Lawyers urged to consider Financial Service Providers Register

The Registrar of Financial Service Providers, Neville Harris, is requesting all New Zealand lawyers to consider whether their clients need to register on the new Financial Service Providers Register before 1 December 2010.

The Financial Service Providers (Registration and Dispute Resolution) Act 2008 requires people and organisations in the business of providing a financial service to register on the FSPR by 1 December 2010.

Financial advisers are excepted, and have until 31 March 2011 to register.

Mr Harris says the FSPR is an electronic register maintained by the Companies Office and it has been open for registration applications since August 2010.

“The number of applications received is considerably smaller than anticipated, with only two weeks to go,” he says.

Mr Harris says the requirements under the Act may be relevant to lawyers’ clients and – in spite of the Companies Office’s best efforts – many of them may be unaware that they could be committing a criminal offence if they continue in business after 1 December without being registered.

“Lawyers should also consider whether anyone or any company connected to the business of their firm (such as a nominee company) needs to register as a financial service provider,” he says.

The list of relevant financial services is set out in section 5 of the Act and includes foreign currency exchange, money transfer services, credit and insurance providers, issuers and trustees (including superannuation trustees and unit trustees).

© New Zealand Law Society 2008