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Restoring your name to the register


​If you're no longer registered and you would like to practise in the UK again, you will need to apply for restoration to the register. You may have been removed from the register due to working abroad, taking a career break, or not completing your annual renewal.

Dentists or dental care professionals (DCPs) who want to apply for restoration can access the online application process via eGDC, by selecting the option 'Log in to eGDC' or 'New to eGDC'. When you have completed the online application process, you will be issued with a personalised application form to download, print, sign, and submit along with your supporting documents.

Alternatively, you can complete the relevant application form below to be restored to the register (instructions are included on the front cover):

You will also need to pay the restoration fee.

If you have been off the register for 12 months or more (or previously been removed for not complying with CPD requirements), you will also need to send CPD evidence, which will include:

  • verifiable CPD certificates 
  • CPD activity log, detailing the activities you've completed
  • Personal Development Plan (PDP).

We have produced templates to help you with these  CPD supporting documents.

You may also need to send a certificate of current professional status and change of details form.

Reasonable adjustments

Reasonable adjustments are available to applicants who might find using the online eGDC route to registration difficult.

Please contact us to request a reasonable adjustment.

How much restoration costs depends on when you wish to restore your name to the Register. If you return your restoration form to us in the two months before the annual retention fee for your profession is due, you will also need to include this in your payment. This will ensure you are registered for the following registration year. 
 

You will need to make a CPD declaration. If you have been off the register for 12 months or more, or you have previously been removed from the register for not complying with CPD requirements, you will also need to submit a CPD record and supporting evidence with your application for restoration.

The requirements for  CPD records are as follows:

  • You have been off the register for less than 12 months and not previously been removed for not complying with CPD requirements: you will need to make a declaration about the CPD you have completed.
  • You have been off the register for more than 12 months, but less than five years, and not previously been removed for not complying with CPD requirements: you will need to submit evidence of verifiable CPD completed since the start of your current cycle, which will include verifiable CPD certificates, your CPD activity log and your Personal Development Plan (PDP).
  • You have been off the register for more than five years, or have been removed from the register for not complying with CPD requirements at any time: you will need to submit five years of verifiable CPD evidence, which will include verifiable CPD certificates, your CPD activity log and your PDP.

Our  guidance on completing CPD and  supporting document templates to help you.

Once you are restored to the register, we may carry out an audit at any time during your CPD cycle. If you’re selected for an audit, you’ll be asked to submit your CPD record for the completed part of current your cycle. We may carry out an audit of your CPD record for up to five years after it is completed, so please make sure you retain it.

 

You will need to provide a Certificate of Good Standing (CGS)/Current Professional Status (CCPS) if you have been practising overseas during the time you have been off the register. This should be from the relevant authority of the country or state in which you last practised. For more information, see Certificate of Good Standing.
If you have been registered by the GDC and then you leave the register for whatever reason, including if you have failed to pay the Annual Retention Fee, we must be satisfied that you have the necessary knowledge of English before we can restore your name to the register. In these circumstances we will apply the criteria for determining whether you have the necessary knowledge of English which is required for registration.
 
If you are a UK-qualified applicant returning to the register, you may not need to provide additional evidence or information if we are satisfied about your knowledge of English from your application. For further information visit our English language controls page

We endeavour to assess your application to be restored to the register within 15 working days from the date we receive it. However this timeframe can increase during peak processing times in January/February and August/September, and delays can also occur if the form is not completed correctly, necessary supporting evidence has not been supplied, and/or if there are any concerns raised within your application which will require us to assess it further before we can register you.

​If you were working in the UK while your name was erased from the register, you will need to explain the circumstances in a letter.  If this has occurred, you are advised to contact your solicitor or defence organisation before submitting your application.

Since 31 July 2006 when the Dentists Act 1984 was amended, the PCC has operated under two parallel legal systems. If a complaint was received by the GDC before 31 July 2006 then the case is considered under ‘old rules’; if it was received after 31 July 2006 then it is considered under ‘new rules’.

A dental professional whose name has been erased from the Register under the 'old rules' may apply for restoration to the Register 10 months after they have been erased. The applicant may also submit testimonials from persons of standing in support of the application. Under the ‘new rules' a dental professional may apply for restoration five years after they have been erased.

To assist the PCC in considering these applications, the GDC's solicitor first recalls the evidence which led to the erasure. The dental professional applying to be restored to the Register may then address the committee and call witnesses in support of the application. The applicant may be represented by counsel or a solicitor at the hearing.

Under the 'new rules' the PCC may decide to restore a practitioner's name subject to certain conditions. The committee may also decide to impose these conditions with immediate effect.