IAR CE Requirements Overview

IAR CE Requirements Overview

Please note that these are only quick tips and not a replacement for reading and understanding all IAR CE requirements.

1. Every investment adviser representative (IAR) registered with a jurisdiction that has adopted the model rule is subject to its CE requirements. The program applies to all registered IARs of both state-registered and federal covered investment advisers in that jurisdiction.

2. IAR CE courses are not assigned, you are free to select approved IAR CE courses from an approved IAR CE provider. Unless your employer provides different internal guidance, you can select a provider from NASAA’s Approved Provider list. You should then select courses from the approved provider that meet the IAR CE requirements, six credits of Ethics and Professional Responsibility and six credits of Products and Practice.Upon completion of the approved IAR CE courses, the course provider will report your course completion directly to FINRA for uploading on your IAR CE transcript.

3. You can view your IAR CE transcript and manage your IAR CE requirement through FINRA’s Financial Professional Gateway(FinPro) account.  FinPro provides individuals (current or former representatives) direct access to resources and tools to manage their securities registration information.Go to https://www.finra.org/registration-exams-ce/finpro to create an account.Please see the User Guide and Video Tutorial for help setting up your account.

4. If you are an IAR who is also required to complete FINRA’s Regulatory Element, you can count completion towards the Products and Practice component of your IAR CE requirements. Please note, you must speak with your broker-dealer to determine if they want to report it on your behalf or if you should self-report your course completion through FinPro and pay the applicable reporting fee of $18 ($3 per credit hour times six credits). To self-report the completion, you will need to log in to FinPro and scroll to the “Continuing Education” section where you should see a header for IAR CE. Next to your “Incomplete” status, click the “Apply Regulatory Element Credit” link and follow the prompts to pay the reporting fee.

5. If you already completed CE this year for another professional designation it may also apply for IAR CE credit. There are many courses available through our approved providers which provide credit for both IAR CE and a professional designation.  However, you will need to contact your course provider directly to inquire if the course you took was also approved for IAR CE.  If it was, the course provider would need to report your completion directly to FINRA for uploading on your IAR CE transcript.  NASAA cannot report course completion on behalf of a provider.

6. IAR CE course completion is linked to your individual CRD number. You must provide course providers with your correct CRD number as well as the correct spelling of your name as reflected in CRD or course completions may not be properly credited. If you do not know your individual CRD number, you can find it in your FinPro account or by looking up your profile in IARD.

Still have questions regarding your IAR CE requirement?  Check out our FAQs! 

Still have questions after reading through the FAQs?  Email us at iarce@nasaa.org