Independence · Transparency · Trust
The Fiduciary Model
Our coordination approach puts your interests first; any regulated advice is provided directly by the authorised professional you instruct. Here is exactly what that means — and exactly what it costs.
What fiduciary means in practice
A fiduciary relationship is one in which one party places complete trust and confidence in another — and the other party is legally obligated to act in that person's best interest, not their own.
In financial services, this distinction matters more than any other. An adviser who operates on a commission basis has a financial incentive tied to what they recommend. That incentive may align with your interests. It may not. You cannot always tell which.
An adviser operating on a fiduciary basis has only one financial incentive — the fee you agree in advance. Nothing else.
For returning UAE expats who have spent years in a financial environment where commission-driven advice was the norm, this is not a small distinction. It is the difference between advice that is designed to serve you and advice that is designed to be sold to you.
Our coordination is client-focused. Advice and investment management remain the responsibility of the appropriately authorised professional or firm you instruct.
How we handle remuneration — complete transparency
Transparency means telling you everything — not just the parts that present us favourably. Here is a complete and honest picture of how IFA Private Office is remunerated across different types of work.
Coordination and Professional Fees
All fees are agreed under the terms of business before any work begins. The scope of work document sets out exactly what will be delivered, the fee that applies and the timeline. No work begins and no fee is charged until you have reviewed and agreed your terms of business in writing.
Protection Insurance
Where protection insurance is needed — life cover, critical illness or income protection — we introduce an appropriately authorised insurance professional. That professional advises and arranges cover under their own terms. Any payment to IFA.AE for an introduction is disclosed before you proceed; IFA.AE does not arrange insurance.
Professional Referrals
We work with a small number of trusted professional firms — solicitors, accountants and other specialists — to whom we may refer clients where their services are required. In some cases we have a formal or informal reciprocal arrangement with these firms. Where any referral arrangement exists we will disclose it to you at the point of referral. We refer only to firms whose standards we have verified personally and with whom we have an established professional relationship. We do not refer to firms we would not use ourselves.
What We Do Not Receive
We do not receive payments from fund managers, investment platforms or pension providers in connection with the investment recommendations made by the authorised professionals we introduce. We do not charge hidden administration margins on platform fees. We do not bill for time you did not agree to in advance.
How our fees work
Our fee structure reflects the nature and scope of the work involved. We do not publish a single price list because coordination needs vary considerably — from introductions for a pension transfer to coordinating specialists across a complex estate involving multiple asset classes and jurisdictions. Advice, execution and investment management remain with the professionals you instruct.
What does not vary is the principle: fees are agreed in advance, confirmed in writing in your individual scope of work document, and do not change without your explicit consent.
Separate Professional Advice Fees
For introductions involving personal financial advice from an appropriately authorised professional — QROPS transfer analysis, pension restructuring recommendations, estate planning strategy, tax planning — the relevant professional agrees any advice fee directly with you.
The authorised professional’s fee covers their analysis, fact find and written recommendation. IFA.AE coordinates the introduction and does not make investment recommendations.
The authorised professional calculates their advice fee based on the complexity of your situation and their scope of work. It is agreed and confirmed in writing before any work begins.
The authorised professional’s terms explain whether their advice fee remains payable if you do not proceed with a recommendation. Any payment, offset or credit conditions are agreed directly with that professional. IFA.AE provides coordination, not advice.
Separate Execution-Only Fees
For clients who do not require personal advice — who have made their own decision and require an authorised firm to carry out the transaction — we coordinate introductions for an execution-only service provided by the authorised firm you instruct, not by IFA.AE.
The authorised firm confirms its execution-only fees and terms directly. IFA.AE does not execute instructions or charge a transaction-execution fee.
There is no advice given and no liability for the outcome of the instruction beyond the accurate execution of what was requested. Clients using the authorised firm’s execution-only service confirm with that firm in writing that they understand they are not receiving advice and that the decision is their own.
Separate Management Fees
For clients who require ongoing investment management, portfolio reviews or continued advice, we introduce appropriately authorised professionals. Those professionals provide the service and agree their fees directly with you.
The authorised provider’s ongoing fee may be calculated as a percentage of assets it manages or advises on. The precise rate depends on the nature and complexity of the ongoing work involved and is set out in your individual scope of work document before any engagement begins.
The authorised provider confirms its applicable fee and scope directly with you in writing. IFA.AE does not manage investments or charge an investment management fee.
Each authorised provider agrees its applicable scope and fees directly with you in writing before work begins. IFA.AE discloses any separate coordination or introduction fee before you commit.
A note on complexity
Some situations are straightforward. A single QROPS with a clear transfer destination, no unusual tax complications and a straightforward UK tax residency position. Those engagements are priced accordingly.
Some situations are not straightforward. Multiple pension arrangements across different jurisdictions. Significant property assets. Business interests. Trust structures. IHT exposure. Family members in different tax jurisdictions. International investment portfolios. Those engagements require more work — and the fee reflects that.
We will always tell you which category your situation falls into before any fee is agreed. If we think your situation is straightforward we will tell you. If we think it is complex we will tell you that too — and explain why. The scope of work document you receive before any engagement begins sets out exactly what we will do and exactly what it will cost.
How to find out what your engagement would cost
Complete our private consultation enquiry and we will give you a fee indication specific to your situation before you commit to anything.
The initial conversation is without charge. The fee only applies when work begins — and only after you have agreed to it in writing via your scope of work document.
Frequently asked questions about our fees
Transparent fees. Professional introductions. Your interest — always.
Get a no-obligation fee indication specific to your situation before you commit to anything.
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