Overseas qualified practitioners

Dental practitioners with overseas qualifications who wish to apply for registration with the Dental Board of Australia should refer to the following material. Further information is also available on the Overseas practitioners page on the AHPRA website.

As of 4 February 2015, a new process applies for checking criminal history outside of Australia. This new approach requires certain applicants and registered practitioners to apply for an international criminal history check from an approved supplier. For more information, please refer to the international criminal history page on the AHPRA website.

General registration

The following document provides broad information about which overseas qualified dental practitioners may apply for general registration:

• General Registration for Overseas-qualified Dental Practitioners Registration Standard (321 KB,PDF)

Refer to the following sections for registration pathways for specific information on each dental practitioner division:

• dentists
• dental specialists 
• dental hygienists, dental therapists and oral health therapists
• dental prosthetists 

Limited registration

A dental practitioner who is not qualified for general registration may be eligible to apply for limited registration. The following documents provide information about limited registration for overseas qualified dental practitioners:

• Limited Registration for Postgraduate Training or Supervised Practice Registration Standard (282 KB,PDF)
• Limited Registration for Teaching or Research (Section 69) Registration Standard (276 KB,PDF)
• Dental Guidelines on Supervision 

Pathways for limited registration for postgraduate training or supervised practice

There are two different purposes of this type of limited registration:

1. Supervised practice – which for dental practitioners is practising only under supervision and either:
   • in an employment relationship with an appropriate public sector program (Please note that this pathway will close on 1 January 2020. More information about this is available in the Dentists section) or
   • enrolment in one or more of the following for the purpose of gaining registration in Australia:
     • an Australian Dental Council (ADC) clinical examination
     • a clinical training or assessment program in preparation for an ADC clinical examination, or
     •  another examination required by the Board for registration under section 53(c) of the National Law.

   An application form is available in the Forms section.

2. Postgraduate training – enrolment in an approved postgraduate program of study (more information about Approved Programs of Study can be found under the Accreditation section).

Pathways for limited registration for teaching or research

Overseas qualified practitioners wishing to fill a teaching or research position can apply for this type of limited registration. An application form is available in the Forms section.