Guide
Special procedures licence in Wales: what clinics must check
By Connor McAuley, Founder
Updated
Sources checked
Wales special procedures licensing covers four procedures, including microblading. Check practitioner licences, premises approval and separate HIW duties.
At a glance
Wales’s special procedures scheme covers acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing, including microblading. The current list does not include anti-wrinkle injections or dermal fillers. Check practitioner licensing and premises approval where relevant, and assess HIW registration separately for applicable lasers/IPL and private medical services.
General guidance. Check local requirements.
I have researched Wales’s aesthetics rules alongside the other UK nations and Ireland. A clinic needs to separate the special procedures licence from independent-healthcare registration. A permission under one regime does not settle the other.
The Welsh Government scheme covers acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing, including semi-permanent make-up and microblading. Section 57 of the Act lists those four procedures. Injectables are not on that list at the 11 October 2026 check.
HIW’s registration FAQs address the separate registration question for relevant lasers/IPL and private medical services. Confirm the actual service model with HIW and the council, then use the regulation hub to compare it with other nations.
The legal basis
The scheme comes from Part 4 of the Public Health (Wales) Act 2017. Section 57 lists the special procedures: acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing. The detail sits in five sets of regulations made in 2024, which the Welsh Government’s guidance lists as:
- The Special Procedure Licences (Wales) Regulations 2024
- The Special Procedures Approved Premises and Vehicles (Wales) Regulations 2024
- The Special Procedures Exempted Individuals (Wales) Regulations 2024
- The Special Procedures Licensing Committees (Wales) Regulations 2024
- The Prescribed Objects for Body Piercing (Special Procedures) (Wales) Regulations 2024
The scheme came into effect on 29 November 2024. Practitioners and premises already registered with their council under the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 were given transitional licences and three months to apply, until 28 February 2025.
What procedures it covers
The Welsh Government’s guidance for premises defines the four procedures:
| Procedure | What it includes | What it excludes |
|---|---|---|
| Acupuncture | Inserting needles into tissue for remedial or therapeutic purposes, including dry needling | Inserting needles to inject any substance |
| Body piercing | Perforating skin or mucous membrane to attach, implant or remove jewellery or a prescribed object, including ear piercing | |
| Electrolysis | Removing body hair by passing an electric current through the root with an inserted needle or probe | |
| Tattooing | Inserting colouring material into punctures in the skin or mucous membrane to leave a semi-permanent or permanent mark, including micropigmentation, all forms of semi-permanent make-up and microblading |
For an aesthetics clinic, the treatments most likely to bring you into the scheme are semi-permanent make-up, microblading and electrolysis. Injectables are not on the list, and the acupuncture definition expressly excludes inserting needles to inject a substance.
What the licence and approval involve
There are two separate permissions, both issued by the local authority for the area:
- A special procedure licence for each individual practitioner. The Welsh Government’s overview says: “A person who performs any of the 4 designated special procedures must apply for a special procedure licence. They must apply to their local authority.”
- An approval certificate for the premises or vehicle where the procedures are performed in the course of a business. According to the premises guidance, an approval certificate is valid for 3 years (a temporary certificate is valid for no more than 7 days), must be renewed at least 28 working days before it expires, and must be displayed where patients can see it. The individual named as the contact for the premises must hold a regulated Level 2 Award in Infection Prevention and Control for Special Procedures.
Fees are set by each local authority. As one example, Isle of Anglesey County Council lists £159 for a practitioner licence application and £244 for a premises approval application, plus compliance fees. Check your own council’s current fees.
Are healthcare professionals exempt?
Partly. Section 60 of the Act treats members of professions regulated by the bodies listed in section 25(3) of the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 (the statutory health professions regulators) as exempt from the requirement to be licensed, except for any special procedure that regulations specify for that profession. The Special Procedures Exempted Individuals (Wales) Regulations 2024 set those exceptions, so the exemption is not uniform across professions and procedures. If you are a nurse or doctor offering, say, semi-permanent make-up, confirm with your local authority whether your exemption covers it, and whether your premises still needs approval.
Could injectables be added?
The Act allows it. Section 93 lets the Welsh Ministers add or remove procedures by regulations, after considering whether a procedure is capable of being performed for aesthetic or therapeutic purposes and capable of causing harm to human health. In a 2019 written answer, the Minister for Health and Social Services said the scheme would not initially include dermal fillers and botulinum toxin, but that adding them could be considered following public consultation.
As of 26 September 2026, section 57 on legislation.gov.uk still lists only the four procedures, and we found no regulations adding injectables. Treat any claim that Welsh injectors “need a special procedures licence” as wrong unless your council tells you otherwise.
Where HIW registration applies
Separately from the special procedures scheme, Healthcare Inspectorate Wales registers independent healthcare under the Care Standards Act 2000 and the Independent Health Care (Wales) Regulations 2011. For aesthetics, two triggers matter:
- Lasers and IPL. HIW’s registration FAQs say: “Usually all settings in Wales who wish to provide any treatments using a class 3B/4 laser or an IPL device must first register with HIW.” In May 2026 HIW cautioned a provider for providing laser treatment while unregistered, noting that such a service “must be registered as an independent hospital”. HIW’s page on laser and IPL services sets out the legislation and the National Minimum Standards for Independent Health Care Services in Wales that it inspects against.
- Private doctors. The same FAQs say a private doctor needs to register “if you will be providing a medical service or involved with providing a medical service that has no NHS involvement”.
HIW’s FAQs acknowledge there can be exceptions and invite a registration enquiry, to which it gives “a definitive response”. If your model is at all unusual, use it.
What Wales does not have
- No licence for injectables. Neither the special procedures scheme nor HIW registration applies to a nurse or non-healthcare practitioner injecting toxin or filler, unless other triggers (lasers, a private doctor’s service) apply.
- No under-18 offence for cosmetic toxin or fillers. The Botulinum Toxin and Cosmetic Fillers (Children) Act 2021 extends to England and Wales, but the offence is administering “in England”. Most insurers will still expect you not to treat under-18s cosmetically, so check your policy.
Prescription-only medicines rules are UK-wide: botulinum toxin must be prescribed by an appropriate practitioner, and both the GMC and the NMC require the prescriber to see the patient before prescribing. The regulation hub covers those rules in full.
A checklist for Welsh clinics
- List every treatment you offer and mark any that fall within the four special procedures. For each, confirm the practitioner holds a licence (or a confirmed exemption) and the premises holds an approval certificate.
- If any device is a class 3B or 4 laser or IPL, confirm HIW registration before you treat.
- If you are a doctor providing a private service with no NHS involvement, confirm your HIW position.
- Keep records that would satisfy an inspector in any nation: consent, batch numbers, prescriber details and aftercare. Our treatment record template and licensing-ready records checklist cover the fields, and our insurance guide covers the cover questions.
Compare the other nations: England (and CQC registration), Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, or go back to the regulation hub.
Compare the tools you need for documentation in our aesthetic clinic software overview. If you are choosing a system, use the best aesthetic clinic software buying guide to check workflows, costs and export terms.
FAQ
Does a Welsh clinic need a special procedures licence for injectables?
Anti-wrinkle injections and dermal fillers are not among the four procedures currently listed in section 57. That does not establish a blanket exemption from medicines, professional or independent-healthcare requirements. Check the whole service model.
Does microblading fall within the Welsh scheme?
Yes. Welsh Government guidance includes microblading within tattooing. Check the practitioner’s licence or applicable exemption and the premises approval requirement with the local authority.
Is a premises approval certificate the same as a practitioner licence?
No. They are separate permissions under the special procedures scheme. Confirm which practitioner and premises requirements apply to your procedures and any exemption before operating.
When should I ask HIW about registration?
Ask before providing relevant laser/IPL or private medical services, or whenever the category is unclear. HIW’s FAQs describe registration triggers and exceptions. Its registration team can assess your actual arrangement.