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Fees and Levies

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FEES AND LEVIES

Updated 29 March 2020

By early 2021, financial advice providers must be registered on the Financial Services Provider Register (FSPR) and licensed by the Financial Markets Authority (FMA). There will be fees to obtain a licence, and levies for the services an entity is registered for on the FSPR.

The fees and levies were passed by Order in Council on 21 October 2019. In February 2020, MBIE consulted about increasing FMA levies.

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Licensing fees

Financial advice provider licences can be for a single entity, or for a group of entities applying together. If a group of entities apply together, there is one lead applicant, and the other entities are called “authorised bodies”. On 21 October 2019, the Government passed the fees and levies by Order in Council.

Transitional licensing:
- Financial advice provider application fee, $405;
- plus Fee per authorised body in the application, $38.75;
- Application to vary licence conditions, $100 + $155 per hour (or part thereof).
Full licensing:
- Single adviser business or gives advice on its own account, $612 (for 2 hours);
- Financial advice provider that engages financial advisers, $767 (for 3 hours);
- Financial advice provider that engages nominated representatives, $922 (for 4 hours);
- plus Fee per authorised body in the application, $155;
- plus Fee for every additional hour or part thereof over the base, $155;
- Application to vary licence conditions, $100 + $155 per hour (or part thereof).
All values exclude GST.

These fees are based on an estimate of the time it will take to process an application. Complex cases will be charged $155/hour over the expected assessment hours. Two hours are expected for a financial advice provider with one financial adviser, three hours for one with multiple financial advisers, and four hours for a financial advice provider that engages nominated representatives.

Licences will usually be issued without an expiry date.

FMA levies

The costs of the FMA are covered by levies charged to financial market participants. These fees are collected when entities renew their registrations on the FSPR. The levies are listed on the MBIE website.

Levy at initial registration:
- $460 per financial advice provider or financial adviser (same as now);
Levy at annual confirmation:
- Financial advice provider, $225;
- plus Levy per nominated representative, $179;
- plus Levy if the financial advice provider gives advice on its own account, $737;
- these levies capped at $80,000 per financial advice provider;
- Financial adviser, $265 (separate from the levy cap);
- Authorised bodies, $460.
All values exclude GST, and exclude FSPR fees.

In February 2020, MBIE consulted on increased FMA levies, to cover the cost of supervising financial advice providers, and other changes in FMA activities. The outcome of this consultation has not yet been released.

A financial advice provider company with a sole adviser is exempt from paying the initial registration levy for their company if they are (1) the only senior manager, and (2) the only director or one of only two directors. The financial adviser will have to be on the FSPR on or before 28 September 2020.