The FASEA Code of Ethics for Financial Advisers: All 12 Standards Explained for the Exam

8 min read · facts checked 25 Oct 2026

As at 25 October 2026, every relevant provider must comply with the Financial Planners and Advisers Code of Ethics 2019 (Corporations Act s 921E(3)), which sets five values and 12 standards in four groups. In the exam, the Code anchors the applied ethical and professional reasoning area, one of three equally weighted areas, and the relevant standard can be supplied with the question (ASIC Exam preparation guidance v6.0).

The five values

Trustworthiness, competence, honesty, fairness and diligence. The Code says these values are paramount: every standard must be read and applied in a way that promotes them. It also says its duties go beyond what the law requires, which is why the exam keeps asking whether lawful conduct is also ethical.

The 12 standards at a glance

Legal is not the same as ethical

ASIC's learning outcomes for the ethics area include identifying scenarios that meet the Corporations Act but do not comply with the Code. A typical set-up: an adviser recommends the licensee's in-house platform after a reasonable investigation and discloses the association in the SOA. That can satisfy the disclosure rules and the s 961B steps, yet the question is whether the in-house link engages Standard 3, or whether the platform fees meet Standard 7's value-for-money test. When an option says "compliant because it was disclosed", test it against the Code before you pick it.

See how much has stuck: sit the free timed mock: try 5 questions with no sign-up. Or see the passes for the full question bank.

How Code questions are built

• A client scenario plus an extract of one or more standards, asking whether the adviser complied, and if not, which standard was breached.
• "Which standard is MOST relevant?" questions, where two standards look plausible and the facts favour one.
• "What should the adviser do FIRST?" questions on conflicts, consent and referral.
• Consequences of a breach for the adviser, the client and the industry, which ASIC lists as a learning outcome.
• Dilemmas where you apply an ethical framework as well as the Code: see the ethical frameworks guide.

Standards that overlap with the law

Who enforces it

Section 921E(3) of the Corporations Act makes compliance with the Code a legal obligation for every relevant provider, and a restricted civil penalty provision. ASIC, or a Financial Services and Credit Panel, can act against an adviser who breaches it (Div 8B). FASEA made the Code, which took effect on 1 January 2020, and ASIC has administered the advice standards since 1 January 2022 (see what changed from the FASEA exam).

How to study it

• Read the Code itself first. It is short, and the exact words matter.
• Then read FASEA's guidance FG002 and the Code's explanatory statement, both on ASIC's suggested reading list.
• Learn one adviser example per standard, then practise dilemmas where two standards compete.
• Our study notes cover the values and ethical behaviour standards, client care and quality process, and professional commitment and ethical frameworks.

Test yourself with our free sample questions, each with a worked explanation citing the law or standard behind it, and see how the Code links to the best interests duty.