Check a Massage Therapist Is Qualified in the UK: 3 Checks

If you want to check a massage therapist is qualified in the UK, start with one fact: massage and most complementary therapies are not regulated by law. There is no protected title, so anyone can call themselves a massage therapist, an aromatherapist or a reflexologist. What exists instead are voluntary registers and professional bodies, plus, in London, a council licence for the premises. Each tells you something different, and spa menus rarely say which one their therapists hold.

This page explains the two names you are most likely to see, the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC) and the Federation of Holistic Therapists (FHT), what each one checks, and how to look up a therapist in about two minutes. We checked both organisations’ sites and the Professional Standards Authority’s records on 17 October 2026.

The short version

Neither is a licence to practise. A therapist can be excellent and on neither list, and being on either does not guarantee a good massage. But both show that someone has trained to a recognised standard and is insured, which matters if something goes wrong.

What the CNHC register tells you

The CNHC is the UK’s voluntary regulator for complementary therapy, set up in 2008 with government support. Its register is approved as an Accredited Register by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), the body that also oversees statutory regulators such as the General Medical Council. CNHC says this “provides additional assurance that CNHC registrants meet UK-wide standards of patient safety and service quality”.

To appear on the register, a therapist must be “properly qualified and insured” and agree to follow CNHC’s Code of Conduct before their name is added. Registrants must also complete at least 15 hours of continuing professional development each year for a single therapy, 10 of them directly relevant to it.

The therapies CNHC registers that you are most likely to meet in a spa are massage therapy, sports massage, aromatherapy, reflexology and Reiki. It also covers shiatsu, Bowen therapy, craniosacral therapy, hypnotherapy, nutritional therapy, yoga therapy and others. It does not cover beauty treatments such as facials or nails.

If you have a concern about a registered therapist, CNHC has a formal process and publishes outcomes. That accountability is the main thing an Accredited Register adds.

What FHT membership tells you

The FHT is the largest professional body for complementary, beauty and sports therapists, founded in 1962 with over 10,000 members. To join, a therapist needs a practitioner-level qualification that meets the National Occupational Standards and the core curricula where they exist, from awarding bodies such as City and Guilds, ITEC, VTCT and CIBTAC. The FHT does not accept fully online courses for hands-on therapies such as body massage, aromatherapy and reflexology.

Many therapists take FHT membership for its insurance, which covers malpractice, public liability and products liability and is underwritten by Hiscox.

The point most guides miss: the FHT’s register used to be a PSA Accredited Register, from January 2014. The PSA announced in November 2021 that the FHT would withdraw from the programme, effective 9 January 2022, and that from then the FHT and its registrants could no longer display the PSA’s quality mark. Older articles and some spa websites still describe the FHT as an accredited register. It is now a professional association, which is still a meaningful check on training and insurance, but not the same as the independent oversight an Accredited Register has.

The FHT also uses the word “accredited” for training courses it approves. That is course accreditation, a separate thing.

How to check a therapist in two minutes

1. Ask the spa which body each therapist belongs to. A good spa answers immediately; vague answers are a signal in themselves.
2. Search the CNHC register at cnhc.org.uk by the therapist’s name, or by town or postcode and therapy to find registered practitioners near you.
3. Use the PSA’s “Check a practitioner” search on the Professional Standards Authority site if the therapist names a different register. It covers every Accredited Register, including those for specialist therapies.
4. Ask about insurance. Any professional therapist should have it, whichever body they belong to.
5. For the FHT, search its “Find a therapist” directory or ask to see a current membership certificate.

Spa therapists often work under the spa’s own training and insurance rather than an individual registration, especially in hotel spas. That is not a problem in itself, but it means the check is on the spa: ask what qualifications it requires of its therapists.

In London: the spa needs a council licence

London has a rule that the rest of England does not. Under the London Local Authorities Act 1991, premises that offer massage and other “special treatments” commercially need a licence from the borough council. Massage, including aromatherapy and reflexology, is on the list, along with facials, saunas, spa pools and nail treatments. Councils such as Ealing say treatments must not be carried out until the licence is granted.

The licence is about the premises: hygiene, safety and how the business is run. It is not a qualification check on each therapist. But a London spa without one is breaking the law, so it is a fair question to ask, and the licence is often displayed at reception. Fees and conditions vary between boroughs.

Outside London, councils register some skin-piercing treatments, such as acupuncture and electrolysis, but massage itself is generally not licensed.

When the check matters most

For a relaxing spa day massage, the spa’s own standards usually do the work. The individual check matters more when:

• you are pregnant: our pregnancy spa day page covers which treatments to expect and when spas will treat you;
• you have a medical condition or are recovering from treatment, where a therapist trained to adapt their work is worth seeking out;
• you are booking a therapist directly, such as a mobile massage at home, with no spa standing behind them;
• your health cash plan pays for treatments, as some plans only pay for practitioners on a recognised register. Check your plan’s terms before booking.

Our massage at the spa page covers how to choose between treatments and what to tell your therapist beforehand.

Frequently asked questions

Are massage therapists regulated in the UK? No. Massage is not regulated by law, and anyone can use the title. The checks that exist are voluntary: the CNHC register, which is an Accredited Register approved by the Professional Standards Authority, and membership of professional bodies such as the FHT.

How do I check if a massage therapist is qualified? Search the CNHC register by name or postcode, ask which professional body the therapist belongs to and whether they are insured, and for other registers use the Professional Standards Authority’s practitioner search.

Is the FHT an accredited register? Not any more. The FHT withdrew from the Professional Standards Authority’s Accredited Registers programme on 9 January 2022. It is still a professional association that checks members’ qualifications and offers insurance.

What is the difference between CNHC and FHT? CNHC is a voluntary register with independent PSA approval and a formal process for concerns about registrants. FHT is a membership body that checks qualifications and offers insurance, but has not been PSA-accredited since January 2022.

Do London spas need a licence for massage? Yes. Under the London Local Authorities Act 1991, premises offering massage and other special treatments commercially need a special treatment licence from the borough council.

Does CNHC cover facials and beauty treatments? No. CNHC registers complementary therapies such as massage, aromatherapy and reflexology. Beauty treatments are outside its scope.