European Association for Psychotherapy

What European Association for Psychotherapy does

The European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP) is a non-profit civil society organisation and umbrella body founded on 30 June 1991 in Vienna, Austria, on the basis of the Strasbourg Declaration of Psychotherapy (1990). It operates with consultative status to the Council of Europe and is a member of the World Council for Psychotherapy. Its primary functions are professional certification and accreditation rather than technology development: it administers the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP), aligned with ISO/IEC 17024 (2012), through two pathways (Direct Award via accredited training institutes and Grandparenting via National Awarding Organisations); it accredits training institutes as EAPTIs; and it maintains the public European Register of ECP Holders. It also publishes the peer-reviewed International Journal of Psychotherapy (IJP) three times per year.

EAP's core customer segments are individual psychotherapists, National Umbrella Organisations (NUOs), National Awarding Organisations (NAOs), European Wide Organisations / European Wide Accrediting Organisations (EWOs/EWAOs), and EAPTI training institutes. The revenue model is fee-based across multiple low-ticket streams: €190/year individual memberships, €360 admission plus per-member fees (€1,200–€5,800 annual band) for organisational members, €1,900 plus €300/year NAO licence fees, €90–€60/year plus per-student fees for EAPTI accreditation, and ECP application/register fees (€300/€150 application with 50% revenue share to EAP, €50/€20 annual register fee). Reach extends across approximately 43 countries, encompassing around 460 member organisations and roughly 200,000 psychotherapists.

Distribution is federated rather than direct: NAOs and EWAOs act as awarding partners, EAPTIs as channel/resellers for Direct Award, and PESI UK provides a CPD education partnership. The organisation is governed by a Board/Executive Committee (current President Cătălin Zaharia, elected March 2025) and is structurally a non-profit with no parent company, no external equity funding, and no subsidiaries.

Name

European Association for Psychotherapy

Legal name

European Association for Psychotherapy

Website

https://europsyche.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The European Association for Psychotherapy is a Vienna-based non-profit umbrella body founded in 1991 that accredits training institutes and certifies individual psychotherapists across Europe via the ECP credential, serving roughly 200,000 practitioners through 460 member organisations in 43 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Association / Psychotherapy Certification and Accreditation

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Behavioral Health & Counseling (Social Work, Psychology, Substance Use CE) (EDAAALAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

National/Institutional Accreditors (Career, Faith-Based, Distance, etc.) (EDADACAB)

Keywords

• Professional association membership
• Psychotherapy certification programs
• Training institute accreditation
• Professional standards body
• Continuing professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Individual Membership Fees: Annual membership fees from individual psychotherapists: €190 admission fee (one-time) plus €190 per year.
2. Organisational Membership Fees: Organisation admission fee of €360 (one-time) plus per-member fees of €3.60/year with minimum €1200/year and maximum €5800/year lump sum.
3. NAO and EWAO Application and Annual Fees: NAO application fee of €1,900 (one-time) plus €300 annual fee; EWAO application fee of €1,900 (one-time).
4. ECP Application and Registration Fees: ECP award applications: €300 (Western Europe) or €150 (Eastern Europe) for grandparenting; €300/€150 for Direct Award. Annual ECP register fee: €50 (Western) or €20 (Eastern). Reissue fee: €60.
5. EAPTI Accreditation Fees: Training institute accreditation fees: €90/year (Western) or €60/year (Eastern) plus €15/year (Western) or €12/year (Eastern) per student in ECP training program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The European Association for Psychotherapy is a non-profit professional association and standards body that delivers the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP) certification, accredits European Accredited Psychotherapy Training Institutes (EAPTIs), maintains a public European Register of ECP Holders, and provides individual and organisational membership for national and modality-based psychotherapy bodies across Europe. It publishes the International Journal of Psychotherapy and represents approximately 200,000 psychotherapists from 43 European countries to EU and Council of Europe bodies.

Product overview

The European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP) is a non-profit professional association, not a technology company. Its offerings consist of professional certification programs and accreditation services, not technology products. The primary offerings are the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP) certification program, the European Register of ECP Holders (ECP-R) public database, European Accredited Psychotherapy Training Institutes (EAPTIs) accreditation, Direct Award and Grandparenting application pathways, and the International Journal of Psychotherapy (IJP).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP) Europe-wide personnel certification for practicing psychotherapists, awarded via Direct Award through EAPTI-accredited training institutes or through Grandparenting via National Awarding Organisations (NAOs), with regional pricing for Western vs Eastern Europe and listing on the public European Register of ECP Holders.
• European Register of ECP Holders (ECP-R) Public online database (ecp.europsyche.org) listing ECP-certified psychotherapists across Europe, providing public verification of qualified practitioners and supporting transparency and mobility across European countries.
• EAPTI Accreditation (European Accredited Psychotherapy Training Institute) Accreditation programme under which psychotherapy training institutes worldwide become recognised EAPTIs, deliver ECP-standard training, and facilitate Direct Award ECP applications for their graduates.
• Individual and Organisational Membership Recurring membership subscription offering for individual psychotherapists and for national/European psychotherapy organisations, providing access to member benefits including reduced congress registration fees and the PESI UK 15% discount.
• National Awarding Organisation (NAO) Status Granted status enabling national bodies to administer ECP Grandparenting applications and represent national psychotherapy organisations within EAP governance.
• European Wide Accrediting Organisation (EWAO) Status Granted status allowing modality-based European-wide psychotherapy organisations to sign ECP applications for their specific therapeutic approach and to represent the modality within the EAP.
• International Journal of Psychotherapy (IJP) Peer-reviewed scientific journal published three times yearly, providing the EAP's research publication platform for psychotherapy science.
• PESI UK Online CPD Partnership Subscription Partnership offering EAP members a 15% discount on PESI UK's online CPD courses for psychotherapy across topics and modalities, supporting the EAP's continuing professional development requirements.

Quantifiable outcome

• The ECP provides quality assurance for psychotherapists offering services outside their country of residence, in person or via internet
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• PESI UKcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerEAP partnered with PESI UK, the largest psychotherapy online education provider in Europe, to provide continuing professional development (CPD), education, and events across psychotherapy topics and modalities. EAP members, ECP holders, and EAPTI students receive a special 15% EAP discount.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP): UK organisation that accredits psychotherapy training and registers psychotherapists across multiple modalities. Mirrors EAP's modality-based accreditation (EWAOs) and practitioner register (ECP) structure at a national level.
• British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP): UK professional membership body for counsellors and psychotherapists. Highly comparable as a national umbrella organisation that registers individual practitioners, accredits training, and pursues regulatory recognition — a model parallel to EAP's at country level.
• International Association for Counselling (IAC): International counselling membership body that develops standards and supports national associations. Comparable as a globally federated, voluntary credentialing and advocacy body in the adjacent counselling/psychotherapy space.
• European Federation of Psychologists' Associations (EFPA): European umbrella for national psychology associations covering ~300,000 psychologists. Comparable as a pan-European federation that accredits training, runs a EuroPsy register, and engages with EU institutions — a near-analogue for psychologists to EAP for psychotherapists.
• World Council for Psychotherapy (WCP): Global umbrella body of which EAP is a member. Closely comparable in mission (promoting psychotherapy as a profession and setting standards worldwide), with overlapping leadership dialogue and scientific journal activity.

Emerging players

• International Coach Federation (ICF): Global membership and credentialing body for professional coaches with credential tiers and accredited training programmes. Comparable as a fee-based, standards-driven membership/credentialing organisation in an adjacent helping-profession vertical.

Broad incumbents

• American Psychological Association (APA): Largest professional psychology association globally with accreditation of doctoral programmes and a practitioner register. Comparable as a flagship credentialing and standards body, but operates in psychology rather than psychotherapy specifically.
• National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC): US credentialing body that certifies counsellors and accredits programmes. Comparable in revenue model (certification fees, continuing education) and in delivering a portable practitioner credential, though focused on US rather than Europe.

Others

• PESI UK: Europe's largest psychotherapy online CPD provider and EAP's strategic partner. Relevant as an ecosystem participant that delivers continuing education to ECP holders and could be seen as a channel partner or potential disruptor.

Regional players

• European Association for Applied Psychology (EAAP): Regional European applied-psychology association that organises membership services and conferences. Comparable as a European-level professional association operating in the same mental-health practitioner ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/european-association-for-psychotherapy

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about European Association for Psychotherapy