Determine Your Eligibility and Pathway
Before applying, determine whether you are seeking licensure as a general dentist or dental specialist and whether your dental program was recognized by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada when you graduated.
Your program’s accreditation status determines which pathway you must complete before applying for a provincial or territorial dental licence.
Are You a General Dentist or Dental Specialist?
General dentist
Use the general-dentistry pathway if you hold a BDS, DDS or DMD and want to practise as a general dentist in Canada. Continue below to determine whether your dental program was accredited or non-accredited.
Dental specialist
Specialist recognition follows a separate pathway. Internationally trained specialists may need to complete an accredited Dental Specialty Assessment and Training Program or International Dental Specialist Fellowship before becoming eligible for the Royal College of Dentists of Canada examination and provincial specialist registration.
View RCDC examination eligibility
Was Your Dental Program Accredited?
Accreditation applies to the individual dental program and the date you graduated. Do not classify a program only by the country where it is located.
Graduate of an accredited program
Your program is considered accredited if it was recognized by CDAC or through an accreditation agreement recognized by CDAC when you graduated.
Graduates of accredited general-dentistry programs can enter the NDEB Certification Process without completing the Equivalency Process.
Eligible students may apply to the Certification Process and take the Virtual OSCE as early as four months before completing an accredited dental or accredited degree-completion program. The NDEB certificate is issued only after graduation and completion of the proof-of-graduation requirements:
- Apply to the NDEB Certification Process.
- Pass the Virtual OSCE.
- Obtain NDEB certification.
- Apply to the dental regulator where you intend to practise.
Graduate of a non-accredited program
Your program is considered non-accredited if it awarded a BDS, DDS or DMD but was not recognized by CDAC when you graduated.
Graduates of non-accredited programs have three entry-to-practice options:
Option 1: NDEB Equivalency Process
Complete the Assessment of Fundamental Knowledge, Assessment of Clinical Judgement and NDECC. After completing the Equivalency Process, enter the Certification Process and pass the Virtual OSCE.
View the NDEB Equivalency Process
Option 2: Accredited degree-completion program
Canadian dental faculties may offer qualifying, advanced-standing or degree-completion programs. Admission is competitive and each university sets its own requirements. After graduating from the accredited DDS or DMD program, enter the Certification Process and take the Virtual OSCE; NDECC is not required after completing the accredited program.
View NDEB entry-to-practice education programs
Option 3: Accredited bridge training program
The Bridge Training to Dental Practice in Canada program is an in-person, university-based pathway for eligible graduates of non-accredited dental programs. It is not a DDS or DMD degree and is not a test-preparation course.
Graduates of accredited BTDPC cohorts beginning in 2026–27 can proceed to the Virtual OSCE without completing the NDECC.
For the 2026 cycle, applicants needed an eligible minimum four-year non-accredited dental degree; Canadian citizenship, permanent residence, Convention Refugee status or Protected Person status by the deadline; and AFK and ACJ passes obtained within 60 months of the application deadline. The second-cohort application closed February 28, 2026; check the ACFD page for future dates and criteria.
Key Considerations Before Proceeding
Choosing a national pathway does not determine Ontario registration. After obtaining NDEB certification, applicants must separately meet the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario requirements, including language proficiency, the Jurisprudence and Ethics course, legal authorization to work and the other registration conditions described on the Ontario page.