Your first practice: what they don't tell you at university

Five years teach you how to run therapy. They don't teach you that in the first month of your own practice you will also be the reception desk, the accounts department and the legal department, all in one person.

The first surprise after graduation rarely has to do with the work with clients. It has to do with how many hours everything around it eats up: setting appointment times, reminding people about them, issuing the bill, checking whether you are even allowed to issue it that way.

Below are the three thresholds that new practices fear most, and which in most cases turn out to be smaller than they look. The rules described here are Polish ones, because this article was written for practices in Poland. If you practise elsewhere, the mechanisms will be similar, but the amounts and legal bases will be your own country's.

You don't have to set up a company right away

The most common blocking image in your head goes: to take on the first client I need a company, an accountant and social insurance contributions. Not always.

In Poland, unregistered business activity lets you earn legally without registering a company, as long as you stay within the limit. In 2026 that is PLN 10,813.50 per quarter (roughly €2,500), which is 225 percent of the minimum wage. At a rate of around two hundred zlotys per session, that means a dozen or so sessions a month, and for many people that is exactly the stage they are at for the first six months.

The limit changes every year together with the minimum wage, so always check the amount for the current year, not from a text written two years ago.

A cash register probably doesn't apply to you

This is a topic that can keep people awake at night for no good reason. In Poland, if you take all payments into a bank account, your sales are exempt from being recorded on a fiscal cash register regardless of the amount.

The obligation appears only when you start taking cash or card payments in the practice. Only then does the statutory limit of PLN 20,000 (roughly €4,650) start to count. In other words: the decision "please pay by bank transfer before the day of the session" settles this problem from day one, and reduces no-shows along the way.

The details, with deadlines and exceptions, are covered in a separate text on the cash register in a practice (in Polish).

An invoice without VAT is not a loophole, it's a legal basis

A bill for therapy usually does not include VAT, and that is normal. Not because "you don't pay VAT on therapy", but because you are using a specific exemption. And you need to be able to name it, because the basis is stated on the document.

In Poland it is most often the exemption for health-care services in Article 43(1)(19)(c) or (d) of the VAT Act. The alternative is the exemption based on turnover: Article 113(1), or Article 113(9) if you start during the year. Other EU countries have their own versions of both rules: the EU VAT Directive exempts medical care, and each country decides which professions that covers and sets its own small-business threshold.

It sounds more threatening than it is in practice: it is one decision, made once, at the start. More about how to issue a bill so that it gives nothing away about the client is in the post on invoices in a psychology practice (in Polish).

The first client who didn't show up

It usually comes in the second or third month and hurts more than the amount would suggest. Not only because the hour is gone, but because you don't know what to do about it: write, don't write, ask for the money, let it go.

That uncertainty comes from one thing: the lack of an earlier decision. When the cancellation rule is written down and shown before the first appointment, the conversation stops being a negotiation and becomes a reminder of something both sides already knew.

What's missing at the start is decisions, not tools

A tool won't make the rules for you. It can only keep to them.

Before you think about any software, it is worth writing down four things: how long a session lasts and what it costs, until when it can be cancelled free of charge, how people book and how you remind them about the appointment. You will make these decisions anyway. The only question is whether before the first difficult phone call or in the middle of it.

The same principle applies to documentation. The decision about what you record and how long you keep it matters more than what you record it in.

When a tool is worth it

We'll say it plainly, even though we sell software: on day one you don't need a system. With three clients, the calendar on your phone and a notebook are enough, and any tool would just be one more thing to keep on top of.

You recognise the moment that changes by the symptoms. You start forgetting who you promised a slot to. In the evening you type up notes instead of resting. Someone asks for a bill from three months ago and you spend half an hour looking for it. You can't say how much you actually earned last month.

That is when a tool stops being a gadget and starts giving you your evenings back. If you run a practice in Poland without a registered company, MentAI also shows you a counter for the unregistered-activity threshold and the moment you are approaching the limit, so that you don't find out about it too late.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to set up a company to take on my first clients?

Not necessarily right away. In Poland, unregistered business activity lets you earn legally up to a limit without registering a company. In 2026 that is PLN 10,813.50 per quarter. The amount changes every year, so check it for the current year.

Do I need a cash register in my practice at the start?

With payments only into a bank account, sales are exempt from cash-register records regardless of the amount. The obligation appears only with cash or card payments in the practice, where the PLN 20,000 limit counts.

On what basis do I issue an invoice without VAT?

In Poland, most often Article 43(1)(19)(c) or (d) of the VAT Act, alternatively Article 113(1), or 113(9) when starting during the year. The basis is stated on the document.

Where do I start organising my first practice?

By writing down decisions: session length and price, the free cancellation deadline, how people book and how you remind them. Tools only make sense once the rules are in place.

This article is for information only and is not legal or tax advice. Thresholds and legal bases change, and the ones described here apply in Poland. Before you decide, check the rules for the current year or talk to an accountant. As of 28 August 2026.

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Related posts: The cash register in a practice (in Polish) · Invoices in a psychology practice (in Polish) · No-shows: how to reduce them.

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