Investment Adviser Registration Requirements

What this video covers

• The baseline rule that makes investment adviser (IA) registration mandatory in every state where advisory business is conducted, and the three-step decision framework (definition, then exclusion, then exemption)
• The institutional client exemption: which clients qualify, the $1,000,000 asset threshold for employee benefit plans, and why "no place of business in the state" is the non-negotiable condition
• The de minimis exemption: the 5 non-institutional client limit in the preceding 12 months, and why institutional clients do not count toward that limit
• Why any place of business in the state destroys both exemptions simultaneously, regardless of client type or count
• Registration procedure: Form ADV, consent to service of process, fees, and the exact effective date of noon on the 30th day after a complete filing
• Automatic investment adviser representative (IAR) registration for partners, officers, and directors only, not for regular employees
• The consent to service of process: filed once, irrevocable, survives termination of registration, and appoints the Administrator as agent for legal process
• The universal December 31 annual expiration date for all registrations (IAs, IARs, broker-dealers, and agents)