Do I need a licence to open a counselling practice in India?

Clinical psychologists need RCI registration. Other psychologists and counsellors are covered by the NCAHP Act, whose registration is being set up. Depending on your state you may also need to register or file an intimation under its Shops and Establishments Act and pay professional tax.

Can I run a therapy practice from home?

You can, subject to local rules. Delhi's Shops Act definition covers any premises where a profession is carried on, so check your state's rules and any housing society rules, and make sure clients have a private, safe space.

Do I need GST registration to start?

Not if all your services are exempt, and not until your aggregate turnover passes the threshold if some are taxable. Ask your CA, because exemption for therapy is not settled for every practitioner.

Is section 44ADA still available?

From 1 April 2026 the Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced it with section 58, which keeps a presumptive scheme for specified professions at 50% of receipts, up to fifty lakh rupees of receipts (seventy-five lakh with little cash). Whether psychologists and counsellors qualify as "medical" is not settled.

Guide

Starting a private therapy practice in India: a checklist

Published 23 October 2026Updated 23 October 2026

How do I start a private therapy practice in India?

Check that you are registered for the work you do (RCI for clinical psychologists; NCAHP for other psychologists and counsellors as it opens), then sort the money side: a PAN, a separate bank account, GST only if you must, and the presumptive income tax scheme your CA recommends. Check your state's shop and professional tax rules, write a consent form and a records policy, and choose tools for booking, notes and invoices before your first client.

1. Your professional registration

Clinical psychologists must be on the Rehabilitation Council of India's register to practise. Other psychologists and counsellors fall under the NCAHP Act, whose 2026 regulations require registration once it opens. Our guide to RCI and NCAHP registration explains where things stand.

2. Tax: GST and income tax

GST. If you supply only exempt services you need not register (section 23(1)(a) of the CGST Act). If any of your work is taxable, registration is needed once aggregate turnover passes twenty lakh rupees in a year (ten lakh in special category states), and exempt fees count toward that total. Whether therapy is exempt is not settled for every practitioner: see our guide to GST on therapy sessions.
Income tax. The Income-tax Act, 2025, in force from 1 April 2026, replaced section 44ADA with section 58. For a resident individual in a "specified profession" with gross receipts up to fifty lakh rupees (seventy-five lakh if cash is no more than 5% of receipts), income can be taken as 50% of receipts, or actual profit if higher. "Medical" is a specified profession under section 62(4), but the Act does not say whether a psychologist or counsellor counts, so ask your CA which scheme applies to you.
Keep practice money in its own bank account from day one. It makes invoices, GST and income tax far easier, even though no law requires it of a sole practitioner.

3. Local rules: shop registration and professional tax

These depend on your state, and many rules were changed in 2025 and 2026, so check the current position with your state's labour or tax department.

Shops and Establishments Acts. Delhi's Act covers premises where a "profession" is carried on (Delhi Labour Department), though a 2026 amendment is reported to limit it to establishments with twenty or more employees. Maharashtra's 2017 Act names professional consultants and medical practitioners, and small establishments file an online intimation rather than register (Maharashtra Labour Department). Karnataka's Act exempts some medical practitioners' offices and establishments caring for the sick; whether a therapist fits is unclear.
Professional tax. Several states charge it, up to two thousand five hundred rupees a year. Maharashtra's schedule lists medical practitioners and professional consultants (Maharashtra GST Department%20(1).pdf)), and Karnataka's lists health care professionals (Karnataka professional tax). Delhi does not levy it.
Clinical Establishments Act, 2010. It covers clinics offering diagnosis or treatment "in any recognised system of medicine", meaning allopathy, AYUSH and similar (the Act-act,-2010.pdf), sections 2(c) and 2(h)), and applies only in states that adopted it (MoHFW list). A psychiatrist's clinic is covered; whether a psychologist's or counsellor's practice is, is not settled.
Udyam registration is free and optional (Udyam portal). It can help with some MSME schemes; ask your CA whether it is worth it for you.

4. Consent, records and data

Write an intake and consent form before your first client. See our guide to intake and consent forms.
Decide how long you keep notes and write it down. See how long to keep therapy notes.
Under the DPDP Act you are the data fiduciary for your clients' data, and any software that stores it must be under a valid contract (section 8(2)). See our guide to storing client notes.
Professional indemnity insurance is not required by any law we found, but it is worth considering. Ask your professional association or an insurer.

5. Policies and tools

Set your session length, fee, payment terms, and a cancellation and no-show policy, and put them in writing. See reducing no-shows.
Decide how clients book and how you remind them, and how you will use WhatsApp, if at all. See WhatsApp and therapy clients.
Choose where notes, invoices and payments live. See choosing practice management software.
If you offer online sessions, set up a private room and a backup plan. See running online sessions securely.
Arrange supervision or peer consultation, and keep a list of local psychiatrists and crisis services for referrals.

This is not legal or tax advice. Rules differ by state and change often; check with your CA and a lawyer before you open.

How Bliss helps

Bliss brings bookings, email reminders, private session notes, intake forms and invoices into one place, and it is free for a solo practice. See pricing.

Set your weekly hours and services, and clients book from their own portal in any phone browser.

Invoices carry your name and GSTIN when you have one and follow the GST setting you chose once, and you record cash, UPI and bank transfers against each one.

Questions people ask

Do I need a licence to open a counselling practice in India?: Clinical psychologists need RCI registration. Other psychologists and counsellors are covered by the NCAHP Act, whose registration is being set up. Depending on your state you may also need to register or file an intimation under its Shops and Establishments Act and pay professional tax.
Can I run a therapy practice from home?: You can, subject to local rules. Delhi's Shops Act definition covers any premises where a profession is carried on, so check your state's rules and any housing society rules, and make sure clients have a private, safe space.
Do I need GST registration to start?: Not if all your services are exempt, and not until your aggregate turnover passes the threshold if some are taxable. Ask your CA, because exemption for therapy is not settled for every practitioner.
Is section 44ADA still available?: From 1 April 2026 the Income-tax Act, 2025 replaced it with section 58, which keeps a presumptive scheme for specified professions at 50% of receipts, up to fifty lakh rupees of receipts (seventy-five lakh with little cash). Whether psychologists and counsellors qualify as "medical" is not settled.