Starting a private practice
How to start a private counselling practice in Australia
The practical building blocks — business setup, insurance, rooms, bookings and records — in plain language, with the legal and tax bits clearly flagged as general information, not advice.
Business setup
ABN, insurance and GST
Most sole-trader private practitioners register an Australian Business Number (ABN), free via the Australian Business Register, before invoicing clients or funders directly.
Professional indemnity and public liability insurance are standard for private practice — confirm your policy (or your association's) actually covers independent practice, not just employed or supervised work.
Whether you need to register for GST depends on your turnover and how it's assessed — check the current threshold and how it applies to you.
Keep your professional association or registration body's private-practice requirements in mind — supervision hours, CPD and any notification obligations when you move to independent practice.
This is general information, not tax or legal advice. Confirm your specific position with an accountant and your professional association before you start billing.
Where you'll see clients
Rooms vs telehealth
Telehealth needs no fixed room cost — just a private, reliable space and a stable connection. In-person work usually means hiring a room by the session or the hour (roughly $25–60 a session in most cities) rather than committing to a lease, at least until your caseload is steady enough to justify one. Most practices that grow start telehealth-first and add room hire as demand builds.
Getting booked
Bookings, reminders and billing
Clients need a way to find your availability and book without a back-and-forth of emails, and a way to be reminded so they show up. Billing means invoicing private-paying clients and, if you take them, third-party funders like NDIS or an EAP — each with its own paperwork if you handle it manually.
This is exactly the admin a group practice normally takes 30–40% for. Zenvia does it for a flat 10%, plus card processing at cost, with no split and nothing to pay for your first 90 days.
Clinical records
Records obligations
Independent practitioners are responsible for their own client records — consent, retention periods and secure storage typically need to meet the Privacy Act's Australian Privacy Principles as well as any additional requirements from your registration body or insurer. Get your specific obligations confirmed rather than relying on general guidance like this.
See what it costs to run
Compare doing it yourself, a group practice and Zenvia on your own numbers.
Already at a group practice? See leaving a group practice.