How to Become an RIA in New York: Exams, Forms, and Filings

To become a Registered Investment Adviser in New York, you generally need to pass a qualifying securities exam (or hold a recognized professional credential), form a legal business entity, prepare Form ADV and a written compliance program, and file your registration electronically through the Investment Adviser Registration Depository with the state’s Investor Protection Bureau, a division of the Office of the Attorney General. The process applies to advisers managing less than $100 million in assets; larger firms register with the SEC instead. Once approved, you take on ongoing renewal, disclosure, and recordkeeping duties.

Confirm New York Is Where You Register

The dividing line between federal and state registration is assets under management. Advisers with $100 million or more in regulatory assets under management generally register with the SEC.¹ Firms below that threshold register at the state level. Advisers between $100 million and $110 million sit in a buffer zone and may have the option to go either way depending on their circumstances.

New York layers its own trigger on top. Any investment adviser or solicitor with more than five clients who are New York residents must register with the state before conducting advisory business.² If you are already SEC-registered, you do not register with New York, but you do submit a notice filing. Your application has to be filed and approved before you begin providing advice to New York clients.

Pass the Qualifying Exam or Qualify for a Waiver

Every principal, investment adviser representative, and supervisor registering in New York must pass a qualifying examination within the two years before filing. The primary route is the Series 65. The alternative is the Securities Industry Essentials (SIE) Examination combined with the Series 7 and the Series 66.³ The exams test federal and state securities laws, ethical obligations, and investment products.

One useful exception: if you passed the Series 66 within two years of your application but took the Series 7 more than two years ago, you do not need to retake the Series 7 as long as it still shows as valid on the Central Registration Depository.⁴

Credentials That Waive the Exam

If you hold one of the following designations in good standing, you can skip the exam entirely:

CFP (Certified Financial Planner), awarded by the CFP Board of Standards
CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst), awarded by the Association for Investment Management Research
ChFC (Chartered Financial Consultant), awarded by the American College
PFS (Personal Financial Specialist), awarded by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
CIC (Chartered Investment Counselor), awarded by the Investment Adviser Association

The state may also recognize other designations on a case-by-case basis.⁵

Form the Business Entity

You cannot register as an investment adviser without a legal business entity behind you. Most advisory firms organize as an LLC or a corporation. Forming an LLC in New York runs $200 for the Articles of Organization filed with the Department of State.⁶

New York also requires most LLCs to publish a formation notice in two newspapers designated by the county clerk for six consecutive weeks, then file a Certificate of Publication with a $50 fee.⁷ Miss the 120-day window and the state can suspend your LLC’s authority to do business. The newspapers set their own rates, and publication in New York City counties tends to cost significantly more than upstate.

Sole proprietors get slightly different treatment. A one-person firm operating as a sole proprietorship pays only the investment adviser firm fee, not a separate representative fee, but still files both Form ADV and Form U4. That streamlined fee does not apply if the firm is incorporated or organized as an LLC.²

Prepare Your Registration Documents

The central filing is Form ADV, a standardized form used across the country.

Form ADV Part 1

Part 1 covers the factual details of your firm: ownership structure, business practices, number and types of clients, employee information, affiliations, and disciplinary history involving you or your advisory affiliates.⁸ The disciplinary section is thorough. It asks about felony convictions, regulatory actions, civil lawsuits, customer complaints, and financial events like bankruptcies or unsatisfied judgments going back ten years or more.⁹

Form ADV Part 2A and 2B

Part 2A is your firm’s client-facing brochure. Unlike Part 1’s checkbox format, it is a narrative document written in plain English covering your services, fee schedules, conflicts of interest, and disciplinary information. Part 2B, the brochure supplement, provides background on the specific individuals giving advice to each client.⁸ You must deliver these brochures to clients before or at the time you enter into an advisory relationship.

Compliance Manual and Advisory Agreement

You also need a written compliance manual establishing your firm’s internal rules for preventing securities law violations and managing conflicts. New York General Business Law Section 359-eee gives the Attorney General broad authority to prescribe the forms and conditions of registration.¹⁰ Alongside the manual, prepare your written advisory agreement — the contract spelling out fiduciary duties, fee structure, and the scope of the relationship.

File Through IARD and CRD

All filings are electronic. FINRA operates the FINRA Gateway platform, which provides access to both the Investment Adviser Registration Depository (IARD) for firm-level filings and the Central Registration Depository (CRD) for individual representative filings.¹¹ Set up accounts on both before you submit anything.

The Firm Files Form ADV

The firm files Form ADV through IARD. New York charges a $200 state filing fee, paid through the same system.¹² An application is not officially filed until both the required fee and all required documents have been received and accepted.²

Each Representative Files Form U4

Every individual who will act as an investment adviser representative files a Form U4 through the CRD system. Form U4 requires residential addresses for the past five years and employment history for the past ten, along with disclosure answers covering criminal history, regulatory actions, civil litigation, customer complaints, employment terminations, and financial events such as bankruptcies or unsatisfied liens.¹³ Any gaps longer than three months in residential or employment history must be accounted for. Outside business activities must be disclosed, including the hours worked during securities trading hours.

No Bond or Net Capital Requirement

New York does not currently impose a net capital or surety bond requirement on registered investment advisers.⁴ Many firms still carry errors and omissions insurance to protect against professional liability claims, with premiums varying by coverage limits and services offered.

If You Take Custody of Client Assets

Most new advisers use an independent qualified custodian and can skip this section. If your firm will have physical custody of client funds or securities instead, extra audit rules apply. An independent public accountant must conduct a surprise examination of those assets at least once per calendar year, scheduled by the accountant without advance notice and timed irregularly from year to year.¹⁴

The accountant files Form ADV-E with the SEC within 120 days of the exam and must notify the SEC within one business day of any material discrepancy. Stricter rules apply when the adviser itself acts as the qualified custodian: the accountant must be registered with and subject to inspection by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, and the firm must obtain an annual written internal control report. Pooled investment vehicles such as limited partnerships have their own exception: if the fund is audited annually and audited financials go to all investors within 120 days of fiscal year-end, the surprise examination requirement does not apply.

Keep the Registration Active

Approval is the start of an ongoing compliance commitment.

Annual Renewal

Every registered investment adviser completes an annual renewal through IARD before year-end. Failure to pay renewal fees results in the termination of your representatives’ registrations on December 31, followed by termination of your firm’s registration in participating jurisdictions.¹⁵

Updating Your Disclosures

File an updated Form ADV within 90 days after the end of your fiscal year.² Deliver an updated Form ADV Part 2A brochure, or a summary of material changes, to all existing clients each year. If your firm undergoes a significant change in ownership, address, or key personnel mid-year, file an amendment through IARD promptly rather than waiting for the annual update.

Recordkeeping

Federal rules require investment advisers to maintain most business records for at least five years from the end of the fiscal year in which the last entry was made. The first two years’ records must be kept in an appropriate office of the adviser rather than off-site storage. Advertisement and performance calculation records follow the same schedule. Organizational documents such as partnership agreements, articles of incorporation, and minute books must be preserved until at least three years after the firm ceases operations.¹⁶

1
Federal Register. Small Business and Small Organization Definitions for Investment Companies and Investment Advisers
2
Legal Information Institute. New York Comp. Codes R. and Regs. Tit. 13 11.4 – Registration Information
3
New York State Attorney General. 13 N.Y.C.R.R. Part 11 – Section 11.6 Investment Adviser Examination Requirements
4
New York State Attorney General. Investment Advisers FAQ
5
Legal Information Institute. New York Comp. Codes R. and Regs. Tit. 13 11.7 – Waivers
6
New York Department of State. Forming a Limited Liability Company in New York
7
New York Department of State. Articles of Organization for Domestic Limited Liability Company
8
Investor.gov. Form ADV
9
SEC.gov. Form ADV Part 1A – Uniform Application for Investment Adviser Registration
10
New York State Senate. New York General Business Law 359-EEE – Definitions, Registration Requirements for Investment Advisers
11
FINRA. FINRA Gateway
12
New York State Attorney General. Investment Adviser ADV Coversheet
13
New York Attorney General. Form U4 Instructions
14
eCFR. 17 CFR 275.206(4)-2 – Custody of Funds or Securities of Clients by Investment Advisers
15
IARD. 2026 Investment Adviser Renewal Program – Essential Guide for Maintaining Your Firm’s Registrations
16
eCFR. 17 CFR 275.204-2 – Books and Records to Be Maintained by Investment Advisers