Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc.

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Practice Standards

Practice Standards 200 Series

Financial Planning Practice Standards Overview
100 Series: Establishing and Defining the Relationship with the Client
200 Series: Gathering Client Data
300 Series: Analyzing and Evaluating the Client's Financial Status
400 Series: Developing and Presenting the Financial Planning Recommendation
500 Series: Implementing the Financial Planning Recommendation(s)
600 Series: Monitoring

Gathering Client Data

200-1: Determining a Client's Personal and Financial Goals, Needs and Priorities

The financial planning practitioner and the client shall mutually define the client's personal and financial goals, needs and priorities that are relevant to the scope of the engagement before any recommendation is made and/or implemented.

Explanation of this Practice Standard

Prior to making recommendations to the client, the financial planning practitioner and the client shall mutually define the client's personal and financial goals, needs and priorities. In order to arrive at such a definition, the practitioner will need to explore the client's values, attitudes, expectations, and time horizons as they affect the client's goals, needs and priorities. The process of "mutually-defining" is essential in determining what activities may be necessary to proceed with the client engagement. Personal values and attitudes shape the client's goals and objectives and the priority placed on them. Accordingly, these goals and objectives must be consistent with the client's values and attitudes in order for the client to make the commitment necessary to accomplish them.

Goals and objectives provide focus, purpose, vision and direction for the financial planning process. It is important to determine clear, and measurable objectives that are relevant to the scope of the engagement. The role of the practitioner is to facilitate the goal-setting process in order to clarify, with the client, goals and objectives. When appropriate, the practitioner shall try to assist clients in recognizing the implications of unrealistic goals and objectives.

This Practice Standard addresses only the tasks of determining the client's personal and financial goals, needs and priorities; assessing the client's values, attitudes and expectations; and determining the client's time horizons. These areas are subjective and the practitioner's interpretation is limited by what the client reveals.

This Practice Standard shall not be considered alone, but in conjunction with all other Practice Standards.

Effective Date

Original version, January 1, 1999. Updated version, January 1, 2002.

Relationship of this Practice Standard to CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility

This Practice Standard relates to CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (Code of Ethics) through the Code of Ethics' Principle 7 - Diligence, and Rules 701 through 703. Rule 701 states that "A CFP Board designee shall provide services diligently." Rule 702 requires a financial planning practitioner to "enter into an engagement only after securing sufficient information to satisfy the CFP Board designee that ... the relationship is warranted by the individual's needs and objectives...." In addition, Rule 703 requires a financial planning practitioner to "make and/or implement only recommendations which are suitable for the client."

Anticipated Impact of this Practice Standard

Upon the Public

The public is served when the relationship is based upon mutually defined goals, needs and priorities. This Practice Standard reinforces the practice of putting the client's interests first which is intended to increase the likelihood of achieving the client's goals and objectives.

Upon the Financial Planning Profession

Compliance with this Practice Standard emphasizes to the public that the client's goals, needs and priorities are the focus of the financial planning process. This encourages the public to seek out the services of a financial planning practitioner who uses such an approach.

Upon the Financial Planning Practitioner

The client's goals, needs and priorities help determine the direction of the financial planning process. This focuses the practitioner on the specific tasks that need to be accomplished. Ultimately, this will facilitate the development of appropriate recommendations.

200-2: Obtaining Quantitative Information and Documents

The financial planning practitioner shall obtain sufficient quantitative information and documents about a client relevant to the scope of the engagement before any recommendation is made and/or implemented.

Explanation of this Practice Standard

Prior to making recommendations to the client and depending on the scope of the engagement, the financial planning practitioner shall determine what quantitative information and documents are sufficient and relevant.

The practitioner shall obtain sufficient and relevant quantitative information and documents pertaining to the client's financial resources, obligations and personal situation. This information may be obtained directly from the client or other sources such as interview(s), questionnaire(s), client records and documents.

The practitioner shall communicate to the client a reliance on the completeness and accuracy of the information provided and that incomplete or inaccurate information will impact conclusions and recommendations.

If the practitioner is unable to obtain sufficient and relevant quantitative information and documents to form a basis for recommendations, the practitioner shall either:

Restrict the scope of the engagement to those matters for which sufficient and relevant information is available; or
Terminate the engagement.

The practitioner shall communicate to the client any limitations on the scope of the engagement, as well as the fact that this limitation could affect the conclusions and recommendations.

This Practice Standard shall not be considered alone, but in conjunction with all other Practice Standards.

Effective Date

Original version, January 1, 1999. Updated version, January 1, 2002.

Relationship of this Practice Standard to CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility

This Practice Standard relates to CFP Board's Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility (Code of Ethics) through the Code of Ethics' Principle 7 - Diligence and Rules 701 through 703. Rule 701 states "A CFP Board designee shall provide services diligently." Rule 702 requires a financial planning practitioner to "enter into an engagement only after securing sufficient information to satisfy the CFP Board designee that ... the relationship is warranted by the individual's needs and objectives...." In addition, Rule 703 requires a financial planning practitioner to "make and/or implement only recommendations which are suitable for the client."

Anticipated Impact of this Practice Standard

Upon the Public

The public is served when financial planning recommendations are based upon sufficient and relevant quantitative information and documents. This Practice Standard is intended to increase the likelihood of achieving the client's goals and objectives.

Upon the Financial Planning Profession

The financial planning process requires that recommendations be made based on sufficient and relevant quantitative data. Therefore, compliance with this Practice Standard encourages the public to seek financial planning practitioners who use the financial planning process.

Upon the Financial Planning Practitioner

Sufficient and relevant quantitative information and documents provide the foundation for analysis. Ultimately, this will facilitate the development of appropriate recommendations.