Updated Standards of Professional Conduct
Effective July 1, 2008

On May 31, 2007, the Board of Directors of Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. (CFP Board) announced the adoption of an updated Standards of Professional Conduct, which sets forth the ethical standards for CFP® professionals. CFP® professionals found in violation of CFP Board’s ethical standards may be subject to public discipline, up to a permanent revocation of the right to use the CFP® marks.

The updated Standards will become effective July 1, 2008. CFP Board believes the updated Standards move the ethical standards for CFP® certification forward in a way that benefits the public, and CFP Board encourages all CFP® professionals to integrate the updated Standards with their daily practice as soon as practical.

In 2005, the Board of Directors began an intensive review of CFP Board's ethics-related functions. CFP Board released an initial Exposure Draft of proposed revisions to its ethical standards in July 2006 and received more than 300 responses to that draft. The Board of Directors incorporated suggestions from many of those comments in a Second Exposure Draft that was released for public comment in March 2007. An Ethics Task Force reviewed the comments received and made recommendations to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors approved these updated Standards at their business meeting on May 24, 2007.

CFP Board will undertake a campaign to educate CFP® professionals, financial planning educators and the public about the impact of the revised standards before the updated Standards take effect on July 1, 2008. Comments and questions about the updated Standards may be sent to standards@CFPBoard.org.

The updated Standards of Professional Conduct and related materials are available below for download and review.

Updated Standards of Professional Conduct and Related Documents:

Updated Standards of Professional Conduct, effective July 1, 2008 (812 KB PDF file)

Current Code and Standards (446 KB PDF file)

Side-by-Side Comparison of Terminology (53 KB PDF file)

Side-by-Side Comparison of Principles (49 KB PDF file)

Side-by-Side Comparison of Rules (91 KB PDF file)

Side-by-Side Comparison of Financial Planning Practice Standards and Proposed Rules (49 KB PDF file)

CFP Board's monthly CFP Board Report newsletter has featured a series of articles on the new Standards to help educate CFP® professionals and others about important elements of the updated ethical standards. Those "Focus on Ethics" features are available for review and download.

Frequently Asked Questions:

CFP Board has assembled responses to frequently asked questions about the updated Standards of Professional Conduct:

Frequently Asked Questions (133 KB PDF file)

While the FAQ responds to many questions, we understand that questions will continue to arise as the effective date approaches. Additional questions about the revised Standards, including questions about the application of the Standards to specific situations, may be sent to standards@CFPBoard.org.