CQC's own published guidance states earwax removal becomes a CQC-regulated activity only when both (a) the client and a listed healthcare professional agree an intervention is needed, and (b) a listed healthcare professional carries out the treatment.
A "listed healthcare professional" is CQC's own term
Its examples include a registered nurse or doctor, not simply anyone with earwax-removal training.
Worth using
Several sources read this as meaning a self-employed practitioner who is not a listed healthcare professional — for example, someone trained only through a non-clinical, earwax-removal-specific course rather than a regulated clinical qualification — performing mechanical removal only, falls outside CQC's scope; but other sources, including some commercial clinics, state the opposite, and regulation reportedly differs by UK nation too.
This is a genuinely contested question, not a settled one.
The safest accurate answer
Whether you need to register depends on whether a listed healthcare professional is involved in your business and which UK nation you operate in — contact CQC directly, for your own specific circumstances, before you start trading.
Treat this as a required step, not an optional one
It's the one point in this business where starting to trade before resolving the question carries a real regulatory risk this guide cannot rule out for you.
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