QAFP™ Certification Enables More Canadians to Access Professional Financial Planning Advice

QUALIFIED ASSOCIATE FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification fills an important gap in the
Canadian financial services marketplace

TORONTO, Jan. 6, 2020 /CNW/ - FP Canada™ is pleased to announce the official launch of Qualified Associate Financial Planner^TM certification. QAFP^TM certification is designed to help the average Canadian—with typical financial planning needs—access the professional financial planning advice they need. FP Canada introduced this new standalone certification program as part of its broader efforts to champion better financial wellness for all Canadians.

Effective January 1, 2020, QAFP certification replaced FPSC Level 1^® Certification in Financial Planning and all FPSC Level 1 certificants transitioned to QAFP certification.

QAFP professionals are equipped to provide holistic financial planning strategies and solutions for Canadians with everyday financial planning needs. Research conducted by FP Canada shows that 65% of Canadians have not engaged the services of a professional financial planner,¹ and QAFP certification fills this important gap in the Canadian financial services marketplace. While Certified Financial Planner^® certification remains the cornerstone of the financial planning profession, demonstrating the planner's ability to guide clients through the most complex financial circumstances, QAFP certification creates a new avenue of professional advice for a broader population of Canadians.

"All Canadians can benefit from professional financial planning advice, yet many consumers have felt as though they have nowhere to turn for the personalized guidance they need," says Cary List, President and CEO of FP Canada, the national professional body that administers QAFP certification and CFP^® certification in Canada. "The introduction of QAFP certification will enable many more Canadians to begin the journey to living life with confidence."

To obtain QAFP certification, candidates must complete a series of education requirements, pass a national exam and earn one year of qualifying work experience. QAFP professionals are also required to meet the same professional standards as CFP professionals. The FP Canada Standards Council™ establishes and enforces these standards amongst all QAFP professionals and CFP professionals.

"Canadians are faced with financial decisions every day. In some cases, these decisions relate to day-to-day things like saving for post secondary education, budgeting and buying their first home, and in other cases, they involve more complex matters like estate planning or business ownership," says Brett Millard, CFP, Chair of FP Canada's Board of Directors. "With the introduction of QAFP certification as a new option alongside CFP certification, Canadians will have more choices for finding the professional financial planner best suited to meet their needs."

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1} Source: FP Canada Cross-Country Checkup, a Leger poll of 1,527 Canadians, conducted in October 2018.

About QAFP Certification

Qualified Associate Financial Planner™ certification demonstrates a financial planner's competence and commitment to the highest ethical standards of responsibility. QAFP™ professionals have demonstrated the knowledge, skills, experience and ethics to provide holistic financial planning strategies and solutions for average Canadians with typical financial planning needs. QAFP professionals play an important role in helping their clients begin the journey to living life with confidence.

About FP Canada

A national professional body working in the public interest, FP Canada™ is dedicated to championing better financial wellness for all Canadians by leading the advancement of professional financial planning in Canada. There are approximately 19,000 professional financial planners in Canada who, through QAFP™ certification and CFP^® certification, meet FP Canada's standards.

SOURCE FP Canada

For media inquiries, please contact: Megan Harman, FP Canada, [email protected], 416-593-8587 or 1-800-305-9886 ext. 232