Booming billion-dollar cosmetic industry on notice with new cosmetic procedures guidelines

03 Jun 2025

Extra training and greater protection for young people part of raft of new safeguards

Australians undergoing cosmetic procedures such as anti-wrinkle injections and fillers will have greater protections under sweeping guidelines being introduced across the booming billion-dollar industry.

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and National Boards have published advance copies of the Guidelines for practitioners who perform non-surgical cosmetic procedures and the Guidelines for practitioners who advertise higher risk non-surgical cosmetic procedures, which will strengthen safeguards across the industry when they come into effect on 2 September 2025.

Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia Chair Adjunct Professor Veronica Casey AM said the safety of the Australian public is paramount.

‘These types of procedures are undertaken every day and can have serious consequences if not done correctly’, Adjunct Professor Casey said.

‘No practitioner should put their bottom line ahead of patient welfare, and these guidelines place the focus squarely on the safety of those in their care.’

The new protections highlight that many practitioners need more than just the foundational qualifications included in their initial training before they can safely perform non-surgical procedures like cosmetic injections. Further training or education will be necessary for those practitioners wanting to expand their scope of practice. Nurses will also be required to complete a set period of practice before expanding their scope to include non-surgical cosmetic procedures.

While cosmetic procedures remain out of scope for many practitioners, the guidelines will now apply to all regulated professions, futureproofing those that may join the lucrative cosmetic industry.

The new practice guidelines bring all registered health practitioners in line with medical practitioners, who already have their own guidelines. They also remind practitioners of their obligation to put patient welfare first and foremost with the prescriber remaining responsible for patient care. The guidelines build on the safeguards put in place by the Medical Board of Australia in 2023 and replace the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia’s Position statement: nurses and cosmetic medical procedures.

Medical Board of Australia Chair, Dr Susan O'Dwyer, said the guidelines would help better protect patients, by aligning standards across professions.

‘These guidelines make sure we’re all working from similar play books for the safety of our patients.’

‘We’re also raising the bar for anyone advertising these procedures, making it simpler for consumers to make safe and informed decisions’, Dr O'Dwyer said.

The advertising changes include a focus on higher risk procedures, requiring advertisements to contain information about the practitioner performing the procedures, strengthening the ban on the use of testimonials from social media influencers and putting measures in place to stop the trivialisation or sexualisation of a cosmetic procedure. 

Those under the age of 18 considering non-surgical cosmetic procedures will have a mandatory seven-day cooling off period between their first consultation and any procedures, while advertising aimed at under 18s will be totally banned.

‘This industry relies heavily on having a social media presence, so practitioners have been put on notice that their advertising must comply with the new guidelines when they come into effect later this year’, Ahpra CEO Justin Untersteiner said.

The advance copies of the Guidelines for practitioners who perform non-surgical cosmetic procedures and the Guidelines for practitioners who advertise higher risk non-surgical cosmetic procedures can be found on the Ahpra website.

Data

Between September 2022 and March 2025, Ahpra investigated about 360 notifications related to non-surgical cosmetic procedures with about 300 of these now closed. Complaints about these cosmetic procedures can lead to regulatory action like cautions, conditions imposed on registration or an undertaking from the practitioner to do or not do something. 

There have been complaints about medical practitioners, nurses, midwives, dentists, psychologists and Chinese medicine practitioners. 

Over 1500 calls have also been made to the cosmetic surgery hotline, informing Ahpra’s regulatory intelligence work with concerns escalated where necessary.

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