Unparalleled Recognition

PSA Accredited, CNHC Verified and NHS Referred - an important and valuable asset to your business

The IFA register of aromatherapists is accredited by the Professional Standards Authority (PSA), a UK body accountable to the British parliament. IFA membership includes listing and registration on the IFA PSA accredited register (free of charge) and referral on the NHS website.

The IFA also verifies aromatherapy practitioners for the CNHC should you also wish to join them (additional fee applies and limited to the UK). You must first be registered as an IFA aromatherapist.

*There is no higher mark of quality in the UK for aromatherapists than the IFA PSA quality mark.

Professional Status

• Professional sealed certificate to display in your place of work and clinic plus enamel badge
   
• Use of the IFA (and PSA logo if working in the UK)

Differentiating you from other aromatherapists. It provides a visual indicator that you have met the highest standards of practice in your work building trust and confidence with clients, commissioners and other healthcare providers.

• As the first established body for aromatherapy, we have a long-standing reputation in the industry as the organisation that delivers dedicated and professional practitioners. Our symbol is recognised worldwide.
   
• IFA registrants can use the suffix 'MIFA' after their name
   
• Corporate branding on business cards, leaflets, website plus access to professional embossed tunics, essential oil bags, smelling strips and more - adding a professional touch to your branding.

To reduce the costs of overheads the IFA have secured discounts for our registrants from the following high-end brands:

• 50% off Terre Verdi www.terreverdi.com
• 30% off Micheline Arcier www.michelinearcier.com
• 30% off Pepperfit www.pepperfit.com
• 30% off Botanicals www.botanicals.co.uk
• 25% off Oshadhi https://oshadhi.co.uk/
• 20% off Neals Yard Remedies www.nealsyardremedies.com
• 20% off Towels R' Us www.towelsrus.co.uk
• 10% off Ease Me www.easeme.co.uk
• 10% off Tisserand www.tisserand.com
• 10% off Base Formula www.baseformula.com
• 10% - 20% off Aqua Oleum www.aqua-oleum.co.uk
• 10% off Fragrant Earth www.fragrantearth.com
• 10% off Butterbur & Sage www.butterburandsage.com
• 10% off Nativilis www.nativilis.co.uk
• 10% off Couch Rolls www.couchrolls.co.uk
• 10% off Aeos www.aeos.net
• 10% off Odylique www.odylique.co.uk

The terms and conditions and codes to provide at checkout can be found in the members area*

Employment Opportunities

• The Government Department of Health and The General Medical Council advise doctors to refer patients to practitioners on PSA Accredited Registers. IFA PSA practitioners are recognised for employment with the NHS and are referred to on their website, providing our registrants with excellent career prospects.
   
• It is free for employers to post jobs with the IFA, which we circulate to registrants as and when they are received.
   
• We provide registrants with a sample CV and cover letter, credential descriptions, promotional literature, plus sample GP introduction letters to introduce yourself to your local GP and communities.
   
• The IFA is recommended by the UK National Careers Office as the body of choice that assists aromatherapists throughout their career. 

Business Promotion

• Listing on the IFA PSA accredited register where clients, employers and commissions can verify a practitioner and source a reputable practitioner, which is part of a UK government-backed scheme to protect the public.
   
• Driving more business to your website and increase your client base. Last year, the IFA’s register was viewed approximately 65,000 times.
   
• IFA registration is recognised for reimbursement with Health Shield, UK Healthcare and Westfield Health Private Healthcare Cash Plans, which allows clients who hold the relevant plans to reclaim the cost of their treatment with an IFA registered aromatherapist.
   

• Various opportunities arise throughout the year for IFA practitioners to showcase their talents. Whether your forte is to write, provide talks or in guiding others, there are various opportunities to raise your profile in the media with IFA membership. Registrants have in the past featured in Good House Keeping magazine, Vogue and in the Daily Mail.

• Every year the IFA hosts its registered national Aromatherapy Awareness Week bringing more press coverage to the profession, the work of the IFA and our registrants. All registrants are provided with template press releases, posters, leaflets, statistics and information to promote their practice during this week.
   

• Partake in our internationally acclaimed charity and research projects. In the past our charity projects have gained Guiness World Record status and our Aromcare program sponsored by Everton Football Club, with some of our registrants having been employed by the hospitals and hospices they were involved in as part of a project. Our latest research trial on essential oil aroma and subjective stress gave all our member participants not only exclusive access to the blend but will also means they will be part of the historic groundbreaking results.

Members can access a wide range of webinars in the form of online lectures and training workshops to assist our members continual professional development. These webinars focus on evidence-based practice, so, whether you want to enhance your techniques, build your knowledge in a specific area or grow your business, theres something for everyone.

Our exclusive webinars are delivered by world-renowned industry experts, completely free of charge to ensure our members stay-up to date with the latest developments in aromatherapy, research and also allied subjects. Currently the following are available to view in the members area and we will shortly be announcing our 2025 line up:

• Salvatore Battaglia: The Spiritual Dimension of Scents
• Suzanne Catty:  Hydrosols: New Research in Practice
• E.J.Bowles: Impact of Hedonics on Mood Effects of Essential Oils
• Felicity Warner: Sacred Oils – To Heal Spirit and Soul
• Madeleine Kerkhof: Dementia Care, Essential Oils and CO2 Oil’s
• Carol Rose: Integrating Clinical Aromatherapy in Palliative Care
• Pam Conrad: Aromatherapy and Women's Mental Health
• Dr Peter Mekereth: Cancer Care: Utilising Aromasticks
• Susan Parker: The Rose Botanical Family Oils
• K.G.Styles: Essential Oils & The Chinese Meridian Time Clock
• Dr Mark Moss: Rosemary Essential Oil and Cognition Research
• Dr Jane Johnson: What Goes Wrong with the Knee and Why
• Beth Spindler: Facial Freedom: Releasing Stress Stored in the Muscles
• Dr Hether Herington: Lingering Psychological Trauma
• Margaret Ann Lembo: Essential Oils and Vibrational Matching Gemstones
• Shawnee Thornton Hardy: Autism, Neurodiversity and Sensory Processing
• Emma Holly: Scar Massage
• Jimm Harrison: Healing of Scent, Phytotherapy & Skin Care
• Dr Jessie Hawkins: The Effect of Aromatherapy on COVID-19-Induced Anxiety
• Rachel Fairweather & Meghan Mari: 12 Steps to Business Success
• Josie Donaldson: Why Do My Muscles Hurt
• Dr Nina Kocevar Glavac: Cosmetic Preservation: What is there to know
• Michelle Fury: The Mindfulness of the Five Senses
• Quantum Metta School of Massage:  Thai Yoga Massage
• Purodem: Natural Product Making 
• Carina Coen: Client Modesty and Towel Management 
• Beverley De Valois: Understanding Cancer Survivorship: How Traditional, Complementary, and Integrative Medicine can help
• Stefan Batorijs - Wild Life: Shinrin-yoku and The Practice of Healing Through Nature Webinar

The benefits of belonging to a therapy-specific body are that we understand the therapy inside out. We understand the challenges, education, research and development requirements of our registrants, allowing us to deliver a specialist service.

• Specialist guidance, which address specific and specialist areas of aromatherapy - with over 25 downloads.
   
• 50 strong team of professionals and experts in the field - so if it’s not covered in our guidance, reassurance and information is just an email away.
   
• Quarterly Aromatherapy Times Magazine registered with the British Library, which prides itself on publishing high quality articles, expert insights and practical tips, covering all aspects of aromatherapy.
   
• Access to research hub with an easy-to-use drop-down function so the evidence you need is at your fingertips, to ensure our members remain informed about new advances in the field and explore the empirical information that supports it.
   
• Research guidelines of how to construct a scientific manuscript so that they may be worthy of academic interest.
   
• Additional resources include carefully sourced links to other authoritative sites of interests, discounts off books and more.​​

Registrants have the opportunity to develop their careers and become a teacher and course provider of the IFA diploma courses and go on to train the next generation of aromatherapists. Click here for procedure.

The IFA is committed to promoting excellence in aromatherapy and advancing the field through high-quality education and training opportunities. Members can access teacher training courses, upgrade courses and refresher courses tailored and exclusive to those who have met the IFA standards for membership to take your career to the next level.

Operational Templates

• Access to a wide range of business templates to personalise, compiled by legal advisors and solicitors for the smooth running of your business - 30 + free templates

For example, accident and incident policy and logbook, complaints policy, equality (EDI) statement, data protection, health and safety policy, privacy policy, risk assessment, sale of goods contract, consultancy terms and conditions, website disclaimer etc

• In a business world that’s constantly changing IFA membership can help you stay ahead as we provide our registrants with the support they need when any newly introduced law or legislation impacts the way in which they operate - to ensure you remain compliant with all the latest business practices.
   
• Access to clinic forms: consultation forms, prescription sheet, appointment schedule, treatment follow up, referrals template and aftercare information.

Other Operational Support

• Tailored discounted insurance package: Alan Boswell Discounted Insurance Package
   
• In some areas of the UK, particularly London, special treatment licenses are required for businesses that provide complementary and beauty treatments by local councils. As a member of the IFA, you will be exempt from paying the license fee – potentially saving you hundreds of pounds a year. See List of Exemption Fee Boroughs for IFA Registrants
   
• Product making and Legislation updates affecting the production and sale of aromatic substances.
   
• With IFA registration you have more scope in how you can describe the profession as agreed between the IFA and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and download descriptors to ensure compliance.
   
• Other resources include HMRC starter up information, business planning, forecasts and also expansion guidance and links to marketing technologies.

Regional Groups
Being an aromatherapist can at times feel lonely, especially for those self-employed. IFA regional groups provide an excellent opportunity to forge relationships with your colleagues, share knowledge and talk about your work.

Some of the groups offer evening group sessions, breakfast meetings, organise trips to distilleries and herb gardens others are online for those in remote areas etc.

Members Facebook Group
The IFA Members Closed Facebook Group is a lively platform for registrants to connect to like-minded people and support one another. In this group members discuss issues affecting their work, share ideas, advice and encouragement.

The IFA is also present in the group, providing latest news and developments. We also from time-to-time, post Q&A questions posed to our specialist advisors to promote learning.

Networking
All members get free entry to the IFA's Annual General Meetings (AGM) which provide an opportunity to have your say in the next chapter of the IFA, interact with colleagues and network. Our AGMs are fun and informal with a chance for professional debate - full of great company, lively discussion and what more - great food!

We also hold conferences from time to time, which allow attendees to listen to motivating and inspiring talks, to gain valuable knowledge and skills transferable to their practice.

Mentoring
All practitioners can have blind spots in their work with clients from time to time, no matter how experienced they are. Particularly with newly qualified practitioners, sometimes there is a lack of specific knowledge of the best way to treat a client.

In the members area you can also find details of mentors who can provide email, telephone and face-to-face supervision meetings at their discretion. Mentors provide an objective overall view, which offers a useful alternative perspective to the subjectivity of the practitioner towards their clients and a healthy balance between empathy and objectivity.