The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has opened applications for firms to provide targeted support.
The new service launches on 6 April 2026 and will allow banks, pension providers, and other authorised firms to provide guidance to groups of consumers with similar needs, helping them make better decisions about pensions and investments.
The move aims to help the 23 million consumers currently underserved by traditional advice. Targeted support sits between generic guidance and full personal advice, offering help at a price people can afford.
Firms are urged to prepare early and use the FCA’s Pre-Application Support Service (PASS) for guidance, with applications submitted through Connect.
ABI senior policy adviser, long-term savings policy Tom Shields says: “The opening of the targeted support gateway marks a significant step toward giving savers accessible, timely and, crucially, free help as they navigate complex financial decisions. Reaching this stage reflects considerable effort and collaboration from government, regulators and industry to design a framework that can provide meaningful support while maintaining appropriate consumer protections.
“As we draw closer to targeted support becoming a reality, a number of important issues need to be resolved to help it reach its full potential. The interaction of targeted support with marketing rules must be fully thought through so that firms can proactively communicate support to their customers without fear of inadvertently breaching financial promotion rules. The FCA also needs to provide clear examples of good practice so firms have the confidence to innovate and deliver support effectively. And trustees require further guidance on providing targeted support-style services to ensure consistency for savers across contract-based and trust-based schemes to avoid confusion at a critical moment in closing the advice gap.”
