For CFP professionals looking to move territories or work in multiple territories, and understand CPD recognition cross-borders
This online tool is designed for CFP professionals in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region who seek to:
Transfer CFP Certification from One Territory to Another
“I am a CFP professional and would like to gain CFP certification in a new territory and cease my CFP certification from my original territory.”
For example, a CFP professional moves from New Zealand to the Australia and does not plan to continue to support former clients in New Zealand. This may be a move within the same multi-national company.
When CFP professionals would like to gain CFP certification in a new territory, they must meet the CFP certification requirements of the new territory.
Practitioners should wait until they successfully complete the CFP certification requirements in the new territory and have been granted CFP certification by the FPSB Affiliate organization in the new territory before ceasing their existing CFP certification.
Maintain CFP Certification from Home Territory and Practice in a Different Territory
“I am a CFP professional and would like to maintain my CFP certification in my home territory and practice in a new territory.”
For example, a CFP professional makes a temporary, job-related move from Singapore to China and wants to maintain their original CFP certification obtained in Singapore while serving clients in both Singapore and China.
What you will learn
This tool will help you identify:
- requirements to transfer CFP certification from one territory to another within APAC
- how to become eligible for CFP certification in multiple territories within APAC
- what recognition of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) applies in different APAC territories.
What this tool does not provide
It does not include information about territorial regulatory requirements that may apply to one or more aspects of the practice of financial planning (e.g., insurance or financial advice registration/licensure requirements).
Please consult with a lawyer or other compliance professional to ensure that you meet all applicable regulatory practice requirements to become certified in a territory.
Also contact your local FPSB Affiliate to understand further requirements that may impact your ability to practice financial planning in that territory and/or in relation to holding CFP certification in that territory.
Get started
Use the tool below to learn the requirements for transferring or obtaining CFP certification in a specific Asia-Pacific territory.
Australia
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be accepted
Two courses across two semesters totaling ~23 weeks covering all topics of financial planning. Courses taught in English.
Individuals holding the CFP who arrive in Australia will be awarded a non-practicing CFP. They will receive a full practicing CFP once they are registered on the Australian Financial Advisers Register.
Work Experience
This will be accepted
Letter of good-standing from home territory.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Provide certificate copy of degree.
Exam
This will be accepted
Length of exam: 4 hours
Language: English
Format: Multiple Choice, Open Book
Individuals holding the CFP who arrive in Australia will be awarded a non-practicing CFP. They will receive a full practicing CFP once they are registered on the Australian Financial Advisers Register.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Candidates are required to undertake the CFP 1 unit. Details of this unit can be found on pages 14 – 16 of the CFP® Certification Program Handbook.
Certification
This will be accepted
Individuals holding the CFP who arrive in Australia will be awarded a non-practicing CFP. They will receive a full practicing CFP once they are registered on the Australian Financial Advisers Register.
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will not be accepted
Require all CPD (40 hours per year) to be completed in current territory.
More details of the CPD requirements can be found on page 4 of the.FPA CPD Policy February 2019.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
To practise as a financial planner in Australia, additional legislated education requirements apply. Please contact education@fpa.com.au for more information Email: education@fpa.com.au Phone: 1300 337 301
China
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be partially accepted
The education program offers 5 training courses (30hr) with specifics as follows:
Topics:
1. CFP Certification System and Financial Planning, Legal System of Mainland China (3hrs);
2. Overview of Mainland China’s Financial Markets (3hrs);
3. Employee Benefits and Retirement Planning of Mainland China (9hrs);
4. Overview of China’s Tax Structure(9hrs);
5. Insurance Law and Regulatory Environment of Mainland China(6hrs).
All courses are instructed in Chinese.
Work Experience
This will be accepted
Letter of good-standing from home territory and to upload information of his/her work experience to FPSB China’s database.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Exam
This will be partially accepted
The length of the exam is 3.5 hours, and the exam covers education contents listed above in Chinese.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
Accept CPD credits from the original certification territory, and need to complete 30 CPD credits every 2 years, aligned with the local requirements.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Mr. Leo Yuan, FPSB China Ltd. Miss Annie Wang, FPSB China Ltd. Email: info@fpsbchina.cn
Chinese Taipei
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be partially accepted
Require completion of some Portion of Current Territory Education (In Chinese language, 100% of Global Education, but require knowledge specific to Current Territory).
Work Experience
This will be accepted
Financial Plan
This will not be accepted
Exam
This will not be accepted
N/A
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Requirements are in Chinese language.
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
Accept All Previous Territory CPD
Re-certification
This will be accepted
In Chinese language.
Public Contact
Hong Kong
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be accepted
Work Experience
This will be accepted
This Affiliate requires a letter of good-standing from home territory.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Exam
This will be partially accepted
The examination duration is 3 hours and is available in 3 languages, including English, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be partially accepted
This Affiliate requires CFP professionals to complete 15 hours every year, including 2 hours on compliance or ethics. There is no territorial requirement on the continuing education credits. However the topics must be in accordance with the the Hong Kong Affiliate’s (IFPHK) renewal policies.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Indonesia
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be partially accepted
Courses (16 hours): Tax and regulation; Retirement Program; Investment Regulation; Insurance Regulation and inheritance law
Language: Indonesian
Work Experience
This will be accepted
Letter of good-standing from home territory.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Exam
This will be partially accepted
Exam is 4 hours for all education requirements and in Indonesian Language.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
Accept all previous territory CPD.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Muhamad Ichsan, CFP, CEO m.ichsan@fpsbindonesia.net
Japan
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will not be accepted
Complete a certification program that is offered by JAFP registered educational institutions.
Be able to choose in-class learning or distance learning.
Every course is provided In Japanese.
*The Financial Planning Recommendations shall be written in Japanese and in accordance with Japanese law and regulations. After completing a certification program, you have to obtain an AFP certification with the requirements of 15 continuing education credits every two years.
Work Experience
This will be accepted
No need to submit letter of good-standing.
Financial Plan
This will not be accepted
JAFP dosen’t have any capstone course. Financial Plan is required in the certification program in Education area.
Exam
This will not be accepted
Pass the CFP® certification examinations that consist of 6 subjects (serial exam).
Each examination is two hours long, and three subjects are tested each day for two days.
Examinations may be taken one subject at a time.
Every exam is conducted in Japanese.
Ethics and Fitness
This will not be accepted
A candidate is required to sign a declaration to abide by the Code of Ethics for CFP certificants and the JAFP Ethical Principles prior to the CFP certification being issued and again at the time of the renewal, which is every two years.
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be partially accepted
CPD may be accepted only if they meet JAFP requirements. Require to complete 30 credit hours consisting of more than three subjects including two-credit hours in the area of “Professional Practice and Ethics” every two years.
The topics shall be based on the “Study Guide” that is established by JAFP.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Korea
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be accepted
Work Experience
This will be accepted
A certificate of work experience is required.
Financial Plan
This will not be accepted
Instead of submitting a financial plan, we require candidates to pass a type of written test with multiple choice questions (Financial Planning Case Study Exam).
Exam
This will be partially accepted
- 4.5 hours (Second day of regular exam)
- Case scenario-type items (Total 80 items-Simple, Complex and Comprehensive cases)
- In Korean language only
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Complete “Declaration and Agreement for Cross-Border CFP certification”.
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
- Accept all previous territory CPD
- 30 CPD hours every two years
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Malaysia
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be accepted
The Malaysia Affiliate requires completion of their current territory assessment on local content.
Work Experience
This will be accepted
The Malaysia Affiliate accepts work experience, subject to review by FPAM EER requirement and with a letter of good-standing from the home territory.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Exam
This will be partially accepted
The Malaysia Affiliate requires a 3 hour cross-border assessment in English. This will consist of 75 questions and in a span of 3 hours.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
The Malaysian Affiliate (FPAM) accepts Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as follows:
FPAM Members based in FPSB Territories, accept all CPD in the country they are based if conducted by FPSB affiliate members.
FPAM Members based in Malaysia: FPAM recognizes any affiliate members’ conferences they attend for local CE fulfillment.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Next step: contact the Exam, Education & Renewals Department of the Malaysia Affiliate (FPAM) at EER@fpam.org.my for more information and the CFP certification application process.
New Zealand
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be partially accepted
Course: Estate and Tax Planning.
NZ may recognize up to 100% of Previous Territory Education based on assessment of qualifications held compared to the NZ standard.
Work Experience
This will be accepted
New Zealand requires three years experience as a Financial Adviser (overseas or in NZ).
Plus one year Supervised Experience by a NZ CFPCM Professional of three years standing or more, with the submission of Supervised Experience Report to the NZ Certification Committee, OR the submission of a Portfolio of Experience covering the previous three years covering all six area of Financial Planning subject to NZ Certification Committee assessment.
Financial Plan
This will not be accepted
New Zealand requires Current Territory Financial Plan Assessment.
Exam
This will be accepted
New Zealand currently does NOT have an examination component for assessment to certification.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
New Zealand accepts all Previous Territory CPD subject to documented verification and supporting documentation.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Complete all requirements for recertification in Current Territory, but will accept on-going competency (CPD) if gained in another Territory.
Public Contact
Andrew Gunn - andrewg@financialadvice.nz
Singapore
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be partially accepted
(a) A min. of formal education from the respective territories that is equivalent to Singapore Cambridge GCE A level (12 years of education) and conducted in English OR
(b) Relevant undergraduate studies from a recognize tertiary institutions and conducted in English
Work Experience
This will be accepted
(a) 3 years of relevant experience OR (b) a letter of good-standing from another CFP member who has awarded the designation and has been paying his/her certification fees promptly for more than 5 years.
Financial Plan
This will not be accepted
Currently, they are required to prepare a financial plan in English according to Singapore law and regulations. We do not require the current territory financial plan assessment.
Exam
This will be partially accepted
They are required to pass Module 3 (Estate & Tax Planning), Module 5 (Retirement Planning) and Module 6 (Financial Plan Construction & Professional Responsibilities) in English. Module 3 and 5 is a 3-hr MCQ exam that comprises of 95 Questions (Questions 90 to 95 carries 2 marks each). Module 6 is a 3-hr exam to construct a financial plan based on a Case Study.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be accepted
Accept All Previous Territory CPD.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
Public Contact
Thailand
What do I need to do to be certified as a CFP professional?
Additional Requirement Details
Education
This will be accepted
Work Experience
This will be accepted
Require letter of good-standing. confirming the CFP professional’s date of initial certification, certification identification number, the pathway to the CFP certification examination confirming that the candidate passed the CFP certification examination in the Home territory, contact information and disciplinary history.
Financial Plan
This will be accepted
Exam
This will be partially accepted
The candidate is required to complete the Cross-Border examination designed to assess the candidate’s knowledge and understanding on Thailand local laws and regulations in relation to financial planning practice in Thailand. However, currently no Cross-Border examination paper has been developed. The format of examination could be a comprehensive financial plan in English language designed to attest the candidate’s knowledge and understanding about laws and regulations applicable to financial planning practice in Thailand.
Ethics and Fitness
This will be accepted
The candidate must adhere to TFPA’s Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility, and Financial Practice Standards.
Certification
This will be accepted
Ongoing Competency (CPD)
This will be partially accepted
TFPA accepts some portion of CPD credits completed in the Home Territory and the candidate is required to complete CPD credits specifically on having knowledge and understanding about NEW and UPDATED laws and regulations applicable to financial planning practice in Thailand, if any, at the time of applying the re-certification application. However, the number of CPD credits and the verification of such CPD credits have not been finalized yet.
Re-certification
This will be accepted
To remain certified in Thailand, the candidate must abide by the CFP certification standards and the certification renewal requirement, including completing the required continuing professional development credit hours of no less than 30 hours per two years.
Public Contact
For FPSB Network: Submit updates to your territory’s transfer requirements here