December 2025

Issue 35 – December 2025

• Welcome
• Content warning
• Priority news
  • Registration renewal – this year is different
  • Graduates – apply for registration now
  • Protection for people making a complaint boosted from 1 December 2025
  • Sexual misconduct to be permanently published on register of practitioners
• Board news
  • New campaign helps Australians understand what to expect from Chinese medicine practitioners
  • Patient health records
  • Advertising guidelines
• From the Chair’s desk
  • Conferences and events
  • Webinars and education
  • Stakeholder meetings
• Registration news
  • Latest workforce data released
  • Need a receipt or tax invoice? Here’s what you need to know
  • Fee relief for practitioners taking protected leave now in effect
• What’s new?
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy
  • Ahpra set to improve the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme
  • Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner on stewardship and system reform
  • Patient safety paramount in updated telehealth guidance
  • Prescribing framework updated to address evolving healthcare needs
  • Report shows progress in minimising distress during regulatory processes
  • Ahpra annual report highlights work to improve safety and sustainability of health sector
• Keep in touch with the Board

Welcome

Welcome to the Chinese Medicine Board of Australia’s 35th newsletter. On 16 November we marked World Acupuncture Awareness Day; hear a message from the Board Chair on Facebook. The Board recently launched a campaign to help Australians understand what to expect from Chinese medicine practitioners, read more about it below.

A word on guidelines: the new clinical record guidelines for Chinese medicine practitioners come into effect next year, and a reminder to regularly review and assess your advertising to make sure it complies with the advertising guidelines.

Read what your Board Chair has been up to under ‘From the Chair’s desk’, below. And remember, we are now in the late period for registration renewal: you can renew up till 31 December, read more below.

Best wishes from the Board for a safe and happy festive season.

Adjunct Professor Danforn Lim
Chair, Chinese Medicine Board of Australia

Priority news

Registration renewal – this year is different

Registration renewal for Chinese medicine practitioners is now in the late period: you can still renew up till 31 December, but a fee applies.

If you don’t renew before 31 December 2025, your registration will lapse, you’ll be removed from the register of practitioners, and you won’t be able to use the protected title, Chinese medicine practitioner. 

Ahpra has a new online portal to manage all aspects of your registration, including multifactor authentication (MFA) to provide an extra layer of security protecting your data.

Read more and access online renewal at the Board website.

Before you renew, you will need to link an authenticator app to your portal. This app generates a one-time 6-digit code and is more secure than sending the code by SMS. Every time you log in, you’ll enter:  

• your username 
• your password 
• the 6-digit code from the app.

If you already know your username and password, you can log in now and link MFA. Your username will be sent to you via email before you need to renew. If you haven’t received this email, please contact us via an online enquiry or call 1300 419 495 (within Australia) +61 3 9125 3010 (overseas callers).

If you share your email account with someone else, such as your partner, or use a group email such as ‘[email protected]’ then you will need to change it to an email that is unique to you when you first log in. There’s information available on the Ahpra portal help centre on how to do this.  

Graduates – apply for registration now

Your Ahpra portal

The first step in applying for registration is to create your Ahpra portal and link multifactor authentication. Your portal is where you will manage all aspects of your registration throughout your career as a registered Chinese medicine practitioner.

We have an online portal help centre with step-by-step instructions and videos on how to create your portal and securely link your multifactor authentication app.

Information to help with your application

On the Graduate applications page of the Ahpra website, you will find helpful guides on completing your application for registration, tips for how to avoid delays, and information flyers you can download for working offline. There is also a page of frequently asked questions that go into more detail on a range of topics.

Meeting the registration standards

You may need to provide supporting documents with your application to prove that you meet the Board’s registration standards including meeting the English language skills requirements. Make sure you provide all the documents we need with your application so we can assess it quicker.

How long does it take to assess my application?

We can’t finalise your application until we receive your graduation results from your education provider.

If you’ve submitted everything needed to prove you’ve met the requirements for registration, we aim to finalise your application within two weeks of receiving your graduation results.

For more information, read the news item.

Protection for people making a complaint boosted from 1 December 2025

People who make a complaint against a health practitioner will be protected from reprisals or retaliation under increases to consumer protections now in effect.

People who make a complaint in good faith are already protected from liability for information they provide to Ahpra and the National Boards. The changes will extend this protection, making it an offence for someone to threaten, intimidate or otherwise retaliate against a notifier for making a complaint.

The maximum penalty will be $60,000 for an individual or $120,000 for a body corporate.

It will also be illegal to enter into a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with a patient, unless it clearly states in writing that it does not limit a person from making a notification or providing assistance to regulators. Any NDAs that do seek to limit a person’s ability to make a complaint will be invalid.

The consumer protection changes are part of series of amendments to the National Law coming into effect over the coming months.

Information on the changes, how they will be implemented and what they mean for practitioners and the public is available in the full information guide.

The guide is available on the National Law amendments page on the Ahpra website which includes links to related topics and will be updated as our implementation activities progress.

Sexual misconduct to be permanently published on register of practitioners

Changes to the way sexual misconduct is reported on the public Register of practitioners are coming in early 2026.

Practitioners who have a tribunal finding of professional misconduct involving sexual misconduct will have this information permanently published on the register. This change is retrospective, applying from the start of regulation of a profession in the National Scheme.

The information recorded on the register will include a statement that:

• the practitioner engaged in professional misconduct on the basis of sexual misconduct
• any sanctions imposed, and
• the tribunal decision (if published).

Health ministers decided on this change to protect public safety and ensure people are able to make an informed decision when choosing a health practitioner.

Ahpra and the National Boards are finalising guidance on sexual misconduct and the National Law following extensive consultation and will release this guidance as soon as possible. We have also produced a guide to the overall suite of National Law changes which includes more detail on the sexual misconduct changes.

This change will be distressing for some practitioners. If you are contacted by Ahpra about additional information being put on your register entry, we encourage you to contact your insurer, professional association or legal adviser for guidance and support. We publish information on general and profession specific support services on the Ahpra Support services page.

Board news

New campaign helps Australians understand what to expect from Chinese medicine practitioners

The Board has launched a national public information campaign to help Australians better understand Chinese medicine and what to expect when visiting a registered practitioner.

The campaign aims to increase public awareness of the safety, regulation, and standards that underpin Chinese medicine practice in Australia. It also introduces a new dedicated page on the Board’s website, offering clear, accessible information for patients and the public.

‘Chinese medicine is a well-regulated profession in Australia’, Board Chair, Adjunct Professor Danforn Lim said. ‘This campaign is about empowering the public with knowledge – what Chinese medicine is, what happens during an appointment, and how their safety is protected.’

Read more about the campaign on the Board’s website.

Patient health records

This is a reminder that the new clinical record guidelines for Chinese medicine practitioners will come into effect next year. These updated guidelines are designed to support safe, effective practice by setting clear expectations for maintaining accurate and comprehensive patient health records. Practitioners are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the changes ahead of time.

The new guidelines will be available from 1 January 2026 on the Board’s website; look on the Guidelines page.

Advertising guidelines

It’s important for practitioners to regularly review and assess their advertising to ensure it complies with the advertising guidelines set out by Ahpra and the National Boards. Keeping your advertising up to date and within the regulatory framework helps protect the public and maintain trust in the profession. The recent webinar on advertising compliance, available as a recording on our website, provides further guidance and practical examples to support practitioners in meeting these obligations.

For more information and resources, visit the Ahpra Advertising Hub.

From the Chair's desk

Reflecting on the past few months, the Board has been focusing on areas of great importance: connecting with our profession, fostering collaboration, strengthening regulation and supporting practitioner education. It has been a joy to meet with members of the Chinese medicine community and share ideas.

Conferences and events

In October, our Board attended the 22nd World Congress of Chinese Medicine at the International Convention Centre in Sydney. This major global event brought together more than 800 delegates from around the world, reflecting the continued growth, collaboration, and innovation within Chinese medicine and acupuncture.

I had the honour of delivering the opening address, where I spoke about Australia’s role as a leading model in the regulation of Chinese medicine, highlighting our commitments to public safety, cultural responsiveness, and global collaboration. Our Board’s community member, Stephanie Campbell, also delivered an inspiring keynote presentation on ‘The regulation of Chinese medicine in Australia’, emphasising transparency, public trust, and robust national standards.

Throughout the congress, Dr Suzi Mansu, Chair of the Chinese Medicine Accreditation Committee, and I presented on the regulatory and accreditation standards that underpin the profession in Australia. Other sessions explored the strengthening of global standards, shared regulatory experiences, and the challenges and opportunities ahead in ensuring patient safety internationally.

Above: Chinese Medicine Board of Australia members attending the 22^nd World Congress of Chinese Medicine, Sydney, October 2025.

While in Sydney, Board members held several meetings with stakeholders, including regulators and university delegates from China, to discuss our ongoing work and future areas for collaboration. We also witnessed the collaboration signing ceremony between the Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine with NICM, Western Sydney University and the Sydney Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine. We visited the NICM Health Research Institute at Western Sydney University, where we learned about the latest research and innovation in integrative medicine and Chinese medicine.

The following day, we attended the Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Society of Australia (CMASA) Academic Symposium at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS). Board members actively participated in the program. Bing Tian, a Board practitioner member, presented a case study on notification management and spoke about advertising compliance.

Another three Board practitioner members, Dina Tsiopelas, Luke Hubbard, and Simon Want, contributed to an engaging panel discussion on the emerging role of artificial intelligence in Chinese medicine practice and research.

We also visited the Data Sciences Institute at UTS, where Distinguished Professor Fang Chen shared insights into the Institute’s work connecting data science, digital innovation, and health. Discussions explored how advanced analytics can support broader healthcare systems, including opportunities relevant to the Chinese medicine sector.

Above: Meetings with university stakeholders during the 22^nd World Congress of Chinese Medicine in Sydney.

Webinars and education

In August and September, we hosted webinars for practitioners and students. These webinars aimed to support awareness and understanding of key regulatory topics including advertising compliance, and to give students guidance on starting their careers. Recordings of these webinars will soon be available on the Board's website.

Stakeholder meetings

Collaboration and transparency are vital to our work, and meeting stakeholders is a crucial way we achieve this. In September, we met with professional associations, the NSW Council of Chinese Medicine, and participants in a reference group meeting. These discussions provided valuable opportunities to share updates on our work and to hear perspectives from across the profession.

The reference group also heard updates from Ahpra on work underway across various areas of regulation. These conversations support a shared understanding of the regulatory landscape and help strengthen the profession through open dialogue and collaboration.

You can read the communiqué from the meeting with professional associations on our website.

The Board has been actively engaging with international regulatory stakeholders to share insights and strengthen global collaboration in the regulation of Chinese medicine. Recent meetings with counterparts in the United States, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Singapore, and other jurisdictions offered valuable opportunities to explore different regulatory frameworks, exchange best-practice approaches, and deepen our understanding of the challenges and innovations shaping the profession worldwide. These discussions reinforce our ongoing commitment to maintaining high standards and supporting safe, competent practice within the Australian context.

Thank you for your continued dedication and connection to your profession. We look forward to continuing this work and strengthening our profession. 

Registration news

Latest workforce data released

The Board has released its quarterly registration report for 1 April 2025 to 30 June 2025. At this date, there were 4,898 registered practitioners: 4,567 with general registration and 322 non-practising registrants.

There were 23 practitioners who identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, or 0.5 per cent of the profession.

For more details, including registration data by principal place of practice, age and gender, visit our Statistics page.

Need a receipt or tax invoice? Here’s what you need to know

Receipts or tax invoices for payments made in the 2024–25 financial year will be emailed to you directly – they won’t be available in the Ahpra portal.

If you paid after 18 March 2025

You’ll receive your receipt or tax invoice shortly after your payment via email.

If you paid between 1 July 2024 and 18 March 2025

We’ll email your receipt or tax invoice from mid-June 2025. Be sure to check both your inbox and spam/junk folder.

If you haven’t received it by mid-July, please submit an online enquiry, and let us know you need a receipt or tax invoice for the 2024–25 financial year.

Need a receipt or tax invoice for a previous year?

For payments made before July 2024, please submit an online enquiry and specify which financial year(s) you need. We’ll email the relevant documents once we receive your request. 

Fee relief for practitioners taking protected leave now in effect

A 30 per cent rebate on annual registration renewal fees is now available for health practitioners who take parental leave and other forms of protected leave, while a wider review of fee policies continues.

This action aims to provide financial relief for practitioners taking parental leave and other forms of protected leave such as disability and carer’s leave.

It is one step in a range of measures Ahpra and the National Boards are introducing to make registration fees more equitable, flexible and responsive.

The rebate applies to practitioners who take leave for at least six continuous months on the grounds of a protected attribute. A practitioner can claim the rebate at the next renewal after the six-month period of leave ends. Practitioners cannot apply for this rebate before the six-month period has started, or before it ends.

A wider review is currently looking at how a pro rata approach to fees can be implemented. It is expected to report by November 2025 with recommendations aimed at coming into effect by 1 July 2026.

Visit the Fee relief for parental leave and other types of leave webpage for more information and to read the full policy.

What’s new?

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy 

Ahpra and the National Scheme have announced their Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy, informed by extensive consultation and the expertise of Professor Yin Paradies, a leading scholar in racism and cultural safety. 

This policy has been developed by and for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to create a safe, valued, and respectful environment within Ahpra and the National Boards. 

It forms a critical step in enacting Ahpra and the National Scheme’s policy and legislative commitments to eliminating racism. 

Racism towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is persistent, harmful, and structurally embedded. This policy acknowledges those realities and provides clear mechanisms for preventing, addressing, and eliminating racism within Ahpra, the National Boards and committees. It establishes stronger reporting pathways and introduces the Racism-related Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-only Special Issues Committee (RATSISIC) to ensure culturally informed responses to racism. 

The policy reflects the hard work and leadership of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy Working Group, chaired by Professor Carmen Parter, whose contributions were vital to its development. 

Download a copy of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anti-Racism Policy. You'll find this on our Information Publication Scheme page under 'Ahpra, Ahpra Board and National Boards information', click on the Ahpra tab. 

Ahpra set to improve the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme

Health ministers have released the final report of the Independent review of complexity in the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme (the National Scheme) with a formal response to 26 recommended actions.

Ahpra welcomes this important milestone and commends independent reviewer Sue Dawson on the work she has carried out since being appointed to the role in April 2024.

Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner said the agency was well-placed to respond to the report and looked forward to working with ministers, departments and other stakeholders on future reforms.

‘The National Scheme has been built on solid foundations but there is much more to do. We know that what got us here, won’t get us there.’

Co-convenor of the Forum of National Registration and Accreditation Scheme Chairs, Rachel Phillips, welcomed the release of the Dawson review.

‘For Ahpra to be effective, there needs to be transparency around the National Scheme and the measures in place to support practitioners and protect the public,’ Ms Phillips said.

‘The Dawson review adds to the work already underway to improve the system and foster a level of collaboration among regulators and other stakeholders that will serve us well into the future.’

Read the full news article.

Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner on stewardship and system reform

Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner called for renewed collaboration at the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme’s annual meeting in Melbourne, describing Ahpra as stewards of Australia’s health system.

Reflecting on four months of national stakeholder engagement, Justin acknowledged the opportunities and challenges ahead and discussed current priorities including improving notifications, preventing harm, ending racism in healthcare, and ensuring a responsive workforce.

Justin urged stakeholders to take a system-wide view and collaborate across Ahpra, boards, accreditors, and educators to better meet evolving workforce needs.

‘As stewards of the health system, we must all accept responsibility for the long-term integrity and sustainability of what has been entrusted to us,’ he said. ‘The nature of our roles – distinct but connected – obliges us to support a health workforce that can support Australia.’

Read the full speech.

Patient safety paramount in updated telehealth guidance

The guidance for telehealth and virtual care has been updated to ensure patients receive high-quality care – whether it be in person, over the phone or online.

It expands advice for telehealth prescribers, highlighting poor practice concerns around prescribing that relies on text, email or online questionnaires to assess a patients’ needs rather than a face-to-face, video or telephone consultation.

‘Telehealth has been great in making it easier for people to get the care they need. We just want to make sure that convenience doesn’t come at the cost of safety or quality,’ Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner said.

The guidance reinforces to practitioners that any healthcare provided through telehealth is the practitioner’s responsibility and not the employer’s.

Practitioners working in telehealth-only clinics, particularly those focused on single treatments or medicines, are encouraged to review the clinical governance framework to ensure the care they provide isn’t compromised by commercial gain or convenience.

‘As a health practitioner, your duty of care to your patients should always come first. That responsibility sits with you – not your employer,’ Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia Chair, Adjunct Professor Veronica Casey said.

Good telehealth practices include:

• sharing information in a way the patient can understand and access
• getting all necessary medical history and background information to make a diagnosis
• gaining informed consent, especially when using any supporting technologies like AI scribes
• only prescribing where you've had a face-to-face, video or telephone consultation with the patient
• letting patients know when telehealth may not meet their care needs, and when they may need to access other options like in-person appointments
• confirming the patient is who they say they are.

National Boards have also developed case studies for safe use of telehealth, identifying common mistakes like prescribing in an initial telehealth consultation or opting for telehealth when a face-to-face consultation is necessary.

Prescribing framework updated to address evolving healthcare needs

One of the guiding documents used for the education and regulation of prescribers has been updated, pushing for patient-centred care and responding to the fast-evolving world of healthcare.

The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing contracted Ahpra to review the second edition of the National Prescribing Competencies Framework (the framework) as part of its ongoing commitment to quality use of medicines.

Last updated in 2021, the framework outlines the skills and knowledge required of prescribers, best practice around the use of medicines, and the professional obligations of those involved. It also guides education and training programs, policy development and regulatory responses.

’This framework is part of the foundational building blocks that educators, regulators, practitioners and even the public can use to understand what’s expected in safe and effective prescribing,’ Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner said.

‘The principles in this framework guide what is expected of any prescriber so it’s important that it keeps pace with the evolving healthcare landscape.’

The third edition of the framework has now been approved by the Department and is published on the Ahpra website.

Read more about the changes to the framework.

Report shows progress in minimising distress during regulatory processes

A new report shows 13 actions aimed at reducing practitioner distress during the regulatory process have now been completed, including changes to the way Ahpra collects information and manages notifications about a practitioner’s health.

The actions were recommended by the Expert Advisory Group (EAG) on minimising practitioner distress, which includes practitioner members with lived experience of the notifications process. The EAG recommended 33 actions covering four areas: managing practitioner health concerns; being open, transparent and fostering hope; supporting practitioners throughout the process; and learning from the practitioner experience.

A report showing the actions completed so far, as well as those still in progress, is now available on the Ahpra website. You can find out more at our webpage: Improving the notifications experience.

Ahpra annual report highlights work to improve safety and sustainability of health sector  

Driving safe and sustainable workforce growth through streamlined registration procedures and a strengthened focus on harm prevention are some of the highlights of the 2024/25 Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) annual report. 

Read the Chinese Medicine Board report and statistics on the Board’s Annual report webpage. 

Keep in touch with the Board

• Visit the Chinese Medicine Board website for news about the profession, information on the National Scheme and for registration standards, codes, guidelines, policies and fact sheets.

• Lodge an online enquiry form.

• For registration enquiries call 1300 419 495 (from within Australia) or +61 3 9135 3010 (for overseas callers).

• Address mail correspondence to: Adjunct Professor Danforn Lim, Chair, Chinese Medicine Board of Australia, GPO Box 9958, Melbourne VIC 3001.