Best Claude prompts for financial advisors in 2026

Three properties separate useful prompts from compliance traps. **Scope discipline:** the prompt asks Claude to do a defined task and forbids specific recommendations on securities, allocation percentages, account types, or claiming dates. **Disclosure awareness:** Claude flags every moment a Reg BI, fiduciary, fee, or rollover trigger surfaces. **Reviewer assumption:** the output is draft input for a licensed advisor and the firm's CCO, never final advice to a client.

Per the SEC Reg BI release, the best-interest obligation attaches at the moment of a recommendation, and account-type and rollover recommendations are inside scope. Per FINRA Notice 24-09, AI-generated communications must satisfy Rule 2210 (fair, balanced, not misleading) and Rule 3110 supervision; the firm owns recordkeeping under Rule 17a-4. Per the CFP Board Code of Ethics, fiduciary duty applies whenever a CFP professional provides Financial Advice — regardless of which tool drafted the words.

**Prompt block:** "You are a paraplanner. I will paste a meeting transcript or dictated notes. Produce: (1) 150-word summary, (2) numbered action items with owner and date, (3) 'open questions for advisor', (4) 'compliance-flag' section listing moments that may trigger Reg BI, rollover analysis, fee discussion, conflict disclosure, or suitability change. Do not recommend any security, allocation percentage, account type, or transaction. Do not infer risk tolerance from tone. End: 'Draft only — for advisor review.'"

**Compliance note:** The Reg BI flag is the whole point. Per the SEC Reg BI release, the obligation triggers on a recommendation, including rollovers and account-type changes. Per FINRA Notice 24-09, the AI-drafted note is a firm communication under Rule 17a-4.

**Sample output excerpt:** "Action 3: Client to send 401(k) statement by 6/24. [COMPLIANCE FLAG] Rollover discussion raised — Reg BI rollover-analysis workflow required before any recommendation."

**Prompt block:** "I will paste goals + risk-capacity inputs (time horizon by goal, liquidity needs, income stability, tax bracket). Draft an IPS skeleton: (1) household summary, (2) goals with target date and dollar amount, (3) risk-capacity narrative in client-readable language, (4) asset-class range placeholders, (5) rebalancing placeholder, (6) review cadence. Do not assign percentage allocations. Do not name securities or funds. Mark every decision point [ADVISOR INPUT]."

**Compliance note:** Skeleton-only avoids producing a de facto recommendation. The percentages must reflect advisor analysis. Keep the IPS in the client file under Investment Advisers Act Rule 204-2 books-and-records requirements.

**Prompt block:** "I will paste DOB, account types (Traditional IRA, 401(k), inherited IRA, Roth), and 12/31 balances. Produce a timeline: (1) first RMD year, (2) RMD age (SECURE 2.0 raised to 73, rising to 75), (3) accounts subject vs exempt, (4) inherited-IRA rules, (5) first-RMD vs subsequent deadlines. Do not calculate dollar amounts. Do not advise on QCD use. Mark anything needing a tax pro [CONSULT TAX ADVISOR]."

**Compliance note:** Calculation invites a recommendation; timeline framing stays educational. Verify ages and rules at the IRS RMD page. Per FINRA Notice 24-09, any client-facing version must satisfy Rule 2210.

**Sample output excerpt:** "Account A — Traditional IRA: subject to RMD. First RMD year: 2029 (client turns 73). First RMD may be deferred to April 1 of the following year with a double-distribution trade-off. [CONSULT TAX ADVISOR]"

**Prompt block:** "I will paste a hypothetical fact pattern (filing status, current and projected brackets, Traditional IRA balance, outside cash, IRMAA proximity, state tax). Produce: (1) variables pushing for a larger conversion, (2) variables pushing for smaller or none, (3) bracket-fill framing, (4) the IRMAA two-year look-back and five-year rule on converted dollars, (5) advisor questions to resolve. Do not state a conversion amount or target bracket. End: 'Educational framework only — not a recommendation.'"

**Compliance note:** Conversions trigger Reg BI when bundled with a securities recommendation and trigger CFP Board fiduciary duty whenever advice is given. The IRMAA look-back is documented at SSA's Medicare premiums page; Roth rules at the IRS Roth IRA page.

**Prompt block:** "I will provide a household fact pattern (state, bracket, child age, intended use, aid sensitivity, control preference). Build a 529-vs-UTMA frame: (1) tax treatment, (2) ownership/control, (3) FAFSA treatment, (4) qualified vs non-qualified withdrawal consequences, (5) state-tax placeholder [ADVISOR TO CONFIRM STATE], (6) flexibility. Do not recommend one over the other. Do not name a 529 plan. End: 'Framework only — not personalized advice.'"

**Compliance note:** 529 selection often crosses into a securities recommendation under SEC Reg BI. Framework-only stays safe. FAFSA treatment shifts each rule cycle; verify against studentaid.gov before the conversation.

**Prompt block:** "I will paste an excerpt from an estate document (will, revocable trust, durable POA, healthcare proxy, beneficiary form). Translate into plain English at an 8th-grade reading level. Preserve every legally significant detail (parties, powers, conditions, deadlines). Do not interpret, predict outcomes, or opine on whether the document achieves the client's goals. Tag legalese [LEGAL TERM]. End: 'Please review with the drafting attorney.'"

**Compliance note:** Attorneys interpret; advisors translate. Crossing the line risks UPL in many states. The CFP Board Code of Ethics requires referring matters outside competence to qualified professionals.

**Sample output excerpt:** "This is a [LEGAL TERM: revocable living trust]. While you are alive and competent, you remain the [LEGAL TERM: trustee]. The trust does not avoid estate tax by itself."

**Prompt block:** "I will provide a hypothetical fact pattern (DOB, projected PIA at FRA, spouse PIA/DOB, earnings, self-reported health, pension factors). Draft an educational explainer: (1) FRA, (2) delay credit to 70, (3) early-claiming reduction, (4) spousal/survivor mechanics, (5) GPO/WEP flags, (6) trade-offs. Do not state a recommended claiming age. End: 'Educational explainer — final decision requires advisor review and the latest SSA statement.'"

**Compliance note:** A recommended claiming age looks like a recommendation under Reg BI when paired with portfolio income planning. SSA provides the claiming-age explainer and WEP/GPO guidance; cite SSA in any client-facing document.

**Prompt block:** "I will paste a CSV of realized tax-loss-harvest trades (date, security sold, replacement, loss realized, wash-sale status as I flagged it). Convert to a client-ready narrative log: (1) bullet list in date order, (2) one-sentence rationale per trade using my language, (3) quarter total realized loss, (4) standing wash-sale reminder. Do not invent trades. Do not opine on substantially-identical status. Preserve every dollar figure exactly."

**Compliance note:** Rewriting structured data is low risk because Claude transforms text you supplied. The substantially-identical determination is advisor judgment under IRS Publication 550.

**Prompt block:** "Draft a 220-word intro letter for a referred prospect. Tone: warm, fee-only, fiduciary, no jargon. Structure: (1) thank the referrer (I'll provide the name), (2) introduce our planning process in 2-3 sentences, (3) state fee model and fiduciary status, (4) invite a 30-minute call with two dates, (5) close with my contact info. Do not list past performance, make forward-looking projections, or recommend any security or strategy. End with our disclosure block (I'll paste it)."

**Compliance note:** Per FINRA Rule 2210 and the SEC Marketing Rule (Rule 206(4)-1), prospect communications are advertising and require firm disclosures and recordkeeping. Performance claims and forward-looking projections trigger additional pre-use review.

**Prompt block:** "I will paste our current Form CRS. Draft a 150-word cover note: (1) thank for the relationship, (2) explain we are sending CRS as required by SEC rules, (3) one-sentence highlight of what changed (I'll tell you), (4) invite questions, (5) include our Form ADV link. Do not paraphrase CRS content beyond the page. Do not add disclosure language not approved by compliance."

**Compliance note:** Form CRS is required by SEC Rule 17a-14. Per FINRA Notice 24-09, AI-drafted cover notes are firm communications under Rule 2210 and must be supervised. Send to the CCO before distribution.

**Prompt block:** "Draft a 300-word drawdown communication. Tone: calm, fiduciary, fact-based. Structure: (1) acknowledge the drawdown without dramatizing magnitude, (2) restate the IPS principle the client agreed to (I'll provide language), (3) describe firm-side actions (rebalancing per policy, tax-loss harvesting where appropriate, cash-needs review) in general terms, (4) invite a call. Do not predict direction, compare to a prior named event, promise outcomes, or recommend specific reallocation. End with our disclosure block."

**Compliance note:** Forward-looking statements and historical-comparison framing trigger FINRA Rule 2210 fair-and-balanced standards. Per FINRA Notice 24-09, AI-drafted market commentary remains firm-supervised.

**Prompt block:** "Draft a 250-word verbal script for the intro meeting fee walkthrough. Structure: (1) one-sentence fee-model statement (fee-only AUM tiered + optional planning fee — I will provide tiers), (2) dollar-example calculation at the tier I provide, (3) what is and is not included, (4) how we are paid vs how the prospect may have paid prior advisors (no firm names), (5) invitation for questions. Do not minimize the fee. Do not characterize competitor fees negatively. Do not promise outperformance."

**Compliance note:** Fee disclosure sits at the center of fiduciary duty per the CFP Board Code of Ethics and the SEC's 2019 Interpretation of Standard of Conduct for Investment Advisers (IA-5248). The Anthropic prompt engineering docs emphasize role-and-constraints framing — apply both to keep the script in scope.

Claude as recommender: produces outputs that read like recommendations, escape books and records, and skip Reg BI rollover analysis — the pattern FINRA Notice 24-09 flagged as supervision risk.
Claude as paraplanner and translator: scope-disciplined prompts + Reg BI/fiduciary flags + advisor and CCO review. Per the SEC Reg BI release, this captures time savings without crossing into a recommendation.