Registered investment advisers with state filings are required to annually renew their state ADV registration or their state notice filings of their federal ADV. They are also required to annually renew the state registrations of their investment adviser representatives.
FINRA recently announced that, as of November 10, 2014, registered investment advisers may renew their state ADV registration(s) for 2015 via IARD. (Please note that FINRA makes the 2015 renewal statements only available online via IARD, and does not mail the statements to firms.) The renewal program does not cover an adviser’s annual registration fee with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The renewal fees must be posted to a firm’s IARD Renewal Account by December 12, 2014. FINRA has stated that electronic payments may take up to two business days to post, so all payments should be submitted by December 9, 2014, and if paying by check, to allow for mail delivery time and check payment processing time. Firms also have the option of signing up for FINRA’s E-Bill system, where payments deposited are posted the next business day.
A copy of FINRA’s notice can be found here: FINRA 2015 Renewal Bulletin.
Fees are charged based on the firm’s regulatory assets under management. No fee is charged for filing an electronic amendment to Form ADV unless it is an Annual Updating Amendment.
For Exempt Reporting Advisers, the fee for initial reports and each annual updating amendment is $150. |
Once a firm files its renewal statement, its annual amendment to Form ADV will be due within 90 days after its fiscal year end.
Next Steps
Please note that firms that are registered exclusively with the SEC, and have no state notice filing requirements, need not take any action by December 12, 2014, and may pay their annual ADV updating amendment fee in March 2015, with their annual updating amendment.
Firms should also confirm where they or any investment adviser representatives are currently notice filed and/or registered in each state in which they conduct business. In addition, firms should consider whether the firm and its investment adviser representatives may be exempt from a notice filing or registering (e.g., they fall below a de minimis threshold).
All current ADV and investment adviser representative state registrations expire on December 31, 2014. A firm’s failure to timely pay and renew those registrations for 2015 will result in the firm’s termination of its registrations. Additionally, forty-six states participate in the IARD Automatic Failure To Renew Program, so that a firm’s notice filings in those states will be terminated effective Dec. 31, 2014. Several states also impose penalties for failure to renew timely.
SEC3 can assist your firm in completing their 2015 renewal notice and guide you on the process for payment of its renewal fees. SEC3 can also handle any notices you may receive from any states and/or FINRA.
For further information, please contact your regular SEC3 representative or contact us at info@seccc.com.
