Definition of an IAR

What this video covers

• The two-part statutory test for investment adviser representative (IAR) status: association with an investment adviser (IA) plus performance of at least one of five functions
• Why only natural persons can be IARs, and why firms, corporations, and partnerships are excluded
• Why there is no freestanding IAR registration: the individual must be employed by or associated with a registered IA or federal covered adviser
• The registration footprint difference between IARs of state-registered IAs (clients or place of business) versus IARs of federal covered advisers (place of business only)
• The five functions that trigger IAR status: recommending securities, managing accounts, determining advice, soliciting or selling advisory services, and supervising staff who perform the other four
• Why a solicitor who only brings clients through the door, without ever giving investment advice, is still an IAR under the general principle tested on the exam
• Why title alone does not create IAR status, and why clerical or ministerial staff and non-securities advisers are explicitly excluded from registration