Guides › Financial Advisor Fees
Updated September 22, 2026. Quick answer: Mostly yes, with one carve-out. Ameritas is registered with the SEC only as an investment adviser, so on your advisory account it owes you a fiduciary duty under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. Its own Form CRS states: “When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours.” A limited number of Ameritas’ financial professionals are separately licensed to sell brokerage products in a different capacity, where the weaker Regulation Best Interest standard, not a fiduciary duty, applies instead.
How it’s registered
From Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. (AIP) Customer Relationship Summary (CRS) (March 24, 2025): “Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) as an investment adviser.”
AIP (CRD 109381) is IA-only per SEC IAPD (no bd_sec_number on this CRD). A separate family affiliate, Ameritas Investment Company, LLC (AIC), holds the group’s broker-dealer registration under a different, unverified CRD; that does not make CRD 109381 a dual registrant. AIP’s own CRS discloses that AIP itself (not just an affiliate) may receive commission-type compensation on sales of proprietary/affiliate insurance products.
The standard of conduct, in its own words
“When we act as your investment adviser, we have to act in your best interest and not put our interest ahead of yours.”
On commissions: “Your financial professional may recommend the purchase of variable insurance products issued by ALIC, or financial services available through affiliates of AIP. If you choose to implement these recommendations, AIP or your financial professional would receive compensation and/or commissions as a result of the sale of the insurance and other financial products or services recommended.”
Fiduciary status by capacity
| Capacity | Registration | Standard you’re owed | Can earn commissions | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| As your investment adviser (most clients) | SEC-registered investment adviser | Fiduciary duty (Investment Advisers Act of 1940) | No (asset-based advisory fee: $7,000 a year, 1.40% on a $500,000 account) | Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. (AIP) Customer Relationship Summary (CRS), March 24, 2025 |
| As a dually licensed representative (limited) | Also FINRA-registered broker-dealer representative, separate capacity | Regulation Best Interest (not a fiduciary duty) | Yes | Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. (AIP) Customer Relationship Summary (CRS), March 24, 2025 |
What this means for what you pay
Fiduciary status is one input, not the whole picture. Ameritas discloses a published fee that runs $7,000 a year on a $500,000 account; see the full dollar breakdown from Ameritas’ own fee disclosure before deciding whether the standard of conduct here changes your answer.
If the answer above changes your mind about staying, read the general mechanics of switching financial advisors, or use a dated termination letter once you decide.
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Source: WiserAdvisor’s service descriptionSources
- Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. (AIP) Customer Relationship Summary (CRS) (March 24, 2025): https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/crs/crs_109381.pdf
- SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure, Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc. (CRD #109381): https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/109381
- Ameritas Investment Partners, Inc., SEC Form ADV filing: https://reports.adviserinfo.sec.gov/reports/ADV/109381/PDF/109381.pdf
Methodology. This page was built September 22, 2026, quoting directly from Ameritas’ own current Form CRS, with the source linked above; any distinction we could not independently confirm this session is named as an honest gap rather than presented as verified. Nothing here is personalized financial, tax, legal, or investment advice, and it is not a substitute for reading the firm’s own Form CRS. See our Editorial Policy, Corrections, Affiliate Disclosure, and Disclaimer.
What does it actually take to open an account? See Ameritas’s minimum investment, quoted verbatim from its own Form ADV Part 2A / wrap-fee brochure.
Weighing whether to move ahead? Read the full Ameritas review, including its fiduciary status and what it costs to leave.
Comparing Ameritas against other options? See Ameritas alternatives, including a flat-fee route and a robo/hybrid, plus a lower-fee full-service firm.
How does this compare? See how 127 advisory firms are registered, from each firm’s own SEC record.