Learn more about the Canadian Dental Care Plan

What You Need to Apply

This section is intended to provide practical guidance on the documents an applicant may need to demonstrate that they have met the registration requirements. A full list of the documents an applicant is required to submit in support of their application will be available in the RCDSO portal.

All applicants should review the following before submitting your application.

NDEB Certificate

Applicants are not required to submit a copy of their NDEB certificate. RCDSO staff can verify this information directly on the NDEB website.

Applicants may submit their application before receiving an NDEB certificate number, but registration cannot be completed until after a certificate number has been issued by the NDEB.

Ethics & Jurisprudence Course

Successful completion of the College’s online Ethics & Jurisprudence course.

  • Register under the Applicant/Non-Member section.
  • The course may be taken in more than one sitting. Save your location each time to allow you to continue from the same spot.
  • The passing grade is set at 60%.

Applicants do not need to submit evidence of their completion. Staff will verify this information directly on the course website.

Students who have completed an Ethics course as part of their dental program are still required to take the RCDSO’s online Ethics course.

Proof of education

  • A copy of your original university dental degree OR a letter from the dean certifying the date of graduation
  • A copy of the accredited advanced standing/completion program degree (if applicable)
  • If you completed an internship, house job, specialty program or other residency , submit a copy of the completion certificate.
    • If the program was completed after the date of graduation (as indicated on the diploma) we will require additional documentation. See Certificate of Standing below.

      Proof of language proficiency

      For applicants that graduated from a non-accredited program and go through the NDEB Equivalency Process, you are required to provide evidence of language proficiency. Read more about our language requirements in our language proficiency policy.

      Citizenship and immigration documents

      If you are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, you must submit:

      • a copy of a Canadian passport, birth certificate, citizenship card or certificate (both sides), or proof of permanent residency (both sides of PR card or signed Landing Papers)

      If you are not a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, you must submit:

      • a copy of the authorization issued by Immigration Canada which permits you to work in Canada through the practice of dentistry.

      Certificate of Standing

      If you are or were licensed as a dentist or practised dentistry in another jurisdiction in Canada or in another country, you must request:

      • A Certificate of Standing completed by the regulatory authority for each jurisdiction where you practised or been granted the right to practice dentistry.

      Certificates of Standing must be sent directly from the issuing body to the RCDSO by e-mail to registration@rcdso.org. Scans of the document submitted by the applicant will not be accepted.

       Proof of change of name

      The name on your dental degree or diploma must match the name on your application. If there is a difference in name, you must submit a copy of one of the following documents:

      • Legal name change certificate
      • Marriage certificate
      • Divorce decree

      If the name on your dental degree is different than the name you are applying with, or if your name differs between documents, but is not due to a legal name change, you may be required to submit a sworn name affidavit attesting to the name change. A lawyer or Notary can assist with standard wording for a Name Affidavit in which you attest whether all of the names refer to one and the same person.