Compliance
AHPRA compliant Google Ads for psychology clinics
How to convert without putting your registration at risk.
By Pete Flynn · 3 May 2026 · 8 min read
Psychology marketing in Australia sits under Section 133 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, which prohibits testimonials and certain misleading claims for every AHPRA regulated profession, not just psychology. What makes psychology different isn't a legally stricter standard. It's that the patient is often vulnerable, the therapeutic relationship is more sensitive than in most other professions, and a sloppy line of ad copy can both put off the patient and expose the practitioner to a complaint. Most generic agencies don't know the rules at all, which is how psychology clinics end up with campaigns that book some patients and quietly create regulatory risk at the same time. This article walks through the lines that matter, and what good ad copy looks like inside them.
AHPRA compliance zones
Three zones. Know which one your copy is in before you publish.
Section 133 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law applies to every AHPRA-regulated profession. Green is where you want to live. Amber means check before you publish. Red means a complaint is possible and a $60,000 penalty is on the table.
Write this.
Safe, effective, and AHPRA compliant.
Psychology services for adults and adolescents in [suburb].
Medicare rebated sessions available with a Mental Health Care Plan.
CBT and ACT trained psychologists, morning and evening appointments.
Same week availability for anxiety, depression, and trauma.
Bulk billing available for eligible patients.
Telehealth psychology sessions, Australia wide.
Check carefully.
Possible, but easy to get wrong. Review before publishing.
Award-winning practice: only if the award is genuine, verifiable, and not clinical in nature.
Highly experienced psychologists: only if experience is measurable (e.g. '15 years in trauma-focused therapy').
Google review star rating: only customer service reviews, never clinical outcome quotes.
Before and after descriptions: only if they describe a general population trend, not a specific patient.
Colleague testimonials: allowed if the reviewer has no current or former clinical relationship with the practitioner.
Do not use.
Prohibited under Section 133. Maximum penalty $60,000 for an individual.
Patient testimonials about clinical outcomes: 'I overcame my anxiety after 6 sessions.'
Guaranteed results: 'Resolve your depression in 8 weeks or your money back.'
Superlatives about clinical quality: 'Best psychologist in Sydney', 'Most experienced trauma therapist.'
Before and after clinical comparisons about mental health outcomes.
Claims about specific conditions being cured or eliminated: 'Eliminate your anxiety.'
Source: Section 133, Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, as amended 2022. Individual penalties up to $60,000. This is not legal advice; consult an AHPRA-specialist lawyer for specific guidance on your advertising materials.
Three things you cannot do
First: no testimonials about clinical aspects of the service. Section 133 of the National Law prohibits testimonials in advertising for any regulated health service, with AHPRA defining a testimonial as a recommendation or positive statement about the clinical aspects of the service. 'I felt so much better after my sessions' crosses that line because it's commenting on a clinical outcome. 'The reception team was friendly and the clinic was easy to find' does not, because it's about customer service. The carve out is narrower than most clinics realise, and the maximum penalty for getting it wrong was lifted in 2022 to $60,000 for an individual.
Second: no claims of guaranteed outcomes. Phrases like 'overcome anxiety,' 'eliminate depression,' or 'cure trauma' all imply specific therapeutic outcomes that AHPRA treats as misleading. Any ad copy that promises a result is a risk.
Third: no comparative claims. 'Best psychologist in [suburb]' or 'highest rated trauma therapist' both fall foul of the Board's guidance on superlatives. Even if technically true based on Google reviews, the regulation treats these as unacceptable.
If your ad copy makes a promise about an outcome, names a testimonial, or uses a superlative, you're outside the lines, regardless of whether the patient sees it that way.
What you can do
The rules don't prohibit effective marketing. They just require that it be honest. These four types of claims are all safe, and all genuinely useful to a patient who's deciding whether to book.
Safe, effective copy in four moves
Safe move 1
Describe what the practice does.
'Psychology services for adults and children in [suburb]' is unambiguous and safe. The patient knows what's offered. No claims, no promises.
Safe move 2
Name the funding pathways.
'Medicare rebated sessions with a Mental Health Care Plan' is factual and useful. It answers the question most patients have before they even pick up the phone.
Safe move 3
Describe the clinician's training.
'CBT and ACT trained psychologists' or 'experience in trauma focused therapy' both name the work without promising the outcome. Expertise without claims.
Safe move 4
Describe the booking pathway.
'Same week appointments available' or 'Evening sessions for working professionals' address real patient logistics without making a clinical claim. Practical information that builds trust.
How to handle the patient's pain without crossing the line
The rules don't prevent you from acknowledging that the patient is struggling. They prevent you from claiming you'll fix it. There's a meaningful gap between those two things.
Compare these two ads, both targeting an anxiety led search. One converts and is compliant. The other creates regulatory risk and, in practice, converts no better.
Non-compliant
- "Overcome anxiety with our award-winning psychologists"
- "95 percent success rate"
- Implies a specific, guaranteed clinical outcome
- Uses a superlative: award-winning
- Would need substantial evidence to support each claim
Compliant
- "Talk to a psychologist who works with anxiety"
- "Weekly availability, Mental Health Care Plan rebates accepted"
- Describes the service without promising an outcome
- Uses plain language about what is offered
- Converts at least as well. The patient feels respected, not pressured.
What to do when the agency wants to push the line
Most agencies that haven't worked specifically in healthcare will push for ad copy that includes outcome promises and testimonials. They aren't doing it maliciously. They're applying the playbook that works for non regulated industries. Every word of that playbook is a potential complaint to AHPRA.
The clinics that win the long game in psychology marketing are the ones whose ad copy does the harder work of describing the service well, in respectful, accurate, plain English. The conversion rate is healthy. The clinician's registration is safe. The brand is the kind of brand other psychologists recommend their colleagues to.
AHPRA compliant Google Ads for psychology clinics
We know the rules. We write copy that stays within them and still converts.
Healthcare specific knowledge, built in from the start. Not retrofitted after a complaint.
See how we run Google Ads for psychologyCommon questions