Licence as a professional fee-based financial investment advisor - Granting

You need a commercial license for your work as a fee-based financial investment advisor if you
 

• advise on transactions in certain financial instruments and your recommendation is based on an examination of the investor's personal circumstances (Section 1 (1a) No. 1a of the German Banking Act),
• provide professional advice on financial investments within the meaning of § 34f paragraph 1 numbers 1, 2, or 3 of the Industrial Code and
• this advice is not remunerated on the commission basis of a provider of financial investments, but only against a fee from your customer.
   

The plants mentioned in § 34f paragraph 1 numbers 1, 2, or 3 of the Industrial Code are
 

• shares or shares in domestic open-ended investment funds, open-ended EU investment funds or foreign open-ended investment funds that may be distributed under the German Investment Code (open-ended funds),
• shares or shares in domestic closed-end investment funds, closed-end EU investment funds or foreign closed-end investment funds that may be distributed under the German Investment Code (closed-end funds) and
• Investments within the meaning of § 1 paragraph 2 of the Asset Investment Act (e.g. company participations, profit participation rights, participatory loans, subordinated loans).
   

The fee-based financial investment advisor may also broker these products to the customer, but must then pass on a benefit (commission) that he receives from the product provider to the customer.

To the locally competent Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
 

You can also complete the procedure electronically via the Point of Single Contact.

For the examination to grant permission to act as a fee-based financial investment advisor, you must submit the following documents:
 

• a certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority
• an extract from the Central Trade Register,
• if applicable, a certificate in tax matters from the tax office,
• if applicable, a clearance certificate from the municipal tax office,
• an extract from the register of debtors of the central enforcement court,
• if applicable, the information provided by the insolvency court on freedom from insolvency and on the rejection of the opening of proceedings for lack of assets,
• proof of professional indemnity insurance,
• proof of the required expertise and
• for legal entities and commercial partnerships: the extract from the commercial register

You are granted permission to engage commercially as a fee-based financial investment advisor if you:
 

• are reliable,
•  live in orderly financial circumstances,
• can prove professional indemnity insurance and
• have successfully passed an examination of competence at a chamber of industry and commerce or can prove this required competence by means of an equivalent professional qualification.

1. Application for permission
 

You must apply to the competent authority for permission to work as a fee-based financial investment advisor. In Hesse, these are the chambers of industry and commerce.

Individuals (natural persons) apply for permission  themselves or through authorized third parties. In the case of legal persons, the application is made by their legal representatives or by third parties authorised in writing.
 

2. Notification of permission
 

The permission will be granted to you in the form of a permission notice.
 

3. Entry of permission
 

After commencing your activity as a fee-based financial investment broker, you must immediately submit an application for entry in the register in accordance with § 11a paragraph 1 of the Industrial Code, unless an entry is made in parallel in the event that the permit is granted.

1. Scope of the permit
 

You can apply for permission to act as a fee-based financial investment advisor for all product categories (open-ended funds, closed-end funds, investments within the meaning of § 1 paragraph 2 of the Asset Investment Act), but it can also be limited to individual categories.
  

2. No double licence for financial investment intermediaries and fee-based financial investment advisors
 

The permission to act as a financial investment broker according to § 34f Gewerbeordnung and as a fee-based financial investment consultant according to § 34h Gewerbeordnung are mutually exclusive. Anyone who already has a licence as a financial investment broker can only obtain a licence as a fee-based financial investment advisor if he waives his licence as a financial investment broker.