# Personal Financial Planner (PFP)

> The PFP is a Canadian financial planning designation from the Canadian Securities Institute (CSI); it is still awarded, and holders in good standing may use the Financial Planner title in Ontario.

Canonical page: https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/pfp/
Also called: PFP

CSI still grants the PFP and publishes current requirements for new candidates. Candidates complete an approved education path, pass CSI's Applied Financial Planning certification exam, show at least three years of financial planning or advising experience within the past seven, and commit to the PFP Code of Ethics.

To keep it, holders renew every year, pay an annual licence fee, and complete 20 hours of continuing education each calendar year, including 5 hours of ethics and compliance. Ontario's regulator, FSRA, approved the PFP in 2022 for the Financial Planner title. It cannot be used in Quebec, where planners need the Pl. Fin.

There is an older version. People who earned the original PFP and never moved to the current requirements (experience, annual renewal, ethics, and continuing education) are not in CSI's directory, and their PFP does not carry those obligations. The PFP also says nothing about how a planner is paid.

## How to check

Search CSI's PFP Directory, which lists only holders in good standing under the current requirements. In Ontario, FSRA's Check Credentials tool confirms who may use the Financial Planner title.

## Sources

- [Canadian Securities Institute: PFP](https://www.csi.ca/en/credentials/pfp)
- [Canadian Securities Institute: PFP requirements](https://www.csi.ca/en/credentials/pfp/requirements)
- [Canadian Securities Institute: maintaining the PFP](https://www.csi.ca/en/credentials/pfp/maintenance)
- [Canadian Securities Institute: find a PFP holder](https://www.csi.ca/en/credentials/pfp/find)
- [FSRA: approved credentialing bodies and credentials](https://www.fsrao.ca/industry/financial-planners-and-financial-advisors/approved-credentialing-bodies-and-credentials)

## Related terms

- [Qualified Associate Financial Planner (QAFP)](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/qafp.md)
- [CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER (CFP) certification](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/cfp.md)
- [Chartered Investment Manager (CIM)](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/cim.md)
- [Advice-only financial planning](https://find.wellspent.co/glossary/advice-only.md)