Main menu Close menu

Championing the advancement of professional financial planning in Canada.
Close mobile menu

Canada’s leading financial planning designations.

FP CanadaTM certifications, QUALIFIED ASSOCIATE FINANCIAL PLANNERTM  certification and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification, prepare you to meet the challenges of a changing industry and help your clients seize new opportunities as their financial lives become more complex. QAFP® professionals will help a new generation of wealth builders reach their full potential. CFP® professionals will help Canadians with complex financial scenarios live life confidently. Explore the certification that most interests you:

QAFP Certification
CFP Certification

QAFP certification. Advice for today’s speed of life.

Life is faster and more complex than it was a generation ago. And while the principles remain the same, financial planning as a profession is evolving to keep pace. The reimagined QAFP certification is the right match for this new era. Technical and professional courses are now connected on a single, clear path from the same source. This accelerates learning without sacrificing skills development and continuity. QAFP professionals have the knowledge, skills, and ethics they need to help clients navigate change and growth as their needs become more complex: For QAFP professionals who want to continue on with CFP certification later in their careers, this could be the perfect scenario.

QAFP certification has also been approved by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) as a valid credential for individuals using the Financial Planner title in Ontario.

  • FP Canada certification
  • Trusted not-for-profit
  • Career acceleration
  • High-value skills that match what clients want today
  • Your stepping stone to CFP certification
Coloured infographic showing the chronologically ordered steps required to earn a Qualified Associate Planner
Certification. The infographic is titled: Direct Path to QAFP Certification. Above each step, a banner reads: One year
of qualifying work experience and post secondary diploma. The first step on the path is Technical Education -
Fundamentals, followed by QAFP Professional Education Program, followed by QAFP Exam, resulting in QAFP
Certification. The final step reads 12 CE Credits per Calendar Year.
Note: Completion of an FP Canada - Approved Core Curriculum Program meets the Technical Education -
Fundamentals requirements. The infographic lists the courses in the program. They are Financial Management,
Insurance and Risk Planning, Retirement Planning, Tax Planning, Estate Planning and Law for Financial Planning.
Step

CFP certification. Help your clients live life confidently!

The most widely recognized financial planning designation in Canada and worldwide, the CFP designation provides assurance to Canadians that the design of their financial future rests with a professional who will put their clients’ interests ahead of their own. There are approximately 17,000 CFP professionals across Canada, part of an international network of more than 192,000 CFP professionals in 26 territories around the world. CFP certification is considered the gold standard for the financial planning profession. CFP professionals have demonstrated the knowledge, skills, experience and ethics to examine their clients’ entire financial picture, at the highest level of complexity required of the profession, and work with each client to build a financial plan so that they can Live Life Confidently™.

CFP certification has also been approved by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (FSRA) as a valid credential for individuals using the Financial Planner title in Ontario.

  • FP Canada certification
  • Trusted not-for-profit
  • Career acceleration
  • High-value skills that match what clients want today
Coloured infographic showing the chronologically ordered steps required to earn a Qualified Associate Planner
Certification. The infographic is titled: Direct Path to QAFP Certification. Above each step, a banner reads: One year
of qualifying work experience and post secondary diploma. The first step on the path is Technical Education -
Fundamentals, followed by QAFP Professional Education Program, followed by QAFP Exam, resulting in QAFP
Certification. The final step reads 12 CE Credits per Calendar Year.
Note: Completion of an FP Canada - Approved Core Curriculum Program meets the Technical Education -
Fundamentals requirements. The infographic lists the courses in the program. They are Financial Management,
Insurance and Risk Planning, Retirement Planning, Tax Planning, Estate Planning and Law for Financial Planning.
Step
Firstname1 Lastname1
QAFP Designation

QAFP professionals are very satisfied with their career in financial planning with 93% responding ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’. Satisfaction of the designation is high with 86% responding ‘very satisfied’ or ‘satisfied’. Satisfaction scores are consistent across population segments.

ABC ABC
CFP Designation

94% of CFP professionals are satisfied with their designation. 93% of CFP professionals would recommend pursuing their certification to others seeking careers in financial planning.

FAQs

If you already have a post-secondary degree or diploma, you can complete all your certification education within one year, with only 7 hours of study time per week.

You can learn more about courses and education programs on the course catalogue page. If you have specific questions you can book a free career consultation.

About 58% of QAFP professionals reported earning over $100,000 per year and 26% of QAFP professionals reported earning over $200,000 per year. This is based on self-reported data from January 1 – December 31, 2022.

QAFP professionals work with some of the largest financial institutions in Canada. Here are some organizations that employ the largest number of QAFP Professionals in Canada, based on self-reported data from January 1 – December 31, 2022: RBC, IG Wealth Management, TD Canada Trust, Sun Life, CIBC, BMO, Scotiabank, and Canada Life, among others.

The QAFP Certification Bridge Path to CFP Certification was created for individuals already holding QAFP certification who wish to continue in their career path to pursue CFP certification or for candidates who wish to obtain QAFP certification first, as a stepping stone to CFP certification. To Learn about the Bridge Path book a career consultation today.

FAQs

You can learn more about courses and education programs on the course catalogue page. If you have specific questions you can also book a free career consultation.

About 55% CFP professionals reported earning over $100,000 per year and 28% CFP Professionals reported earning over $200,000 per year, This is based on self-reported data from January 1 – December 31, 2022.

CFP Professionals work with some of the largest financial institutions in Canada. Here are some organizations that employ the largest number of CFP Professionals in Canada, based on self-reported data from January 1 – December 31, 2022: RBC, IG Wealth Management, TD Canada Trust, CIBC, BMO, Scotiabank, Sun Life and Canada Life, among others.