The legal system in the United Kingdom and many non-European countries is permissive - the common law having developed in such a way as to maximise individual rights. Health and safety regulations tend to apply to employers and (corporate) operators. Attempts to restrict access to professional practice are these days seen as anti-consumer and anti-competitive. In reality, the vast majority of those working in engineering in this country have appropriate qualifications and/or training, though many would not meet the standards required for professional registration. While it is true that relatively few employers require that their engineers and engineering technicians become registered, a growing number now encourage and support the practice.

Notwithstanding the legal and political situation, the Engineering Council UK works to gain greater recognition, both legal and public, for the standing of UK registered engineers. It works closely with the Health and Safety Executive on advice to employers on the use of registered engineers, and with employers' and employees' associations to promote better understanding of the value of employing registered engineers and technicians.

The registered titles 'Chartered Engineer' 'Incorporated Engineer' and 'Engineering Technician', and their related designatory letters (CEng, IEng and EngTech), are protected by civil law. The Engineering Council UK and its licensed engineering institutions take legal action through the courts against anyone who falsely claims to hold any of these titles.

Statutory recognition of engineers would mean that no one could practise engineering unless they were licensed or registered to do so. However, if the functions performed by engineers are to be controlled by statute, they would have to be clearly defined – something that has proved impossible, except for a few specific occupations (eg, dam designers, certificated marine engineers and mining engineers). It is worth noting that a person doesn’t have to be a doctor to carry out medical procedures, as long as he or she has the consent of the patient. Similarly, it is not necessary to be a registered lawyer – or have any form of qualification – to dispense legal advice.

In most of Europe professional engineers hold the title 'ingenier', or similar. Legal protection of these titles has been possible because they have a different, less general meaning than the word 'engineer'. In other english-speaking countries, like Australia and the USA, the situation is the same as in the UK. If eligible, UK engineers may register as European Engineers and use the pre-nominal Eur Ing (which is recognized as a formal title that may be used on official documentation, including passports). Some 15,000 Chartered Engineers have chosen to do this.

The word 'engineer' has been in common use in this country for many years and is widely understood to mean anyone whose work relates to engineering - particularly manufacture or maintenance. Consequently there is no prospect of the engineering profession gaining exclusive rights to the term and thus preventing others from using it.

UK-SPEC is the UK Standard for Professional Engineering Competence. It specifies the competences that an individual must have to become a Chartered Engineer, Incorporated Engineer or Engineering Technician. Introduced in 2003, it greatly clarified the criteria for registration and has been fully endorsed by the profession.