The new class of adviser is here: what it means for advice, and why paraplanning stays central

In summary

• The government has confirmed a new class of adviser, available only to APRA-regulated super funds and life insurers, as part of its Delivering Better Financial Outcomes reforms.
• Super funds have welcomed the change. The wider advice profession has responded with qualified support and clear reservations.
• Commissions, bonuses and volume-based payments are banned for the role, and its scope will be reviewed after three years.
• A broader group of advice providers raises the stakes on advice quality, which keeps rigorous paraplanning central to the sector.

On 19 August, the Minister for Financial Services, Daniel Mulino, confirmed that the government will proceed with a new class of adviser. APRA-regulated super funds and life insurers will be the only entities permitted to operate the role. Advice licensees and banks have been left out, at least for the first three years.

Super funds have gained the outcome they wanted

For the superannuation sector, the announcement landed as a clear win. Funds have argued for years that they cannot answer basic member questions without straying into regulated advice. A member rings for help, and the fund holds back for fear of breaching the rules. With a wave of Australians approaching retirement and facing steadily more complex decisions, that silence has become harder to justify. The new class is built to close the gap, and several large funds welcomed it within hours.

The advice profession has responded with caution

The response across the financial advice profession has been more measured.

The Financial Advice Association Australia offered qualified support rather than a clean endorsement. The association welcomed better member access to help. It also raised clear reservations. It was disappointed the role has been confined to large institutions, and it argued that advice practices should have the same option so consumers gain more choice. It has committed to holding the government to its promise that the new class will not encroach on the work professional advisers do.

Those reservations land in an industry already under strain. The cost of advice has climbed steadily, adviser numbers have thinned, and levy pressures keep building. A lighter-touch competitor arriving in that environment naturally sharpens concern.

Three issues sit underneath the debate.

The first is competition. A fresh cohort of advice providers enters a market that professional advisers already serve. Every fund that scales up member advice becomes another participant reaching the same Australians, often at a lower price point.

The second is regulation. The new class operates under lighter settings than a professional financial adviser must meet. That gap is why the government has banned commissions, bonuses and volume-based payments for the role, and why it has built in a review after three years. The safeguards acknowledge the risk of vertical integration inside large institutions.

The third is scope. The profession wants a firm line between simple guidance and full personal advice. The worry is that the line drifts over time, and that the new class gradually absorbs work that belongs with qualified advisers.

The reform is settled, so the focus turns to quality

None of this halts the reform. The government has made its decision. The new class now sits within the broader Delivering Better Financial Outcomes package, alongside targeted super prompts, scaled advice, streamlined Statements of Advice or Client Advice Record, and a crackdown on predatory lead generation that followed the Shield and First Guardian collapses.

So the practical question for the sector has shifted. As the delivery model widens, how does the industry hold advice quality high across a larger and more varied group of providers?

Quality paraplanning remains the foundation

This is where paraplanning holds its ground.

Advice still has to be built before it can be delivered. Someone has to research the strategy, model the numbers, test it against the member’s circumstances, document the reasoning, and make sure the whole thing stands up to scrutiny. That work stays the same whether the person delivering the advice sits inside a super fund or an advice practice.

The reforms change the format of advice in places. Streamlined statements of advice and scaled advice adjust how the output looks and how far it reaches. The obligation to get the substance right stays exactly where it was. A shorter document still has to rest on sound analysis and a clear record of why the advice suits the member.

As the advice population grows, consistency becomes harder to hold and more valuable to secure. A wider base of providers raises the stakes on construction. Quality paraplanning is the discipline that keeps that construction rigorous, compliant and defensible, whoever delivers the final advice.

There is also a practical gap to fill. Super funds preparing to scale member advice will need paraplanning capacity that many do not hold in-house today. Building that capability takes time, and the demand is arriving now. Specialist paraplanning partners can carry the load while funds build, and can steady advice practices facing the same competitive pressure.

The new class of adviser changes who can sit in front of a member. What good advice requires behind the scenes stays constant. Rigorous preparation, sound strategy and clean documentation remain the foundation of advice that serves people well and holds up under review.

For advice practices and super funds alike, that foundation is where MutualPlans works. If your advice offering is growing, our paraplanning team can help you scale it without letting quality slip.

Frequently asked questions

Who can operate the new class of adviser?

Only APRA-regulated super funds and life insurers. Advice licensees and banks are excluded, and the government will review the scope after three years.

Does the new class of adviser replace professional financial advisers?

No. The role is designed for simpler guidance and basic member questions. Full personal advice remains the work of qualified financial advisers, and the government has said the new class should not encroach on that work.

What does the reform mean for paraplanning demand?

More entities delivering advice means more advice to construct, document and check. Super funds scaling up member advice will need paraplanning capacity, and existing advice practices continue to rely on it. Demand for quality paraplanning is set to grow.

Glossary

New class of adviser: A new advice role, confined to APRA-regulated super funds and life insurers, created to let those entities give members simpler guidance.

APRA: The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, which oversees banks, insurers and super funds.

Delivering Better Financial Outcomes: The government’s package of reforms aimed at making financial advice more accessible and affordable.

Statement of Advice: The document that sets out the advice given to a client, including the strategy and the reasons behind it.

Scaled advice: Advice limited to one topic or a defined set of issues, rather than a client’s full financial position.

Paraplanning: The research, modelling, analysis and documentation that sits behind financial advice before it reaches the client.