The information on this page is only relevant to you if:

• you have never been registered with the GDC before, and
• you are an exempt person, and
• you have obtained a qualification from overseas, and
• your qualification has been recognised by that EEA member state for full registration, and
• have been practising as a dentist in an EEA member state for at least three years.

Am I an exempt person?

Please check you meet the criteria of exempt person before continuing.

The EEA states are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden. For the purposes of registration with the GDC, Switzerland is treated as an EEA Member State.

How do I apply for registration?

 If you are a dentist who is:

• an exempt person, and
• has a primary dental qualification from overseas,
• have been working under full registration as a dentist in another EEA member state for at least 3 years

You can apply for assessment of your dental qualifications, knowledge and skill for registration.

What documents are required?

In addition to the completed application form, certified copies of your passport, Exempt Persons Status evidence, certified copy of your primary dental qualification, and Certificate of Good Standing, you will need:

• UK NARIC Statement of Comparability
• A full undergraduate syllabus for your primary dental training. In the first instance your undergraduate dental training will be considered against the requirements of EC Directive 2005/36/EC (the Directive). Without a full undergraduate syllabus we will not be able to consider your dental qualification and therefore your knowledge and skill for registration. The syllabus must be issued by the college/university and must be relevant to the period in which you undertook undergraduate dental training.
• A letter from the competent dental authority in the EEA member state you have been working as a dentist which confirms that you have effectively, lawfully and principally practised dentistry in that Member State for at least three years during the five years preceding the date of issue of the certificate.

If you require further information on this please contact the Dentist Casework Team by email at [email protected] or by phone on 020 7167 6100.

Please note, submitting incomplete or incorrect documents will delay the application process.

Contact details of EEA competent authorities (255.9 KB, PDF)

Please note that the above is not a complete list of the required documents, you will be sent a full list of documents required if an application pack is sent to you.

How long will the assessment take?

Once a complete application is submitted with all of the required supporting documentation, the GDC has a maximum 4 months from the date of a completed application to inform an applicant of the outcome of the assessment.

How do I request an application pack if I am able to demonstrate Exempt Person Status?

You can request an application pack online via eGDC by selecting 'Apply to Register' and completing our online proforma. Please note, you will be asked to complete the route to registration questionnaire. Once we have confirmed this is the right route to registration for you, we will send you an application form, guidance on how to complete the form and documentation required, and a frequently asked questions document.

When can I expect a response?

We will aim to process your Proforma within 1 month of receipt, in some instances where we will need to request advice from our Legal Team, this may require additional processing time.