​Dentists Coming from Another Country

If you are an internationally trained dentist, registration with the College of Dental Surgeons of British Columbia (CDSBC) is required in order to be able to practise as a dentist in B.C. There are different classes of registrations for dentists. Please click here to see the list of the different classes along with the application forms.

In order to apply for registration and to practise as a dentist in BC, you must complete the national examination administered by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB). Your eligibility and path to sit the examination depends on whether you are a graduate of an accredited dental program or a non-accredited dental program. Please see below for information about the process for each.

Graduates of Accredited Dental Programs

Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland operate according to a mutually recognized system of accreditation of dental training. Graduates of an accredited dental program in Canadian, American, Australian (must have graduated on or after March 31, 2010), New Zealand (must have graduated on or after December 14, 2011) or Irish (must have graduated on or after December 5, 2012) schools are eligible to apply directly to sit the national examination administered by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB).

For more details about the accredited programs, visit www.ndeb-bned.ca/en/accredited.

Graduates of Non-Accredited Dental Programs

If your dental training was obtained outside of the above-noted jurisdictions, you must successfully complete either an accredited full-time, two-year Qualifying Program or the NDEB Equivalency Process. These are the two paths by which you can become eligible to take the Canadian national examinations administered by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB) – a requirement for all candidates.

Full details about the information above are available on the National Dental Examining Board of Canada's website at www.ndeb.ca.

I've completed the NDEB process, now what?

Once you've successfully completed the appropriate NDEB process and received your NDEB certificate, please visit our Dentist Registration section to find the appropriate CDSBC application package for you.