Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS)

What Is the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS)?

Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS) is a credential for those who create, implement and maintain retirement plans for businesses. Unlike most other professional financial planning and advisory professional designations, the CRPS focuses on wholesale and business clients. It is awarded by the College for Financial Planning to individuals who pass an exam demonstrating their expertise.

Successful applicants earn the right to use the CRPS designation with their names for two years, which can improve job opportunities, professional reputation, and pay. Every two years, CRPS professionals must complete 16 hours of continuing education and pay a nominal fee to continue using the designation.

Keeping up with changes to tax codes and other laws is important for a chartered retirement plans specialist. For example, the passage of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act in December 2019 brought forth some hefty changes to the retirement industry. As of 2020, under the new law, the age for taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) is no longer 70.5, but age 72. The SECURE Act also accounts for the fact that more seniors are working well into their late sixties and early seventies. The law allows contributions to traditional IRAs to continue past the prior cut-off age of 70.5.

Understanding the Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS)

The Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist program is a case-study-based, client-centered problem-solving approach. The study program to become a CRPS covers types and characteristics of retirement plans, including IRAs, small business retirement plans, defined contribution plans, nonprofit plans, 401(k) and 403(b) plans, and government plans.

It also covers plan distributions, plan design and implementation, plan establishment and operation, and fiduciary issues. The designation is an acknowledgment of the complexity of setting up and running a company-sponsored retirement plan.

Individuals who have earned the CRP designation report a 22% increase in earnings, according to the College for Financial Planning. With it, graduates can test out of one of the seven courses in the college's CFP Certified Professional Education Program. Completing the course can also provide up to 28 hours of continuing education credits.

The program costs $1,300 in addition to choosing between live and on-demand classes. For more information on the certification or to enroll, visit the College for Financial Planning CRPS informational page.

Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist Course Work

The CRPS course enables candidates to master a wide variety of retirement plan types, such as SEP, SIMPLE, 401(k), defined benefit plans, and more. Specific course sections include:

Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist Exam

The CRPS program features open enrollment, meaning a candidate may enroll at any time as long as they pass the final exam within one year of enrolling. The first final exam attempt is included in the program's $1,300 price tag.

CRPS candidates may take the exam online via the College for Financial Planning's online portal or live (though dates are limited).

Chartered Retirement Plans Specialist (CRPS) vs. Chartered Retirement Plans Counselor (CRPC)

Similar to the CRPS designation is the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor (CRPC), a professional financial planning designation awarded by the College for Financial Planning. Unlike the CRPS, which focuses on businesses, the CRPC focuses on individual clients.

CRPC professionals have to keep up with current trends and any new laws to better serve their clients, so every two years, they must pay a small fee and complete 16 hours of continuing education in order to keep their designation.

Advisors may earn the CRPC designation by completing a study program and passing a final multiple-choice examination. Successful applicants earn the right to use the CRPC designation with their names for two years, which can improve job opportunities, professional reputation, and pay. Every two years, CRPC professionals must complete 16 hours of continuing education and pay a small fee to continue using the designation.

CRPCs are focused on retirement planning. The CRPC program is developed with a focus on client-centered problem-solving. Applicants gain in-depth knowledge of individuals' needs both before and after retirement.