Why we charge VAT on psychotherapy services
Value Added Tax (VAT) is a tax most companies have to charge clients when they make a certain amount of revenue. VAT is a tax added to goods and services by a company on behalf of the Government. The centre and its founders are adamantly against VAT for psychotherapy services as we do not feel clients and patients should have to pay VAT for mental healthcare. Clinical psychologists are VAT exempt, meaning they do not have to charge VAT for their services. But counsellors and psychotherapists are not VAT exempt, this discrepancy in legislation is deemed unfair by everyone we have spoken to. And the relevant therapy bodies are campaigning to change this.
Along with other UK therapists we are campaigning with the Government to get psychotherapy VAT exempt including having already corresponded with Jeremy Hunt MP, however this change if it happens won’t come into affect for some time.
Please note: The centre keep £0 of the VAT we charge, it all goes to the Government.
What does this mean and does it affect my therapy appointments:
Any sessions with a clinical psychologist will not be affected, nor will any clients we see outside of the UK regardless of whether they see a psychotherapist or psychologist as this is outside the scope of VAT.
However, if you are a UK based client who’s therapist is a counsellor or psychotherapist your sessions will have an added 20% VAT tax added.
Psychotherapy sessions charged at £90 will cost: £90 + £18 (20% VAT) = £108 per session.
We have strived to keep our services as cost effective as possible whilst covering the expenditure of running a centre and paying our therapists a fair rate. We pride ourselves in being more affordable than the typical pricing for specialist OCD therapy in the UK and USA.
Here are some low cost options:
Reduce sessions to fortnightly instead of weekly. Use the increased time between sessions to practice more skills learned in session.
We offer a low cost group therapy option: https://www.integrativecentreforocd.co.uk/low-cost-ocd-groups
We are also about to launch a monthly drop in skills for OCD group.
You can speak with the OCD charities (OCD Action and OCD UK) about therapy options, including the NHS (or your GP or local IAPT service).
Final thoughts
We still believe that with the 20% VAT tax we are below the average cost of an OCD specialist in the UK. Although it pains us that our hands are tied and have to legally charge this tax.
If like us you disagree with VAT on mental health services, please write to your local MP as we continue to do so.
Thank you for working with us, and being a client at our centre, or considering to be one.
Many thanks,
Stuart and Jonny (IC-OCD centre directors)
P.S. Here is a letter you can edit or send as is to your local MP. The more MPs that are aware of this issue the more momentum we can get around removing VAT from psychotherapy:
Dear [Insert MP Name],
I have been receiving therapy through a private clinic. Recently they have started charging VAT after hitting the VAT threshold. This means my mental healthcare bill has gone up 20% overnight.
Psychologists are VAT exempt, however psychotherapists and counsellors are not. This disparity makes little sense. As I would be going through the same therapy whether I was seeing a psychologist or psychotherapist.
I appreciate that psychologists are VAT exempt because they are on the HCPC register, and therapists are not. However, from a therapy stand point there is no major difference in the care I would receive and therefore I am overpaying because the Government has not sorted out this inequality in mental health care taxation.
With the current strain on the NHS, and more people seeking private mental healthcare, removing VAT from counselling and psychotherapy would make a meaningful difference to those affected.
Please can you raise this in parliament and with the relevant people.
Thank you for your consideration,
[Your name]