If you run a counselling or psychology centre in India, or are about to open one, you have probably seen the Clinical Establishments Act come up. This guide explains in plain words what the Act is, why it does not apply the same way everywhere, and where to check what it means for your centre.
This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm what applies to your centre with your state authority or a legal adviser.
What the Act is
The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 is a central law. The health ministry's portal for the Act says it was made to provide for the registration and regulation of clinical establishments, and to set minimum standards for the facilities and services they offer.
According to the same portal, it covers therapeutic and diagnostic establishments in both the public and private sectors, across all recognised systems of medicine, including single doctor clinics. The recognised systems it lists are Allopathy, Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Homoeopathy, Siddha, Unani and Sowa Rigpa. Establishments run by the Armed Forces are outside it.
The portal's FAQ says the owner of an establishment is the person responsible for registering it, and that registration is handled by a District Registering Authority. It describes a provisional registration, made by self declaration, and a permanent registration that comes later.
It applies only where it has been adopted
This central law does not reach every state on its own. The portal says the Act came into force on 1 March 2012 in four states and in all union territories except the NCT of Delhi. Other states have adopted it through a resolution of their legislature, and more can do so.
Some states have not adopted it and have their own laws for clinical establishments instead. An undated note from the Directorate General of Health Services, with figures as of July 2020, said this was true of sixteen states and Delhi, so check the current position. If your centre is in one of those states, your state's own law and rules are the ones to read.
We have not listed the adopting states here, because the official pages we read do not all give the same list. Check the current position for your state on the portal or with your state health department.
Does a counselling centre need to register?
There is no single answer for every centre in India. It depends on two things: which state you are in, and what your centre offers.
The state decides which law applies, and whether it is this Act or a state law of its own. Who works at your centre and what they offer can matter, for example whether a psychiatrist sees clients there. The official FAQ we read does not mention counselling or psychology centres by name, so ask your state authority how it applies to you.
So do not rely on a general article, including this one, for the answer. Write down what your centre offers, who provides it and where, and ask your state's registering authority or health department whether registration applies to you. If they say it does, ask them what the process involves.
Where to look
The DGHS note gives the Act's website as clinicalestablishments.gov.in, and the health ministry's site for the Act is clinicalestablishments.mohfw.gov.in. The ministry's site has an FAQ, state and union territory rules, and contact details for state nodal officers. The DGHS note said online registration worked through clinicalestablishments.gov.in in some states.
Your state health department is the other place to go, especially if your state has its own law. Ask which office registers establishments in your district.
The Mental Healthcare Act, 2017 is a separate law with its own registration of mental health establishments. Draft rules published by the health ministry name the State Mental Health Authority as the body that registers mental health establishments in a state. If your centre offers mental health services, ask your State Mental Health Authority whether that registration applies to you, in addition to whatever the clinical establishments law in your state requires.
How Leshya helps once your centre is set up
Leshya does not register your centre or tell you whether you need to. Once your centre is set up and you have checked what applies to you, Leshya's clinic workspace can run the day to day.
Your centre gets its own practice site at yourclinic.leshya.app, with every counsellor who takes bookings listed on it, and clients book from it. You invite counsellors by email and choose each person's role and whether they take bookings.
Your front desk sees bookings across the team in one list and can book for a client who calls or walks in, with no account needed for the client. Clients can pay online, or in cash, UPI or card at the desk, and both land in the same ledger. Every payment gets a receipt, and if you add your GSTIN in clinic settings, it prints on each one.
Common questions
The Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010 is a central law for registering and regulating clinical establishments and setting minimum standards for them. It applies in the states and union territories that have it in force, and some states have their own laws instead.
