Standards and Criteria

Counsellors and Psychotherapists: Publication of Standards of Proficiency and Criteria for Education and Training Programmes

July 2025

The Counsellors and Psychotherapists Registration Board has published its pre-registration education and training requirements for entry to the registers for counsellors and psychotherapists. These requirements are separate and specific to each profession and will apply once the registers open.

The Board has published two key documents for each profession:

Standards of Proficiency: These outline the threshold knowledge and skills required for entry to the register. They define what a counsellor or psychotherapist must be able to do at the point of entry into practice.
Criteria for Education and Training Programmes: These set out the systems and processes education providers must implement in the design and management of education and training programmes. They provide assurance that all graduates have achieved all the Standards of Proficiency upon successful completion of an education and training programme.

The Board’s Standards and Criteria for both professions are available by clicking the links below:

The publication of the Standards and Criteria represents a significant milestone for the counselling and psychotherapy professions in Ireland. It is an important step towards the introduction of statutory regulation for both. Ireland is now the first country in the world to establish distinct regulatory standards for entry to both professions.

The Board has now laid the foundations so education programmes can be designed to ensure consistency of education and training and the standards for entry into practice for both professions. These requirements support safe practice and represent a crucial step in ensuring public protection.

The Board acknowledges the valuable engagement from members of both professions throughout this process. Nearly 700 individuals responded to the public consultation, including educators, professional bodies and existing practitioners.

Following the consultation, the Board reviewed every submission carefully and used the feedback to shape the final documents. The published Standards and Criteria reflect that input and the ongoing engagement between the Board and stakeholders, including representatives from both professions.

CORU has developed resources to support the implementation of the Standards and Criteria:

A FAQs resource covering the Standards, Criteria, and wider regulatory context.
A short video presentation outlining the key elements of the documents.

With the publication of its Standards and Criteria, the Board now moves into the next phase of its work: preparing for the approval and monitoring of education and training programmes. More detail for education and training providers is available here.

CORU will continue to keep stakeholders informed through our website, newsletter, and social media channels.