Under Section 10Z9 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978, it is an offence to provide an unregistered independent healthcare service in Scotland.
Services are not permitted to trade until registration is granted by Healthcare Improvement Scotland.
Registration process
- Complete pre-registration form
- Receive access to HIS eForms portal
- Complete registration on portal
- Submit supporting documents on portal
- Pay registration fee
- Application allocated to inspector for processing
- Registration site visit
- Registration granted
Pre-registration form
Please complete the following pre-registration form and return it to us at: his.ihcregulation@nhs.scot
On receipt of this form, we will give you a log-in for our portal to allow you to complete the service registration online.
Independent healthcare regulation – pre-registration form
Application guidance
- The timescale for processing registrations, once the fee has been paid, is a minimum of 3 months. No fees should be paid until a fee notice has been issued by the team requesting payment
- Registrations of complex healthcare services may take longer. Registrations of independent hospitals or hospices will take a minimum of 4 months.
- If you have more than one service to register, please complete the registration form for one service only first. At the time of submitting this form, please tell us you have more services to register
- Please do not complete any further registration forms until you hear from us
- The full application to register a service must be completed using the online service. You will receive a log-in for our online portal once you have returned the pre-registration form
- Applicants should carefully consider under which service provider the service is applying to be legally registered. Changes to the legal entity of the service provider after the service is fully registered will result in a new application to register with Healthcare Improvement Scotland. This will mean that payment of a new registration fee is required when a new application for registration is submitted
Contact us
If you have any questions about registering a new service you can call us on 0131 623 4342.
Our enquiry line is open from 10am to 2pm Monday-Friday.
Alternatively you can email our team at: his.ihcregulation@nhs.scot
Application guidance
| Resource | Source | What it is and what’s it for? |
| Registration guidance for applicants | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Guidance to support your application to register a new service |
| Guidance for providing a service in a service user’s home | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Guidance on providing a service in a service users home |
| Guidance for providing an independent clinic from fixed premises | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Guidance for providing an independent clinic from fixed premises |
| Fees information | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Details of fees for independent healthcare regulation |
| Example financial plan | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Example financial plan to support your registration |
| Portal user guide | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | A guide to using the Healthcare Improvement Scotland registration and notification portal |
| Registration background checks | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Guidance on the background checks we will make as part of your registration |
| Bank reference template | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | An example bank reference template to support your registration |
| Definitions of procedures | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Our definition of cosmetic procedures graded by risk. |
| Medicines governance audit tool | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Tool to support the registration of independent clinics in Scotland |
| Financial guidance | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Guidance on the financial requirements related to registration |
| Privacy notice | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Privacy notice for our work to regulate independent healthcare |
| Regulation 12 information for services | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Clarification of the interpretation of Regulation 12 of The Healthcare Improvement Scotland (Requirements as to Independent Health Care Services) Regulations 2011 |
| High level principles for remote prescribing | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Sets out the shared high-level principles of good practice expected of everyone when consulting and or prescribing remotely |
| Policy template | Healthcare Improvement Scotland | Template and guidance on writing policies for your service |