The QAFP and the CFP both come from FP Canada, and both let a planner use the Financial Planner title in Ontario. The difference is depth. A CFP needs a three-year degree, FP Canada’s Fundamentals and Advanced education, a six-hour exam and three years of experience. A QAFP needs a two-year diploma, the Fundamentals education, a three-hour, 100-question exam and one year of experience. Neither tells you how the planner is paid.
The two side by side
| QAFP | CFP | |
|---|---|---|
| Issued by | FP Canada | FP Canada (CFP Board in the US) |
| Education before the exam | Fundamentals, plus the QAFP Professional Education Program | Fundamentals and Advanced, plus the CFP Professional Education Program |
| Schooling | Two-year diploma, or five years of qualifying experience | Three-year degree, or ten years of experience, or five years holding the QAFP |
| Exam | Three hours, 100 multiple-choice questions | Six hours, mostly case-based written answers |
| Work experience | One year | Three years |
| Continuing education | 12 hours a year | 25 hours a year |
| Ethics | FP Canada’s Code of Ethics: clients’ interests first | The same code |
| Financial Planner title in Ontario | Yes | Yes |
Both sets of holders agree to the same standards and answer to the same disciplinary process, and both show up in FP Canada’s Planner Directory. Many QAFP professionals go on to the CFP: FP Canada runs a bridge path that adds the Advanced education.
Continuing education compared
The yearly education requirement is one of the clearest differences, and a simple way to compare the credentials a Canadian planner might list.
What the title rules mean in your province
Canada has no national rule for who can call themselves a financial planner. Two provinces have one.
- Ontario. Since 2022, only people holding a credential approved by FSRA, the province’s regulator, may use the Financial Planner or Financial Advisor title. The CFP and QAFP are both approved for Financial Planner, as are the PFP, the CLU, and a few others. Being registered with CIRO as an investment representative only qualifies someone for the Financial Advisor title. FSRA’s Check Credentials tool shows who holds what.
- Quebec. The financial planner title, or F.Pl., is reserved for people with a diploma from the Institute of Financial Planning who hold a certificate from the AMF. A CFP or QAFP alone doesn’t let someone use it in Quebec. FP Canada runs a path to the CFP for Quebec F.Pl. holders.
Elsewhere, check what your province requires and ask which credential a planner relies on.
Which one do you need?
For many households, a QAFP is plenty. Budgeting, RRSP and TFSA choices, saving for a child through an RESP, insurance needs and a first retirement projection are well within the QAFP’s training.
The CFP’s Advanced education goes further into tax, estate and retirement income planning. It’s worth asking for when you have:
- a pension decision, such as taking the commuted value or the monthly pension
- a corporation, rental properties or a business sale
- a large estate, or family in more than one country
- a retirement plan that has to juggle CPP, OAS and RRIF withdrawals around the OAS clawback
Even then, the credential is a floor. Experience with situations like yours matters more than the letters. A QAFP who has done fifty pension decisions may serve you better than a CFP who has done two.
In the public graph, 13 of the 24,501 fee-only advisors list the QAFP. A CFP is listed by 9,930, most of them in the US, where the mark comes from CFP Board.
Moving across the border
The CFP mark is used in both countries, but it’s licensed by FP Canada in Canada and by CFP Board in the US. A planner certified in one country isn’t automatically certified in the other: FP Canada has a separate path for CFP holders from other countries. If you’re moving, check your planner in the directory of the country where they’ll be advising you, and read cross-border financial advisors for the registration side.
Common mistakes
- Reading a credential as a pay model. CFP and QAFP professionals can be fee-only, salaried at a bank, or paid by commission on mutual funds and insurance.
- Stopping at the credential. If a planner will recommend specific investments, they generally need to be registered with a provincial securities regulator too. Check the CSA’s National Registration Search.
- Not checking the directory. FP Canada’s Planner Directory shows whether certification is current and any FP Canada discipline.
- Assuming an older PFP is current. Only PFP holders under the Canadian Securities Institute’s current requirements appear in its directory.
Questions to ask
- Which credential lets you use the Financial Planner title in my province?
- How many clients with a situation like mine have you worked with this year?
- Are you registered to recommend specific investments? With which regulator?
- How are you paid, and do you or your firm earn anything from the products you recommend?
- What does a plan cost, and what does a yearly update cost?
What a fee-only planner costs in Canada
Our fee data isn’t split by credential, and published prices from CFP and QAFP planners overlap. Across Canadian fee-only planners who publish prices, the median is C$1,900 for a one-time plan (middle half C$950 to C$3,000, 46 firms), C$250 an hour (15 firms) and C$2,300 a year for ongoing planning (21 firms). Many are advice-only, charging for the plan and leaving the investing to you. The samples are small; our guide to what fee-only advisors charge in Canada explains how to read them.
Where to go next
Look up any credential in the glossary: QAFP, CFP, PFP and CIM. For US credentials, see CFP vs ChFC. Browse the fee-only advisors in Ontario, and if you’re new to the country, read financial planning for newcomers to Canada.