The SEC recently notified all existing and pending federally registered advisors that regardless of their fiscal year end, they must file a Form ADV Part 1 amendment by March 30, 2012 by answering the recently added new questions and indicating the regulator the adviser should be registered with.
Most advisers with a December fiscal year end will choose to complete this task as part of their annual amendment filing. Those advisers with fiscal years ending in months other than December will generally complete the aforementioned task by filing an other-than-annual amendment to their Form ADV Part 1. ARC is advising State registered advisers to update their Form ADV Part 1 at this time and follow the general guidance the SEC has provided to federally registered advisers in this regard.
An adviser should also amend its brochure and brochure supplements if any information has become materially inaccurate.
Advisers seeking to file other-than-annual amendments to update only limited sections of their Form ADV (for example: only the Part 2 brochure or their address in item 1) must complete all questions, including new and revised questions, on Part 1 of the Form ADV. Advisers that must switch from SEC to State registration because they do not meet the SEC's new assets under management regulation threshold of $100,000,000 ($90,000,000 for established advisers filing their most recent annual amendment filing) should mark Item 2.A. (13) of Form ADV Part 1 and begin registering with the State(s) to ensure they can withdraw their SEC registration by June 28, 2012. Failure to meet the deadline may result in the adviser's de-registration with the SEC.