Three regulators. One Instagram post. Here's who watches what.

You post a before and after. You add a five-star review. You mention a price. Somewhere in that thirty seconds you have touched three separate regulators, and none of them will send you a heads up first.

Most clinic owners know the names. AHPRA. TGA. ACCC. What they can't tell me is which one is looking at which bit of their marketing. So they either freeze and post nothing, or they post everything and hope. Here's the map.

Table of contents

• Who actually regulates cosmetic clinic marketing in Australia?
• What does AHPRA regulate in my clinic's marketing?
• Does the TGA apply to my clinic's Instagram?
• What does the Australian Consumer Law cover that AHPRA and the TGA don't?
• AHPRA vs TGA vs ACL: what's the difference at a glance?
• Which rules apply to my post? Three questions
• Can all three regulators apply to the same post?
• Before you post: the six-point regulator check
• FAQs

Who actually regulates cosmetic clinic marketing in Australia?

Three regulators can apply to the same piece of cosmetic clinic marketing at once. AHPRA regulates the practitioner and how a regulated health service is advertised. The TGA regulates claims and references to therapeutic goods, including prescription-only medicines. The Australian Consumer Law, enforced by the ACCC, covers misleading or deceptive conduct by any business.

They are not a hierarchy. You don't clear AHPRA and get a free pass on the other two. They are three overlapping circles, and a single caption can sit in the middle of all of them.

The other thing people get wrong: two of the three don't care whether you're registered. AHPRA's advertising provisions apply to a person who advertises a regulated health service, which sweeps in clinic owners and marketing agencies, not only the nurse holding the syringe.

What does AHPRA regulate in my clinic's marketing?

AHPRA regulates the advertising of regulated health services under section 133 of the National Law. It covers false or misleading advertising, testimonials about clinical services, gifts and discounts offered without terms, advertising that creates an unreasonable expectation of beneficial treatment, and advertising that encourages indiscriminate or unnecessary use of a health service.

AHPRA reads "advertising" broadly. Your website, your Instagram grid, your stories, your booking page, your Google Business profile. If it promotes and seeks to attract a person to a regulated health service, it counts. Information you give a patient inside a consultation does not.

Since 2 September 2025 there is a second layer for anyone advertising higher risk non-surgical cosmetic procedures. Those guidelines tighten the rules on images and influencers: real images only, no airbrushing or editing that misleads, a warning that results may vary where you use images, no advertising targeted at people under 18, and a strengthened position on testimonials from social media personalities.

✔ Lower risk: explaining what happens at a consultation, who your practitioners are, and what qualifications they hold.

✘ Higher risk: a patient quote about how a treatment changed their life, sitting on a page you control.

Testimonials are the biggest trap here. We've pulled apart the Google reviews nuance in Can cosmetic clinics use patient testimonials and Google reviews? and the influencer angle in Can cosmetic clinics work with influencers?

Does the TGA apply to my clinic's Instagram?

Yes, whenever your marketing refers to therapeutic goods. Prescription-only (Schedule 4) and Schedule 8 substances are restricted scheduled substances that cannot be advertised to the public. The TGA states this is prohibited under subsection 42DL(10) of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. Advertising a service that also advertises those goods pulls you into the Act.

This is the part clinics trip over. You're advertising a service, not selling a drug. But the TGA's stated position is that if an advertisement for a health service also advertises therapeutic goods, such as prescription medicines, the advertiser has to comply with the Act. Its guidance says it is best not to refer to any therapeutic goods used in delivering the service at all.

That's why brand names are off-limits in advertising, and it's also why common shorthand carries risk. Terms like "anti-wrinkle injections" and "dermal fillers" are widely understood to point at specific prescription-only products, so leaning on them drifts into risky territory even though they aren't brand names. The safer habit is to talk about consultations, assessments and treatment plans, and let the practitioner discuss products in the room.

✔ Lower risk: "Book a consultation to find out what's suitable for you."

✘ Higher risk: "$9 per unit this month" next to a product name, an initial, a nickname or an emoji everyone knows the meaning of.

We go deeper on wording in What words are high risk in cosmetic marketing, and on consequences in The real cost of a TGA breach.

What does the Australian Consumer Law cover that AHPRA and the TGA don't?

The Australian Consumer Law prohibits misleading or deceptive conduct and false representations by any business. It reaches pricing, package deals, "from" prices, finance terms, stock and availability claims, qualifications, and fake or incentivised reviews. The ACCC's position is that it makes no difference whether a business intends to mislead or not.

The ACL is the one clinics forget, and it's the broadest of the three. It applies because you are a business making claims to consumers. Three places it bites:

• Pricing. "From $199" where almost nobody pays $199. Package pricing with conditions buried in a story highlight. A "was" price that was never really charged.
• Reviews. Incentivised reviews without disclosure, filtered review displays, and AI-generated testimonials all sit in higher-risk territory. More on that in AI marketing that could get you in trouble.
• Silence. Leaving out something material can mislead just as effectively as saying something false.

Worth knowing: a claim can clear AHPRA and the TGA and still be a consumer law problem. "Results in 3 days, guaranteed" isn't a scheduled substance reference and isn't a testimonial. It's a representation you have to back up.

AHPRA vs TGA vs ACL: what's the difference at a glance?

AHPRA regulates how a regulated health service is advertised and who performs it. The TGA regulates what you say about therapeutic goods. The Australian Consumer Law regulates truthfulness in trade. AHPRA and the TGA are health-specific. The ACL applies to every business in Australia regardless of industry.

The AHPRA figures above are the ones AHPRA publishes. For the TGA and the ACCC I've kept it qualitative on purpose: the numbers depend on the provision, the conduct and the court. Anyone quoting you one tidy figure is guessing.

Which rules apply to my post? Three questions

Run every post through three questions.

One: does it promote a regulated health service? That's AHPRA.

Two: does it name or clearly signal a therapeutic good? That's the TGA.

Three: does it make any claim about price, results or quality? That's the Australian Consumer Law.

Answer yes to all three and all three apply.

1. Am I promoting a regulated health service? If the post is designed to attract someone to a service performed by a registered health practitioner, yes. AHPRA's rules are in play, including the testimonial prohibition and the cosmetic procedure advertising guidelines.

2. Am I naming, showing or clearly signalling a therapeutic good? Brand names, obviously. But also generic shorthand, unit pricing, product photos, vials and the "you know the one" wink. If a reasonable follower could identify the product, treat the TGA rules as live.

3. Am I making a claim about price, results or quality or availability? "Best in Brisbane." "From $199." "Results guaranteed." "Only 3 spots left." Each is a representation you need to be able to substantiate.

Can all three regulators apply to the same post?

Yes, and it happens constantly. A single before-and-after post with a patient quote, a product reference and a discounted price engages AHPRA's testimonial and expectation rules, the TGA's restriction on advertising prescription-only substances, and the Australian Consumer Law's rules on price and results claims. One post, three sets of obligations.

✘ Higher risk "Swipe for Jess's incredible transformation 😍 She's obsessed. Our $9 per unit special is back, this week only. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'Best clinic in Brisbane, life changing.' Limited spots, DM to book."

That caption touches a testimonial about a clinical outcome, an unreasonable expectation of benefit, an inducement with no stated terms, per-unit pricing that signals a prescription-only product, and an urgency claim that has to be true.

✔ Lower risk "Here's how a treatment plan works at our clinic. Consultation first, assessment second, aftercare always. What we recommend depends on your individual circumstances, and results vary from person to person. Consultation pricing and full terms are on our booking page."

Same goal. Same audience. None of the three regulators has much to grab. Before and after images carry their own layered rules across all three, and they've changed: we've covered them in Before and after photos, what injectors can and can't publish.

Before you post: the six-point regulator check

Six checks catch most of the risk in cosmetic clinic marketing. Run them on every caption, story, website page and ad before it goes live, and keep a record of who signed off. It takes about ninety seconds once you know what you're looking for.

• No testimonials about clinical outcomes on anything you control. Includes reshared reviews and influencer content.
• No product names, initials, nicknames or unit pricing. Advertise the consultation, not the compound.
• Every price claim is true and complete. If there are conditions, they're in the post, not three taps away.
• Every images-based post carries a results-vary note and uses real, unedited images.
• No urgency you can't back up. If the offer doesn't actually end Friday, don't say it does.
• One named person signs off before publishing, and you keep the approval trail.

Auditing a whole website? Start with the pages that make claims: services, pricing, results, and anything with images or reviews. Our guide to advertising your injectables clinic and the 10 red flags post are the fastest way in. And if you want a system instead of a post-by-post check, that's why I built the workshop: here's the story behind it.

Frequently asked questions about cosmetic clinic marketing compliance

Is AHPRA or the TGA stricter on cosmetic advertising?

They're strict about different things. The TGA is stricter on product references, because advertising restricted scheduled substances to the public is prohibited outright. AHPRA is stricter on testimonials and on advertising that creates unreasonable expectations. You need to satisfy both, not pick the tougher one.

Do these rules apply if I'm a beauty therapist, not a nurse?

Partly. AHPRA's advertising provisions apply to any person advertising a regulated health service, so they can reach you depending on what you promote. The TGA rules apply to anyone advertising therapeutic goods. The Australian Consumer Law applies to every business regardless of registration.

Can I get in trouble for a Google review I didn't ask for?

AHPRA's guidance distinguishes between platforms you control and platforms you don't. Reviews left independently on third-party sites aren't automatically prohibited. Republishing them, screenshotting them into your grid or using them to promote your service is where the risk climbs sharply.

My agency writes my captions. Are they liable or am I?

Both can be exposed. AHPRA's advertising provisions apply to a person who advertises a regulated health service, and consumer law applies to the business making the claim. Outsourcing the writing doesn't outsource the risk, so build sign-off into your contract.

Which regulator handles complaints about my competitor's marketing?

It depends on the issue. Testimonials and health service claims go to AHPRA. Therapeutic goods advertising goes to the TGA. Misleading pricing or fake reviews go to the ACCC. All three take reports from the public, and complaints from competitors are common in this industry.

Do I need three different compliance processes?

No. One review process with the three questions built in covers all of them. Most clinics that get into difficulty don't have a bad process, they have no process, and captions go live straight from someone's phone at 10pm.

About the Author

Riz is the Founder & Director of Foundd Legal, a lawyer with 20+ years' experience and a long history of building online and ecommerce businesses.

She helps creatives and online business owners protect and grow their businesses with clear, practical legal tools that actually make sense.

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Disclaimer

We do our best to keep this content accurate and up to date, but laws change, interpretations evolve, and the internet isn't perfect. Occasionally, information may be outdated or contain errors.

This content is for general information only and isn't legal advice. If you choose to rely on it, you do so at your own discretion. For advice specific to your business, you'll need support tailored to your situation.