Certified Financial Planning Overview
Certified planning services are provided by the Certified Financial Planners. The Certified Financial Planners are marks of certification. These certificates are provided by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards to only those financial planners, who meet the required criteria.
In order to be certified by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, the financial planners are supposed to pay a certification fee. The aspirants, also, need to satisfy the following types of criteria, so that they can receive the permission to use the certificates:
Ethical Requirements
Educational Requirements
Experience Requirements
Examination Requirements
Certified Financial Planning Educational Requirements
In order for a financial planner to be recognized by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, the individual has to meet certain requirements, that are related to his or her educational qualification. The requirements have been changed from the year 2007.
Previously, the candidates needed to have received high school level education. Experience as a broker, salesman of insurance plans was also necessary. From 2007 the applicants would need to have received college level education and a relevant degree.
The students of the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards need to learn about 89 subjects, that are related to integrated financial planning. A few topics could be mentioned:
- General Principles of Financial Planning
- Income Tax Planning
- Insurance Planning
- Retirement Planning
- Employee Benefits planning
- Estate Planning
- Investment Planning
Certified Financial Planning Examinations
The candidates need to appear and pass in examinations, conducted by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. The candidates need to answer multiple choice questions. These examinations take place over a four hour session on Friday noons and a couple of three hour sessions on Fridays. These examinations test the aptitude and experience of the applicant.
Professionals, who are already sanctioned by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, can directly sit for the examination. They do not need to fulfill the educational necessities.
Certified Financial Planning Work Experience Requirements
The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards provides the necessary work experience requirements, that have to be satisfied, in order to be certified by them:
- Three years full-time or the equivalent in the financial planning field for students who have an undergraduate degree from an accredited U.S. college or university
- Must have been approved by the CFP Board during initial certification, which also involves an extensive background check
- Five years full-time work experience for those who do not have an undergraduate degree
Certified Financial Planning Ethical Requirements
The students and the candidates of the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards are needed to follow the ethical codes, that have been laid down in the CFP Board Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility. They also have to follow the Financial Planning Practice Standards.