Why hire a Certified Financial Planner®
All members of the Utah Financial Advisor Network hold the professional financial certifications, credentials, licenses and registrations necessary to provide you with expert financial advice. All members are also Certified Financial Planner™ professionals who have been in independent practices for at least 1 year. In addition, many hold certifications such as Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) or Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC®).
Becoming a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®)
Certified Financial Planner™ is an international certification recognized in the United States and a number of other countries. No federal or state law or regulation requires financial planners to hold the CFP® mark, so obtaining it is completely voluntary. The mark is characterized by its:
(1) high standard of professional education
(2) stringent code of conduct and standards of practice
(3) ethical requirements governing professional engagement with clients
Certification is granted in the United States by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. More than 62,000 individuals have currently obtained CFP® certification in the United States. To attain the right to use the CFP® mark, an individual must satisfactorily fulfill all of the following requirements:
Education
Attain a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited United States college or university (or its equivalent from a foreign university).
Complete an advanced college-level course of study addressing the financial planning subject areas that the CFP Board has determined to be necessary for the competent, professional delivery of financial planning services. Subject areas include insurance planning and risk management, employee benefits planning, investment planning, income tax planning, retirement planning and estate planning.
Examination
Pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Examination. The examination is administered in 10 hours over a two-day period. It includes case studies and client scenarios designed to test students’ ability to correctly diagnose financial planning issues and apply their knowledge of financial planning to real world circumstances.
Experience
Complete at least three years of full-time financial planning-related experience (or the equivalent, measured as 2,000 hours per year).
Ethics
Agree to be bound by the CFP Board’s Standards of Professional Conduct, which consist of a set of documents outlining the ethical and practice standards for CFP. ® Individuals who become certified must complete the following ongoing education and ethics requirements in order to maintain the right to continue to use the CFP:®
Complete 30 hours of continuing education every two years, including two hours on the Code of Ethics and other parts of theStandards of Professional Conduct to maintain competence and keep up with developments in the financial planning field.
Renew an agreement to be bound by the Standards of Professional Conduct.
The Standards prominently require that CFP® professionals provide financial planning services at a fiduciary standard of care. This means CFP® professionals must provide financial planning services in the best interests of their clients. CFP® professionals who fail to comply with the above standards and requirements may be subject to the CFP Board’s enforcement process, which could result in suspension or permanent revocation of their CFP® certification.
