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FAQ

For the public

For the financial planners

For the future financial planners

 

For the public

  • Q1- What's a financial planner (F.Pl.)?

    R1-The financial planner (F.Pl.) helps you optimize your financial situation and your assets by laying out a strategic action plan that is wholly adapted to your needs and that takes your constraints and personal goals into account. Your planner will then suggest realistic strategies and coherent measures to enable you to attain the goals you have set for yourself.

    In Quebec, any individual claiming to be a financial planner (or F.Pl.) must:

    -Have an IQPF diploma and 
    -Have the appropriate certificate issued by the Autorité des marchés financiers or be authorized to wear the title by a professional order who has an agreement with the Autorité des marchés financiers (the Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec (CPA) and the professional order of chartered administrators).

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  • Q2- What's his or her training?

    R2- Financial planners must have completed a university-level training program in personal financial planning approved by the IQPF (or have an equivalent combination of university education, professional titles and professional experience) and the IQPF Professional Training Course. They also must have passed the IQPF exam.

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  • Q3- How do I find a F.Pl.?

    R3- Consult our web directory.
    Ask people you know – friends, relatives, colleagues.
    Ask at your financial institution.

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  • Q4- What questions should I ask someone who wants to be my financial planner?

    R4- What is your educational background?
    Do you have a special field of expertise?
    How do you get paid?
    What services will you provide for me?
    How often will you review my file?
    Can I see a sample of the kind of action plan you might draw up for me?
    What is my role in carrying out my action plan?
    Will I have to sign a professional service contract?

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For the financial planners

  • Q1- What's IPFP?

    R1- The IPFP acronym means "Integrated Personal Financial Planning". This is one of the three professional development categories.

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  • Q2- What's SFPA?

    R2- The SFPA acronym means "one or more of the financial planning areas". This is one of the three professional development categories.

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  • Q3- What are SC and SC-FP?

    R3-The SC acronym means "compliance with standards, ethics and business conduct". This is one of the three professional development categories. When you add the letters FP, it means that the training activity pertaining to compliance with standards, ethics and business conduct is directly related to financial planning.

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  • Q4- How many professional development units (PDUs) do I need for the current cycle?

    R4- The 2021-2023 professional development cycle (cycle 012) started on December 1, 2021 and will end on November 30, 2023.

    The following table indicates how many PDUs are needed in each category per two-year cycle: 

    Professional development category Number of PDUs per cycle
    Integrated personal financial planning (IPFP)
    15 PDUs
    Training activities in one or more of the financial planning areas (SFPA)
    15 PDUs
    Training activities in subjects pertaining to compliance with standards, ethics and business conduct (SC), and training activities in subjects pertaining to compliance with standards, ethics and business conduct related directly to financial planning (SC-FP)
    10 PDUs, 5 of which must be in SC-FP*
    Total
    40 PDUs

    *Compulsory course for all financial planners
    Every two cycle (so every four years) all F.Pl. must take a specific 5 SC-FP PDUs course developed by the IQPF. For cycles 011 and 012 (from December 1, 2019 to November 30, 2023), the course NPPF12A The Practice in the Age of New Technology (or NPPF12, in French) is therefore mandatory for all F.Pl.

    Financial planners who have received or will receive their certificate from the Authorité des marchés financiers within the current professional development cycle (from December 1, 2019, to November 30, 2021) and who would like to know how many Professional Development Units they will need at the end of the cycle can contact Safya Tibeche at 514-767-4040 or 1-800-640-4050, extension 239.

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  • Q5- Do I have to pay a subscription to the AMF?

    R5- According to regulation, there are fees payable to the AMF for the issue or renewal of a financial planning certificate. You must settle these fees to practise financial planning.

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  • Q6- What's F.Pl. in French?

    R6- "Pl. Fin." for planificateur financier, with a space between the Pl. and the Fin.

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For the future financial planners