Physiotherapy and chiropractic loans for New Zealand Physiotherapy Board and Chiropractic Board-registered clinics .

Clinic ownership in NZ is not legally restricted to Board-registered persons in the same way dental practice ownership is restricted to DCNZ-registered dentists, but every clinic must engage at least one practising clinician registered with the Physiotherapy Board of New Zealand (for physiotherapy services) or the Chiropractic Board of New Zealand (for chiropractic services) with a current annual practising certificate under the Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003. Both Boards publish scope, competence, recertification, and annual practising certificate requirements at physioboard.org.nz and chiropracticboard.org.nz.

A new sole-practitioner physiotherapy clinic in NZ commonly runs $40,000 to $120,000 fully kitted and fitted out. Clinical equipment commonly accounts for $15,000 to $35,000 (hi-lo electric treatment bed $1.8K-$4.5K, combination ultrasound and e-stim unit $5K-$14K, dry needling and small clinical kit). A starter rehab corner with one or two Pilates reformers, a cable column, free weights, and a treadmill commonly adds $15K-$35K. Cubicle build, reception, accessibility upgrade, and small office fitout commonly $20K-$50K. First-quarter working capital and registration costs add a further $5K-$15K.

A new multi-clinician group physiotherapy or chiropractic practice in NZ with 3 to 8 clinicians commonly runs $200,000 to $500,000 fully fitted and equipped. Clinical equipment scales with cubicle count: 4 to 8 treatment beds, multiple ultrasound and e-stim units, chiropractic adjusting tables (where chiropractic is part of the offering), and dry needling kit commonly $50K-$120K. The rehab and exercise floor with cable columns, free weights, treadmills, recumbent bikes, and Pilates reformers commonly $50K-$150K. Multi-cubicle fitout including reception, accessibility upgrade, and small-group class room commonly $100K-$230K.

Established NZ physiotherapy and chiropractic clinics commonly transact in the $250,000 to $1,400,000 range depending on clinician headcount, ACC contracted-provider standing, location, and rehab/Pilates programme. A sole-practitioner clinic with 1 to 2 years of trading commonly sits in the $250K-$650K band. A group practice with 3 to 8 clinicians commonly sits in the $650K-$1.4M band. Goodwill (ACC contracted-provider standing under the PSP and RCT contracts, recall list, brand, location) commonly dominates the price; equipment and fitout residual secondary. Clinic-sale agents publish indicative multiples but every clinic is priced on its own ACC trading data, recall list, and lease position.

The ACC Physiotherapy Services contracts (PSP) and the Rehabilitation and Clinical Treatment (RCT) contracts are the contracted-provider frameworks under which ACC pays physiotherapists and other contracted clinicians for treatment of accident-related conditions under the Accident Compensation Act 2001. ACC contracted-provider revenue commonly dominates the physiotherapy practice revenue mix and provides a recognised, predictable revenue stream that lender medical-finance teams view as a stability anchor. The contracted-provider standing transfers with the practice on acquisition (subject to ACC and Board notification processes), and lender files commonly include the contracted-provider agreement and 12 to 24 months of ACC payment statements.

Indicative rates on physio and chiro clinic finance commonly sit in the 9% to 13% per annum band depending on structure, security, and borrower profile. Equipment chattel mortgage on treatment beds, ultrasound, e-stim, adjusting tables, and Pilates reformers from established suppliers commonly sits at 9-11% for established clinics. Acquisition term loans secured by goodwill and equipment commonly sit at 8-10% for established acquirers via the major-bank medical-finance teams. Sole-practitioner first-clinic facilities commonly sit at 10-12% reflecting the limited trading-history profile. Working-capital lines commonly sit at 11-13%. Final rate is set by the lender after assessment.

A GST-registered NZ physio or chiro clinic can typically claim the GST component on equipment acquired under chattel mortgage as input tax in the next GST return after settlement, subject to apportionment for the mostly exempt healthcare supply position and to the accountant's confirmation. Physiotherapy and chiropractic services supplied by a Board-registered practitioner are typically GST-exempt under the GST Act 1985, while taxable supplies (Pilates classes priced separately, paid products, sports-team contract work) carry GST at 15%. The apportionment determines the input-tax claim ratio on shared inputs including treatment beds (used in exempt clinical work) and Pilates reformers (used in both exempt rehab and taxable Pilates classes). The accountant is the right person to confirm the apportionment method on the specific business position.

Sole-practitioner clinics in NZ physio and chiro are commonly funded by specialist asset-finance lenders (UDC Finance, Heartland Bank, Avanti Finance, Speirs) on smaller facilities of $40,000 to $150,000 with 3 to 5 year terms. Documentation focuses on Board registration, the lease deed, and supplier quotes. Group practices with 3 to 8 clinicians are commonly funded by major-bank medical-finance teams (BNZ Partners, ANZ, ASB, Westpac) on larger facilities of $200,000 to $1.4M with 5 to 10 year terms. Documentation includes the full ACC contracted-provider history, multi-year trading data, and partnership or shareholder structures. The two patterns sit on different lender tracks and commonly carry different documentation cycles.

No, chiropractic adjusting tables (Thuli, Hill Laboratories, Lloyd, Zenith) and standard hi-lo electric treatment beds (Chattanooga, Lojer) are commonly financed under the same chattel mortgage structure on a 3 to 5 year term. The main difference is the price point: a hi-lo treatment bed commonly $1,800-$4,500, an adjusting table commonly $6,000-$18,000 reflecting the table-specific mechanism (drop-piece, flexion-distraction, upper-cervical) and clinical specification. The lender pool (UDC Finance, Heartland Bank, Avanti Finance) is the same. PPSR registration applies to both. Trade-in credit on an existing table is common at the supplier level, applied against the supplier invoice rather than the financed amount.

Paid sports-team contract work (where a clinic contracts to provide pitchside, courtside, or training-room physiotherapy services to a sporting team or sporting body) is a taxable supply under GST and a recognised revenue line in the practice trading data. Lender medical-finance teams commonly view contracted sports-team revenue as a positive stability indicator alongside the ACC contracted-provider revenue line, particularly where the contract has multi-year duration or recurring renewal. The contract is commonly part of the lender file. The accountant commonly tracks contracted sports-team income separately for both clinical and accounting purposes given the GST and apportionment implications.

Where physio or chiro equipment is financed under chattel mortgage and the clinic is sold, the equipment finance is typically settled out of sale proceeds at completion. The lender holds a security interest registered on the Personal Property Securities Register (PPSR) against each financed asset and is paid out before the equipment can be transferred clear-title to the acquirer. Where the acquirer is taking on the equipment finance directly, a lender consent and novation is required; this is more common where the lender already funds the acquirer's wider business. The ACC contracted-provider standing transfers separately under the ACC notification process and is commonly addressed alongside the equipment-finance payouts in the sale and purchase agreement.

A growing number of NZ physiotherapy clinics run a Pilates studio alongside the clinic, with class memberships priced as taxable supplies separate from the clinic's exempt physiotherapy services. Pilates-class membership revenue is a recurring private-pay revenue line that lender medical-finance teams commonly view as a positive complement to the ACC contracted-provider revenue, particularly on group-practice acquisitions where the membership base is documented and stable. The membership data and class schedule commonly form part of the lender file. The Pilates-reformer fleet is commonly financed under chattel mortgage alongside the clinical kit. The accountant commonly addresses the GST and apportionment treatment of the mixed-supply position.

A standalone equipment chattel mortgage on treatment beds, an adjusting table, an ultrasound unit, or Pilates reformers commonly settles in 2 to 3 weeks from quote to drawdown via UDC Finance, Heartland Bank, or a similar specialist asset-finance lender. A sole-practitioner first-clinic facility blending equipment, rehab kit, and fitout commonly takes 3 to 6 weeks reflecting the lease deed, supplier quote pack, and Board registration documentation. A group-practice acquisition with goodwill term loan, equipment chattel mortgage, ACC contracted-provider transfer documentation, and lease assignment commonly takes 6 to 12 weeks from heads of agreement to settlement, with the ACC notification, lease assignment, and vendor due diligence typically the longest steps.

A personal guarantee from the principal practising clinician is commonly required across the NZ physio and chiro finance pool, particularly on clinic acquisitions, sole-practitioner setups, and term loans secured by goodwill. Standalone equipment chattel mortgages secured against the asset itself sometimes proceed without a personal guarantee for established clinics with multi-year trading and strong serviceability, though many lenders still take a guarantee as standard. Working-capital lines commonly include a personal guarantee. The accountant and the clinic solicitor are commonly part of the conversation about guarantee structuring and any limited-recourse or capped-guarantee options the lender may offer.