Employer Information

Employer responsibilities

It is an offence for anybody to call themselves a physiotherapist or do the work of a physiotherapist if they do not have a current annual practising certificate. Additionally, it is an offence to call somebody else a physiotherapist if they do not hold a current annual practising certificate.

You should ensure that every physiotherapist you employ holds a current APC. You can either sight this or check with the Board.

All APCs cost the full amount, whether issued for twelve months or one day. This is because the Board’s costs are incurred per practitioner and are therefore recovered on a per practitioner basis.

Please note there is no Provisional Registration or Temporary Registration under the HPCA Act. All physiotherapists are required to hold an APC at all times whilst practising physiotherapy. For a definition of ‘practice’, please refer to The Practice of Physiotherapy.

Important Notes for Employers/Managers

Please take careful note of the following:

• Emerging graduands of the Schools of Physiotherapy in New Zealand must apply to the Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand to seek registration as a physiotherapist.
  
• Newly trained applicants are not eligible to practise physiotherapy until granted registration as a physiotherapist by the Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (HPCAA) and issued with a practising certificate.
  
• The onus is on the individual applicant to provide ALL the information required and in the format specified by the Board including:
  • a certified copy of their degree certificate received at graduation, or
  • a complete official academic transcript of their undergraduate physiotherapy programme issued by their university.
  
• The earliest anticipated timeframe that a newly trained applicant is likely to be eligible to practise is mid December. Processing applications from NZ educated applicants is our priority prior to Christmas and they are processed as efficiently as possible.

It is illegal to work as a physiotherapist in New Zealand without registration. Any person who does practise physiotherapy whilst not registered commits an offence and is liable to a fine not exceeding $10,000.

Holders of practising certificates for a Special Purpose Scope of Practice are not entitled to practise physiotherapy except as indicated on their certificate. If anyone presents to you with a special Purpose Scope of Practice for Post Graduate students please contact the Secretariat.

Notification that practice falls below the required standard of competence.

Under the HPCA Act 2003, the Board must be notified of resignations or dismissals relating to competence.

The Act states

Section 34(3) " whenever an employee employed as a health practitioner resigns or is dismissed from his or her employment for reasons relating to competence, the person who employed the employee immediately before that resignation or dismissal must promptly give the Registrar of the responsible authority written notice of the reasons for that resignation or dismissal."

You may contact the Board by phone or email in the first instance. Written notification will be required at the appropriate stage. You may discuss this with the Registrar.