Leaving a group practice
Leaving a group practice? Here's the maths — and the checklist.
A group practice split usually costs more than it looks like on paper. Here's how to work out what you're actually giving up, what to check before you go, and what the move looks like.
Written by Steve Daniel, founder of Zenvia — GAICD · MBA · Master of IT · Author, Cybersecurity for Australian Not-for-Profits.
The split maths
What a 30–40% split actually costs you
A group practice split is usually quoted as "we take 30%" — but that 30–40% comes off every dollar you bill, every week, indefinitely. On $6,000 a month in billings, a 30% split is $1,800 a month; a 40% split is $2,400. Run those numbers against what you'd actually use from the practice — rooms, reception, invoicing — and the gap between what you're charged and what it would cost to buy those things separately (or through a flat-rate platform) is usually larger than it first looks.
Use the pricing calculator to compare your own billings against a group-practice split, doing it entirely yourself, and Zenvia's flat 10%.
Restraint clauses
Restraint clauses, in general terms
Many group-practice agreements include a restraint clause — a term that limits you from taking clients with you, or from practising within a certain distance or timeframe, if you leave. Whether a restraint clause is enforceable depends on how it's written and the circumstances, and that's a question for a lawyer, not a general web page. Before you resign, it's worth reading your actual contract (not just what you remember being told when you signed it) and getting advice on what it does and doesn't restrict.
This is general information, not legal advice — get your specific contract reviewed before you act on it.
Making the move
A transition checklist
- Read your current contract in full, including any restraint, notice-period and client-ownership clauses.
- Get your contract reviewed if a restraint clause or anything else is unclear — general information here isn't a substitute for advice on your specific agreement.
- Register an ABN if you don't already have one, and confirm your professional indemnity and public liability insurance covers independent private practice.
- Check whether you need to register for GST (see starting a private practice for the general threshold).
- Decide on rooms — telehealth only, hourly room hire, or both — before you set your new availability.
- Set up your new booking, invoicing and records system (or move it in — Zenvia does this as part of onboarding).
- Give proper notice under your contract's terms.
- Tell clients you're moving in whatever way your contract and your professional/ethical obligations allow.
General information only, not legal or tax advice — confirm your specific position with a lawyer or accountant.
The real comparison
Where Zenvia fits
Zenvia does the admin a group practice does — booking, reminders, invoicing, third-party billing, session-note drafting — for a flat 10%, plus card processing at cost, with no restraint clause and no split. See the full row-by-row comparison of doing it yourself, a group practice, and Zenvia.
Nothing to pay for 90 days
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Also relevant: group practice vs private practice vs Zenvia and full pricing details.