What does an accredited personal financial planning specialist do?
An accredited personal financial planning specialist is a certified public accountant (CPA) who gives families and individuals financial advice. They advise on specific financial goals, including retirement, saving, debt pay-off, investing, and saving for a child’s education costs.
They work with clients to help them understand their individual needs and develop customized plans to help them set up and achieve their financial goals.
How to become an accredited personal financial planning specialist
To get certified as an accredited personal financial planning specialist, you complete a financial planning exam conducted by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and must be a member of the organization. Applicants must also hold a valid, state-issued certified public accountant (CPA) license.
You also need at least two years of full-time professional experience in financial planning and 75 hours of formal education in financial planning within the five-year period before taking the financial planning exam.
Once certified, accredited personal financial planning specialists must complete 60 hours of continuing professional education every three years.
Accredited personal financial planning specialists also need to fulfill ethics requirements. Candidates take a Fitness Standards for Candidates and Registrants test to check for qualities like confidentiality, integrity, fairness, objectivity, and competence.
