United States
Hong KongWhat the licence does not cover
A licence authorises specific regulated activity types, carried on for a specific principal. It does not cover other activity types, other firms, or work done after it lapses.
Worth being precise about, because every boundary here has a criminal statute behind it.
It does not cover other activity types
There are 12 regulated activity types and a licence names the ones you hold. Dealing in securities is not advising on securities, and advising on securities is not asset management.
Adding a type is an application, not a conversation with your manager.
A client asks what you would buy. Answering that, habitually and as part of the business, looks like advising on securities. It is the most common way a representative drifts outside their scope without any decision being taken.
It does not cover other firms
The licence is tied to the sponsoring corporation that applied for it. Moving firms is a fresh accreditation rather than a change of address.
It does not make you a responsible officer
Supervising the business is a separate approval with its own bar: an academic or professional qualification limb, three years of relevant industry experience over the past six, two years of management experience, and a second examination paper.
Being senior is not the same as being approved, and the SFC assesses the approval rather than the job title.
It does not survive indefinitely without you working
The examination pass has a recency expectation. The SFC expects the local regulatory framework paper to have been passed not more than three years before an application is submitted.
There is a carve-out where you have been licensed within the past three years for a relevant activity, but a long gap outside the industry puts the paper back in front of you.
It does not replace fitness and properness
Competence is one limb. The SFC also assesses whether you are fit and proper, and that assessment continues for as long as you are licensed rather than ending at the application.
Common questions
Does my SFC licence cover all finance work?
No. It authorises the regulated activity types it names, carried on for the principal that sponsored it.
Can I advise clients if I am licensed for dealing?
Not as part of the business. Advising on securities is a separate regulated activity type.
Does my licence move with me to a new firm?
No. It is tied to the sponsoring corporation and moving is a fresh accreditation.
Does seniority make me a responsible officer?
No. It is a separate SFC approval with experience, management and examination requirements.
Does my exam pass last forever?
The SFC expects the paper to have been passed within three years of the application, with a carve-out if you have been licensed recently for a relevant activity.