Do You Need a License to Teach Yoga?

If you’re wanting to teach your own yoga classes, you’re probably asking do you need a license to teach yoga? We’re here to answer your questions and tell you what you need to know when setting up your new class, including:

• What Licenses do You Need to Teach Yoga?
• Why You Should Get Qualified as a Yoga Teacher
• What Qualifications Do You Need to Get a Yoga License?
• What Should You Look for From a Yoga Course

Before we answer your questions, if you’re yet to get qualified as a yoga teacher, you may want to take a look at our L3 yoga teaching course here at OriGym. Find this and many others in our downloadable course prospectus here.

What Licenses do You Need to Teach Yoga?

When it comes to a yoga teaching license, it is somewhat of a grey area. Nonetheless, what is preferred and what is legally required are two different things so we will try to make the line a little less blurry.

In terms of licenses, it is dependent on the circumstances. If you’re self-employed in the UK and run your own yoga studio, you may need to use the UK Government website to determine what applies to your business since licenses can vary. 

However, if you’re a freelance yoga teacher who instructs underemployment then this isn’t your responsibility - only your qualifications are but we will talk more about this later.

Nonetheless, if you do find yourself in the first position and are opening your own studio, you can find the UK Government license finder here, it looks like this:

You’re then able to scroll until you find either the relevant license, or the link “License Finder”, like this below:

This is when you can search for your specific license to ensure that you’re covered and the whole process is pretty straightforward and super easy to navigate. You can see below, we searched for a fitness centre. 

(Since the term yoga studio is not a stand alone option, it will fall under this category.)

You can add all that apply to you should you have any other activity or business propositions that are unique to your business. 

After you go onto the next step, you can actually see the licenses, this is where you can choose the activities that you want to do when writing your yoga business plan.

This can vary if when asked where you will be located you choose either Scotland or Northern Ireland so make sure you check the right box on that question. 

As you can see, the whole process is really simple. That being said, let’s take a closer look at the most relevant licenses for you as a yoga teacher.

You Might Need a Music License if You own a Studio

If you hold yoga classes within a studio and you wish to play music in the background, you could need a music license.

You can see below what it says on the UK government website about the importance of music licenses:

This is a license that protects you should you utilise music on the likes of Spotify, radio channels or any streaming services alike. 

You can contact PPL PRS to check and get a quote on the license if you need one. However, you don’t always need one. 

You can still play music without a license as long as it is royalty free. Since you’re teaching a yoga class, it is unlikely that you will want the top 40 charts on in the background, so you can avoid the license altogether if you use specific ambient sounds that are royalty free.

You can find it really easily, all you need to do is Google “royalty free music”, take a look at the popular results that are available:

It is super easy to get a hold of as you can see. So, it is completely up to you whether you want the yoga license to teach your classes with licensed music or royalty free music!

You Could Need a License if you want to Operate CCTV

If you’re wondering do I need a business license to teach yoga in your own studio, the answer can be yes if you want to operate CCTV on your premises.

While if you’re an employee this won’t be your responsibility, it will be your responsibility if you’ve started your own yoga studio, are the owner and wish to install and utilise CCTV. 

This is because you will be essentially handling data, which comes with a level of responsibility and requires a license for businesses. 

You can see below a snippet from what the UK government says about this license where we have highlighted the most important sections, you can find the full guide on what you need to know here.

As you can see, you can actually be exempt from notification, but you should always double check on the website. 

As well as that, it isn’t an absolute requirement to have CCTV in the first place, think about what area you’re in and if there are already businesses who have cameras nearby that would cover your studio parameter. 

It is always best to check, so ensure that you have read our article that discusses the licenses you need to work as a yoga teacher. 

Why You Should Get Qualified as a Yoga Teacher

In the UK, you don’t legally need a qualification to teach yoga. However, there are some things that you cannot do without the qualification. Without a yoga qualification, you cannot get yoga teacher insurance.

Without yoga teacher insurance, you could become liable for any accidents. So, as you can see there is a knock-on effect from not having the initial qualification. 

Besides that, you would struggle to find any authority within the industry with no training behind you, and it’s highly unlikely that you would get employed for any jobs. 

With all that in mind, it is highly unlikely that you’ll have a successful studio of your own with no credentials behind you and then no licenses would be necessary!

That being said, licenses and qualifications work hand in hand, so it is important that you make getting qualified your first step before moving on to thinking about licenses.

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For some more helpful resources on the administrative side of opening a yoga studio, head over to these articles below:

• 9 Key Challenges Of Running A Yoga Studio (& How To Overcome Them)
• SEO For Yoga Teachers: The Complete Guide 
• How Much To Charge For A Private Yoga Class

What Qualifications Do You Need to Get a Yoga License?

How long it takes to become a yoga teacher depends on the type of qualification you complete. In order to open up your studio and go through all of the steps we have mentioned to get a legitimate studio up and running, you need qualifications. These are the two most prominent ones that can get you industry ready.

Level 3 Diploma in Yoga Teaching

A level 3 diploma in yoga teaching (at OriGym) teaches over 400 hours worth of content combining practical and theoretical vital subjects. 

This is often a minimum for any yoga teaching job, plus, you will need this to be eligible for insurance purposes too. As well as that, you’ll struggle to get hired with no qualifications so, you need to be able to prove that you have a certification.

For example take a look at this job opening for Virgin Active below:

They require you to have an accredited 200 hour teaching qualification. We will talk some more about accreditation later on, but what you need to know for sure is that you will need a recognised certification to teach yoga legitimately.

Not only that, but like we mentioned before, you won’t be able to have any sort of authority if you go solely freelance with no brand to help you build some kind of reputation. It is non-negotiable because without it, you will be putting your clients and your own self at risk.

Level 4 Diploma in Yoga Teaching

As well as the minimum requirement of a level 3 in yoga teaching, you can also benefit from a level 4 diploma in yoga teaching that can see you choose a discipline in a particular type of yoga style.  

Though this isn’t obligatory to find work to become a yoga teacher, it can be highly beneficial when going up against other candidates for employment opportunities. 

As well as that, some jobs may be asking for a specific discipline. For example, below you can see a job opening for David Lloyd gyms and they do specify particular areas of discipline:

This is an attractive addition to your CV and it is something preferable to have under your belt for more prestigious employers, like David Lloyd Leisure. 

Besides the qualification label you can have from this, you can also begin to feel even more confident in your practice and offer a more informative and specific kind of yoga teaching. It is definitely worth investing into and boosting your credibility. 

What Should You Look for From a Yoga Course

So you know that you need to get qualified, but what exactly are you looking for within a yoga course?

Initially, you need to look for a yoga course that has over 200 hours of training. This is the minimum requirement for any job role so ensure that this is your first step in what to look for.

In addition to this, you want to make sure that you’re looking for courses that cover everything that you need not just the basics, but delving into practical work too. 

These are all important aspects that can help you find the correct course for you, there is a reason diplomas are so popular in this case as it gets you where you need to be in the most direct and succinct way possible. 

Before You Go…

Hopefully you feel confident in going forward with your career in the yoga teaching industry and know what licenses you may need. 

Don’t forget, if you’re yet to get qualified, start your journey with OriGym. Find our level 3 diploma in yoga teaching here or download our course prospectus.