HM Treasury has published its consultation response and set out its final approach to amending the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001 to enable “targeted support”. The proposed regime would allow authorised firms to make recommendations designed for groups of consumers with similar characteristics and/or circumstances in relation to pensions and investments, under a framework distinct from regulated investment advice. The legislative approach creates a new specified activity of providing targeted support and clarifies that providing it is not “advising on investments” under Article 53, while retaining the existing definition of “personal recommendation”. The consultation attracted 13 responses and the final instrument will correct a drafting error (replacing “relevant instrument” with “relevant investment”) and simplify statutory disclosure requirements to align closely with Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rules, including requiring key information to be provided alongside the targeted support recommendation. Firms would need specific permission from the FCA or Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) to deliver targeted support, allowing the relevant regulator to assess Threshold Conditions, and existing Article 53 permissions would not be sufficient. Most exemptions and exclusions linked to Article 53 are expected to be carried across where appropriate, but the Article 72AA exclusion for managers of UK Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) and Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) will be amended so they must obtain permission before providing targeted support. Appointed Representatives will not be able to provide targeted support at rollout, with the position to be reviewed once reforms to the Appointed Representatives regime are established; the government also points to a joint Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and FCA statement on delivering targeted support within existing data protection rules and plans secondary legislation to enable workplace pension providers to send targeted support communications to members who have not opted out of direct marketing. HM Treasury intends to lay the statutory instrument, described as the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Order 2026, as soon as Parliamentary time allows. Rollout is expected from early April 2026, with the FCA authorisation gateway open from March 2026 and its optional Pre-Application Support Service available for prospective applicants.

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