CFP Board's Standards of Professional Conduct

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, effective July 1, 2008. Read more about CFP Board's updated ethical standards.

CFP Board's current ethical standards, available for download below, remain in effect through June 30, 2008.

Candidate Fitness Standards CFP Board's Candidate Fitness Standards set forth the conduct that will always bar an individual from becoming certified and conduct that is presumed to be unacceptable and will bar an individual from becoming certified unless the individual successfully petitions CFP Board's Board of Professional Review for reconsideration. These standards were created for the benefit of individuals who are interested in attaining CFP® certification. These standards became effective January 1, 2007.

Candidate Fitness Standards
(PDF Document, Candidate_Fitness_Standards.pdf - 322 KB)

Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (Code of Ethics) The Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (Code of Ethics) describes the minimum standards of acceptable professional conduct for individuals authorized to use CFP Board's CFP® certification marks. At the back of the Code of Ethics are two of CFP Board's Advisory Opinions, which are issued from time to time to interpret the Code of Ethics' requirements, and sample disclosure forms, developed to aid CFP® certificants in complying with the Code of Ethics' disclosure requirements.

Revisions to the 2/03 update (no revisions to the 7/03 update):
- Addition of "compensation" and "financial planning engagement" and update to "conflict(s) of interest" in "Terminology in this Booklet."
- Major revisions to the Rule 400 series, "Rules that Relate to the Principle of Fairness."
- Addition of Advisory Opinion 2003-1.
- Update of Forms PFP (now Form FPE) and OPS sample disclosure forms.

Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility
(PDF Document, COE.pdf - 304 KB)

Disclosure Forms
Following are two sample disclosure forms that may be used by CFP® certificants in complying with CFP Board’s Code of Ethics disclosure requirements.
Form FPE may be used when providing personal financial planning engagements.
Form OPS is for use when providing other professional services.

Financial Planning Practice Standards (Practice Standards) The Financial Planning Practice Standards (Practice Standards) establish the level of professional practice that is expected of a CFP® certificant engaged in personal financial planning. The Practice Standards are intended to: 1. assure that the practice of financial planning by CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals is based on established norms of practice, 2. advance professionalism in financial planning and 3. enhance the value of the financial planning process.

Revisions to the 2/03 update (no revisions to the 7/03 update)
- Addition of "compensation" and "financial planning engagement" and update to "conflict(s) of interest" in "Terminology in this Booklet."
- Updates to Practice Standards 100-1, 500-1 and 500-2 to reflect changes made to the Rule 400 series in Code of Ethics.

Financial Planning Practice Standards
(PDF Document, FPPS.pdf - 303 KB)

Disciplinary Rules and Procedures The Disciplinary Rules and Procedures describe the rules and procedures followed by CFP Board in enforcing the provisions of the Code of Ethics and Practice Standards. Adherence to the Code of Ethics by CFP Board designees or to Practice Standards by CFP® practitioners is required, with the potential for CFP Board sanctions against those who violate the regulations proscribed in these documents.

Revisions to the 7/03 update:
- Articles 2.3 and 2.31, containing Inquiry Panel information, were deleted, and the remaining
articles under Article 2 were renumbered.
- Inquiry Panel information was deleted from Article 5.1.
- Inquiry Panel information was deleted from Articles 6.2, 6.3 and 6.4 and time to file a response
for an investigation was changed from 20 to 30 days.
- Article 7.1, "Inquiry Panel Decision," was deleted and the remaining articles under Article 7
were renumbered.
- Article 12.3 was updated for clarification.
- Articles 13 and 13.1 were updated for clarity.
- A fourth "Exception to Confidentiality" was added to Article 16.2.

In June 2006, several updates were made to Articles 6.3, 7.3, 13.3, 15.4 and 17.3 the Disciplinary Rules and Procedures. An update to Article 8.3 and updates to reflect the change in title from Board of Professional Review to Disciplinary and Ethics Commission were also made in January 2007. These updates are included in the "January 2007 Updates" document available for download below.

Disciplinary Rules and Procedures
(PDF Document, DRP.pdf - 297 KB)
January 2007 Updates to Disciplinary Rules and Procedures
(PDF Document, DRP_Updates_1_2007.pdf - 27 KB)

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