Outgoing IFA president, Lyn McMorran, said the industry body was trying to entice advisers who did not currently belong to a professional organisation.

"We've always been unsure of how to reach people who were not members," McMorran said. "We're hoping this [campaign] will help spread the word."

She said with regulation coming more advisers would need the kind of support provided by industry associations to help them operate under the new regime.

"We have a lot to offer people going through the authorisation process," McMorran said.

The IFA charges new members an application fee of $125 plus an annual membership fee of $475 for provisional members or $625 for general members.

In an email obtained by Good Returns, an IFA member explains: "The 50% off would apply to your membership subscription - so half price for you. 

"There are also a range of member benefits announced that add serious value to being a member, together with the usual reasons for belonging to a professional association. And professionalism is the issue of the moment isn't it?"

The IFA's current half-price offer for new members is valid until the end of July.

Just under 1,100 members are listed on the IFA website. While no definitive figure has yet been published for how many people will have to become authorised financial advisers (AFA) once regulation comes into force, Commerce Minister Simon Power told ASSET magazine this March that the government estimated about 5,000 individuals would need to become an AFA.

However, since then estimates of AFA numbers have been revised upwards, with figures as high as 30,000 being bandied about.