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As part of its advocacy agenda this year, Advocis will focus on title protection harmonization, with a push for greater proficiency for the financial advisor (FA) title, says CEO Kelly Gorman.

“Our focus is really on the use of ‘financial advisor’ and what that means from a competency perspective,” Gorman said in an interview. Ontario’s title protection framework doesn’t “go far enough,” she said.

Recently, at Advocis’ annual symposium, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) said it was prioritizing discussions about title protection with other jurisdictions. At the event, Gorman said Advocis was committed to working with policymakers on title protection and an Advocis press release stressed the need for harmonization. The timing is right, Gorman said when interviewed, given provincial cooperation arising from the economic threat of U.S.-imposed tariffs.

“There’s such a momentum to do this [harmonize title protection] across the country,” she said. “There’s a big push for the provinces to work together … and potentially even getting the federal government involved.”

Consumers would expect the FA competency profile to more closely align with that for the financial planner title, Gorman said. “We really want to push proficiency in a number of key areas,” she said. “Specifically, we’re looking at tax, estate, retirement, investment and risk planning” — educational requirements for financial planners under Ontario’s title protection.

Gorman said title protection discussions have been ongoing among credentialing bodies, including FP Canada. Advocis and FP Canada “have a lot in common with respect to what we want to see,” she said.

Credentialing bodies may need to work together and “step up” when it comes to their requirements and programs, she said. “Having everybody around the table and collaborating — I do believe we’re going to get to a higher standard.”

In addition to the other three provinces — Saskatchewan, Manitoba and N.B. — that have already started working on title protection, Advocis has had discussions with Newfoundland and Labrador and P.E.I., Gorman said, and will talk with other provinces this year. “Some of the other [provincial] governments are further along on the spectrum of understanding the higher standard that’s needed,” she said. Saskatchewan’s draft title protection rules, for example, include financial planning knowledge for FAs.

If proficiency for the FA title increases, the educational gap for any licensed life agent who wants to use the title would widen.

In 2022, Advocis began working on a credential for life agents — the life insurance professional certificate — but put the credential on hold as the association underwent leadership and structural changes, made in response to liquidity challenges that arose that year.

“We’re not looking this year to establish any more credentials,” Gorman said. Instead, Advocis’ current business plan focuses on updating the curriculums for its Professional Financial Advisor and Chartered Life Underwriter designations, and communicating their “premium-ness,” she said.

Last year, the Chartered Institute of Financial Planning said on its website that its new designation, the Registered Life Insurance Specialist (RLIS), was pending regulatory approval for FA title use.

In an email, Keith Costello, president and CEO of the Canadian Institute of Financial Planning, said, “We have deferred our application for six months but plan to revisit it and see it through to the final approval process with FSRA.”