ASIC has exempted rural financial counselling and money management service providers from licensing requirements for providing credit assistance under the National Credit Act: [CO 11/926].

Money management service providers who give financial advice about basic deposit products in the course of providing a money management service have also been granted limited relief [CO 11/927] from licensing requirements under the Corporations Act 2001 .

Rural financial counselling services are available to primary producers and rural small businesses in financial difficulty and are funded in whole, or in part, by the Commonwealth Government through the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) or, in Queensland, through the Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI).

Money management services are provided predominantly to improve the financial knowledge and skills of consumers, principally Indigenous consumers in regional and remote Australia. These service providers are funded in whole, or in part, by the Commonwealth through the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA).

ASIC’s exemptions are subject to important conditions, namely that:

• the regulated service is provided to the consumer as part of a rural financial counselling or money management service;
• no fees or charges are payable by the consumer for any aspect of the rural financial counselling service or money management service;
• the service providers do not engage in any credit activity or financial services business beyond the scope of these exemptions, and take all reasonable steps to ensure that none of their employees do so; and
• the service provider ensures its representatives have undertaken appropriate training to ensure that they have adequate skills, knowledge and experience to satisfactorily provide the services.