Advice restrictions if overseas

It seems to be true that advice cannot be given away from UK soil, however there are some big brokers out there doing it, with offices in Dubai for example. So, there must be a way for business to be done that the regulator accepts. No contract is ever really with the broker, it's between lender and borrower, so is the middleman's location really of importance? I've done a little admin whilst abroad in the past and of all lenders found that a certain Welsh building society wouldn't allow access from Turkey! At the time, no other lender site was blocked so it was easy to keep on top of things. That said, I use a VPN wherever I am now and so I'd question if anyone really knows where you are. Not allowing advice from overseas is out of sync with the world and a way of allowing it should be agreed upon, in my opinion.

This is all incredibly frustrating, as we have a network that has adopted these rules. Gone are the days of doing a mortgage application by the side of a pool, as working on holiday is often the only way of having a holiday when you are self-employed. I have previously had a client that during Covid was able to work from home so he moved to his parent's holiday let in France. To transact the mortgage we had to get him to travel back to the UK so we could advise him of our recommendation.

The answer is actually very simple but so many banks and networks like to complicate it. The snappily titled PERG 2.4.3 provides the steer. It is entirely possible and compliant to provide advice to a UK client whilst sat on a beach or in a bar on top of a mountain in another country, as long as the business you work for is a UK one and the regulated activity is a UK one. However there is a real risk that some countries have very stringent rules about investment advice being provided from their territory. No one wants to be the one to test if this applies to remote workers it seems. There are a multitude of reasons that organisations actually perpetuate this myth, one being they don't want workers to work flexibly whilst sat on a beach in the Bahamas with a pina colada in one hand and a laptop in the other.

This is an issue that has been bubbling for a while and does need to be addressed properly at some point. I don't think the rule around adviser and client being on UK soil at the point advice is given in itself is wrong. Otherwise we would have all sorts of issues if UK registered firms were suddenly using overseas call centres to transact business in the UK, but the actual business was on the other side of the world and well away from the watchful gaze, and occasional teeth, of the regulator. However, in a sector that is dominated by individual practitioners, many of whom are self-employed, it does create issues around holidays abroad. While that may seem minor, in a more remote working world it limits advisers' ability to travel, so should be addressed in some way, or it could ultimately limit the profession's appeal to new entrants.

Many a broker has taken a laptop with them on holiday to take a quick client call because they want to be able to support their client. What difference does that actually make as long as a client is being well looked after and UK advice standards are being followed?

This is definitely something that needs to be looked at within the industry, especially if you are a one man band. We have been advised by our compliance network that we are not allowed to engage with customers whilst we are outside of the UK. However, most advisers will only have one phone number for example and turning round to a customer and saying I can't do anything with your issue until I get back to the country sounds very much 'computer says no' and doesn't offer the level of customer service that most advisers I know look to achieve.

Our network says that we can only advise on UK soil. A shame really as I can't stop working for a holiday and I can't work on holiday! I do understand their thinking, though a bit more trust would be nice. I appreciate a few bad apples have probably pushed them to make this ruling.

It does all seem a tad archaic. If the firm you are representing is UK-based, and regulated in the UK, but you happen to be by a pool in Benidorm, why is there an issue?