Acupuncture is covered under the same registration or licensing legislation as tattooing and piercing in all four UK nations. Most needles are single-use — but reusable instruments still need traceable sterilisation.
Acupuncture is included in the scope of tattoo and piercing legislation in all four UK nations. Practitioners must register with (or obtain a licence from) their local authority. However, regulated healthcare professionals — physiotherapists, chiropodists, doctors, dentists — are exempt from this requirement when performing acupuncture within their scope of practice. Most acupuncture needles are single-use and sterile. Practitioners who use reusable instruments — cupping sets, gua sha tools, moxibustion holders — should maintain sterilisation traceability.
LGMPA 1982 (England) · Public Health (Wales) Act 2017 · Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 · LGMP (NI) Order 1985
Regulatory guides to help you understand your obligations.
Track reusable instrument sterilization
Log autoclave cycles for cupping sets, gua sha tools, and other reusable instruments. Single-use needles don't need tracking — but everything else does.
Complete traceability per session
Link sterilized instruments to specific autoclave cycles. Maintain a tamper-proof record alongside your patient files.
Simple enough for a solo practice
Most acupuncture practices are solo. SecuSteri is designed to be fast — import, sign, label in under a minute.
These instruments come pre-loaded when you create your account. You can add, edit, or remove instruments at any time.
W&H, Castellini, and Anthos reports are imported automatically via AutoReport or manual upload. Other brands? Upload the report or enter cycle data manually — we add automatic support progressively.
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