Frequently Asked Questions - Registration
A protected title is the professional title of the designated health and social care professions named under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005. A registrant of a profession is entitled to use the title specified for that profession. The following health and social care professions are designated:
- Clinical Biochemist
- Counsellor
- Dietitian / Dietician
- Dispensing Optician
- Medical Scientist
- Occupational Therapist
- Orthoptist
- Optometrist
- Physiotherapist
- Physical Therapist
- Podiatrist
- Psychologist
- Psychotherapist
- Radiographer
- Radiation Therapist
- Social Care Worker
- Social Worker
- Speech and Language Therapist / Speech Therapist
The Register contains information on the registered members of the designated professions. It will contain the following information about the registrant:
- Registration number
- Full name
- Registration renewal date
- County and/ or post code (where applicable) in which the registrant practises
- Fitness to practise (FTP) details and conditions (if any)
Any member of the public will be able to view the Register online. You can check the Register here.
The Register for each profession will open on a phased basis over the next number of years, once a Registration Board for each profession has been appointed by the Minister for Health.
Announcements about the opening of Registers will be published on our website. You can sign up for updates about the regulation of your profession here.
When the Register for your profession opens you must:
- Hold an approved qualification
- Complete an application form
- Satisfy the Board that you are a fit and proper person to engage in the practice of the profession
- Pay the required fee
When the Register for your profession is open, in order to register you must:
- Apply within two years of the opening of the Register
- Hold a qualification
- listed in Schedule 3 of the Health and Social Care Professionals Act, or
- a qualification that in the opinion of the Board is sufficiently relevant to that profession and is of a standard not lower than a qualification listed in Schedule 3
- If you do not hold a qualification listed at either a or b above you must successfully complete an assessment of professional competence set by the Registration Board
- Complete an application form
- Satisfy the Registration Board that you are a fit and proper person to engage in the practice of the profession
- Pay the required fee
Under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 (as amended), a registrant of a profession is entitled to use the title specified for that profession. Existing practitioners in the State will have two years to apply from the date of opening of the Register.
After the two year transitional period, the title is protected. It is a criminal offence for a non-registrant to use a protected title and the Enforcement Team at CORU is tasked with investigating and, where there is sufficient evidence, prosecuting, alleged use of protected titles by unregistered persons.
We would encourage you to apply to register as soon as the Register is open. Most employers will require registration for new posts and promotions. Please click here for further information.
New entrants to the profession in Ireland with international qualifications must first have their qualification recognised by CORU before they are eligible to apply for registration.