Reuse last year's report, and what the master template puts in each section

Last updated: October 12, 2026

This article shows you how to use last year's report or fact find as an input for this year's review, and explains how the master suitability template decides which sections appear in a report.

Emma does not start from memory. Each report is built from the documents you select, so a previous report only helps if you upload it. The master template then assembles the sections the case needs from those inputs, which is why the same template can produce a single ISA letter one day and a pension consolidation plus top-up the next.

Before you begin

Download last year's report or fact find as a Word or PDF file from the client's record in AdvisoryAI, or from your own files if it was written elsewhere.
Have this year's corrected meeting note ready. The review is written from the new meeting, with last year's document as the baseline.
Check which template you are using: the master suitability template, a targeted template, or one of the annual review templates. The sections below explain the difference.

Reuse last year's report or fact find

Click Create Report and select the template, for example the annual review or the fact find.
Choose the client.
Upload last year's report or fact find alongside this year's meeting note and the other inputs for the case. Previously generated reports may appear as suggested documents for the client, but they are only read when selected.
Select every document you want read, so they show green, and click Next.
Check the carried-over sections. Emma updates last year's content rather than starting from scratch, and keeps data for topics that were not discussed this year, so confirm those still hold.

Please note: a previous report is never pulled in on its own. If you want next year's reviews to have last year's notes available, upload them to the client now so they are there when you need them.

What the master template puts in each section

The master suitability template assembles sections from what you upload. Pensions, ISAs, GIAs, bonds and trusts are all covered, including withdrawals into drawdown. A pension consolidation plus an ISA top-up comes out as one document with both sections.

Control the scope with the inputs. Leave out the documents for anything that is out of scope, or state in an input document that only one topic is in scope. Instruct Emma as you would a paraplanner.
Expect empty sections to drop out. A section with no recommendation comes back as "no recommendation" and is left out of the report.
Use a targeted template for a simple case. A single withdrawal, top-up or fund switch run through the master template can come out padded. The targeted templates are shorter and built for one action.
Ask about a bespoke template for heavy cases. Several recommendations in one report are handled better by a custom template with each section mapped to the documents it should read. See Custom report templates: what to send, how changes work, and giving feedback.

The annual review templates are separate from each other. There is a standard annual review, plus top-up, withdrawal, fund swap and no-change versions. Use the specific template when the review includes one action, and the standard annual review when several actions are mixed.

Standing wording is dropped in exactly; anything found in a document is generated. Text your firm supplies as fixed wording goes into every report as written. A figure that has to be found in a document, such as a charge in an illustration, is always generated. If a generated section reads generically, for example risk and capacity for loss, send examples of how you normally write it to support@advisoryai.com so the section can be tailored to your indicators and logic. If a section includes content that does not fit the client, such as mortgage protection for a retired client, send the report ID too.

What a review letter can include

Whether the client is on track. If the objectives are in the fact find or last year's meeting note, a section can assess progress against them. Uploading a cashflow model with a base scenario and a stress test gives richer commentary.
An inheritance tax position. A ledger of assets totalling the estate with the calculation underneath can be generated from an uploaded fact find. This is a template addition, so ask for it.
Commentary on a cashflow graph, but not the graph itself. Emma reads the content of an uploaded cashflow PDF and writes about it; it cannot insert the image. The template leaves a space with a red instruction to drop the graph in.

Why reports are long, and how to shorten them

The standard templates are deliberately comprehensive, so length is a template choice rather than something that changes report by report. The fixes are the targeted templates, a shorter variant of your template, or conciseness rules in a bespoke build. A short report stays compliant by pushing research and illustrations into appendices: the report reads as a summary, and the full client file is what passes compliance.

Please note: if reports suddenly get longer without a template change, report it with the report ID. A model update in July 2026 did this on some templates and was fixed.

Does Emma learn from my edits?

No. Edits in the platform, snapshot changes and edits in Word are not remembered, and the next report starts from the template again. The routes that change future output are the thumbs up or down on a report, a marked-up example sent to support for the team to build into the template, and the Dictionary for terminology. Structural changes follow an 80/20 rule: only changes most of your team makes repeatedly are made permanent, so templates do not swing between individual preferences.

Two ways to generate a review letter

Create Report is the usual route and the easiest way to control which documents are read. Atlas can also generate a report from your templates list, with a chat alongside the document, which suits refining a draft in conversation. Either way the template is the same.

Also asked

Can we have a catch-up to understand how AdvisoryAI produces review letters and suitability reports?

Yes. Email support@advisoryai.com with the report types you want covered (review letters, suitability reports, LOA packs), the templates you currently use and two or three times that suit, and the team books a walkthrough with your account manager. The session is run on your own templates and the documents you upload rather than as a generic demo, which is why it is arranged by email rather than self-booked. A consultative template review by the team's former advisers and paraplanners can be added to the same session if you are considering changes to your report structure.

Next steps

Read What File Formats Can I Upload? for the documents each report type needs.
If the same section needs the same fix every time, send a marked-up example to support@advisoryai.com rather than editing each report.

Ready for this year's reviews? Open AdvisoryAI, open the client and upload last year's report before you create the new one.