The European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP) has established the European Certificate of Psychotherapy (ECP) to ensure the standardization of the profession throughout Europe. Serving as a comprehensive Europe-wide standard, the ECP ensures equal standards of education and training for psychotherapists across the continent. Psychotherapists can apply for an ECP through the Direct Award (DA) or the Grandparenting procedure, depending on their qualifications.

The EAP has defined the core professional competencies of a European psychotherapist, providing guidelines for the practice of psychotherapy in all its various forms. All ECP holders are listed in the European Register of ECP Holders (ECP-R), which enables the search for qualified practitioners throughout Europe. ECP holders pay an annual registration fee, which contributes to the administration and maintenance of the EAP website and ECP-R.

The EAP promotes common training standards and ensures their mobility across member states, encouraging continuous professional development among psychotherapists