The U.S. Dept. of Labor announced a new exemption for investment advice fiduciaries and launched a resource page on the exemption. The exemption allows investment advice fiduciaries to offer a wide array of investment advice services in compliance with specified Impartial Conduct Standards. 

The new prohibited transaction class exemption is for investment advice fiduciaries and is based on an existing temporary policy adopted after the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the Department’s 2016 fiduciary rule package. Since the 5th Circuit’s 2018 ruling, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued a package of advice standards. The standards in the Department’s exemption announced today align with standards of other regulators, including the SEC. 

The exemption notice also expresses the Department’s views on when rollover advice could be considered fiduciary advice under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the Internal Revenue Code.

The exemption will be effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.