same.
“Our concern with the introduction of this new class of adviser is that people have gone to the effort of doing the education required to become a qualified and recognised adviser, but this new class has the word ‘adviser’ added to it, which is going to be confusing for your average person,” she said.
“Our argument, that what we put into our pre-budget submission, is that a junior person will be able to do this work, but a qualified accountant cannot.”
The decline in the number of financial advisers added further impetus to the need to reconsider the role of accountants, she pointed out, adding conversations had been held with the government and opposition on the matter.
“We put it forward and we have to keep pushing for an option for accountants that want to provide structural advice where they can if they want to,” she stated.
“There is a number of different ways you can go at that, including making superannuation a class of product, so there are different solutions for the government to consider.
“We have had those conversations and it’s something they’re going to need to look at, considering the shortage in advice providers out there at the moment.”
