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Graduates of an accredited dental assisting program in BC who have successfully completed the National Dental Assisting Examining Board (NDAEB) written exam are eligible for certification with BCCOHP.
Graduates from a non-accredited dental assisting program in BC must successfully complete both the written and clinical portions of the NDAEB exam to be eligible for certification with BCCOHP. Visit the NDAEB website for more information.
NOTE: As part of the application process, applicants will have to undergo a criminal record check (CRC) process conducted by the Ministry of Public Safety & Solicitor General. BCCOHP will send your CRC to the Ministry on your behalf for processing after you submit your initial payment and your notarized copy of your government-issued photo ID.
If you would like to check on the status of your criminal record check, please contact the Ministry at 1-855-587-0185 (press option 2). You can also find more information on the Ministry’s website here.
Click on the category below for the application registration package or link. To learn more about the certification categories, please visit the CDA certification classes page.
Those coming from outside of BC will need to complete a certification assessment to determine eligibility before proceeding to certification applications.
Dental assistants from outside of British Columbia may be eligible for BCCOHP certification pending an assessment of your credentials.
CDAs certified in another Canadian jurisdiction recognized under the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), are eligible to apply for an assessment to practice in British Columbia. All information required for assessment are noted in the application instructions and forms.
After the assessment process, and once your eligibility has been determined, you will need to apply for CDA certification. If you are currently or have previously been registered in another Canadian jurisdiction, BCCOHP requires a Certificate of Standing from that jurisdiction for your application for CDA certification.
The Certificate of Standing is valid for up to 60 days from the date that it was signed. If you do not have your certification process completed within the 60 days, a new Certificate will be required.
For more information on the BC’s Labour Mobility Act, please visit their website here.
For more information on the CFTA click here.
Graduates of dental assisting programs in the United States and/or internationally-trained dental healthcare professionals who have National Dental Assisting Examining Board (NDAEB) certificate may be eligible for BCCOHP certification pending an assessment of your credentials.
Please complete and submit the CDA Assessment Application Package (PDF).
If you have questions about applying for assessment, please contact the Registration Department.
If you completed your dental education outside of British Columbia, please click here for information about certified dental assistant certification.
This certification category is for individuals who have graduated from a level II dental assisting program from an accredited program and have a NDAEB Certificate.
This online application process will allow you to open a web account and submit the required information for your full certification with BCCOHP.
If you have not been certified with BCCOHP, you will need to create a new account. Click on “Create Account“ to start the application process. You will be required to enter your contact information.
You will require the following information to complete the online application form:
Once the application information forms have been completed, you will be prompted to pay the application and criminal record check fees (non-refundable).
Note: A separate payment of the certification fee will be required once BCCOHP staff have confirmed application completion.
Payment options are as follows:
Once you have completed the application, you will be able to upload required documents.
For all documents that require notarization, the original must be received by the BCCOHP office. At this time, we ask that you send via mail rather than delivering in person. For our mailing address, please visit our contact page.
*If the applicant is currently registered/certified to practise dentistry in another Canadian jurisdiction, submission of these documents is not required.
**If confirmation of successful completion is provided to BCCOHP by your educational institution or the NDAEB, notarization of these documents is not required during submission.
IMPORTANT: If you have ever been or are currently registered/licensed in another province or country, please contact that provincial or national regulatory body to request a Certificate of Standing or Letter of Standing for your BCCOHP application. The certificate must be delivered directly to BCCOHP from the licensing/regulating body in a sealed envelope.
The certificate is valid for up to 60 days from the date that it was signed. If an applicant does not have their registration/certification process completed within 60 days, a new certificate will be required.
Once all the required documents are received and your application is ready to be finalized, you will receive an email notification to make your final payment. You will need to log in to your account and pay for the certification fee. View the list of CDA fees on Schedule A.
Once your certification fee has been processed, you will be sent an email from BCCOHP within three to five business days confirming that your status has been changed to active.
You cannot practise until you receive a certification confirmation email.
This category of certification is for graduates of dental assisting/dental programs outside of British Columbia who are working towards the satisfaction of the requirements for certification as a full CDA in BC.
Application for and completion of an assessment of credentials by BCCOHP is required to determine eligibility for this certification. If you have any questions or would like more information on how to apply for this certification, please use our contact form to get in touch.
This certification category is for the dental assistant who has graduated from an accredited level II certified dental assisting program within BC, but has yet to write the NDAEB. The temporary certification allows the graduate to provide the services of a full CDA while waiting to complete the NDAEB written exam.
Please note: You will be required to apply for Full Certification once you received your NDAEB certificate. Please contact the Registration Department at registration@oralhealthbc.ca for information.
This online application process will allow you to open a web account and submit the required information for your certification with BCCOHP.
If you have not been certified with BCCOHP, you will need to create a new account. Click on Create Account to start the application process. You will be required to enter your contact information.
You will require the following information to complete the online application form:
Once the application information forms have been completed you will be prompted to pay the application and criminal record check fees (non-refundable).
Note: A separate payment of the certification fee will be required once BCCOHP staff have confirmed application completion.
Payment options are as follows:
Once you have completed the application, you will be able to upload the required documents.
For all documents that require notarization, the original must be received by the BCCOHP office. At this time, we ask that you send via mail rather than delivering in person. For our mailing address, please visit our contact page.
*If the applicant is currently registered/certified to practise dentistry in another Canadian jurisdiction, submission of these documents is not required.
†If confirmation of successful completion is provided to BCCOHP by your educational institution or the NDAEB, notarization of these documents is not required during submission.
IMPORTANT: If you have ever been or are currently registered/licensed in another province or country, please contact that provincial or national regulatory body to request a Certificate of Standing or Letter of Standing for your BCCOHP application. The certificate must be delivered directly to BCCOHP from the licensing/regulating body in a sealed envelope.
The certificate is valid for up to 60 days from the date that it was signed. If an applicant does not have their certification process completed within 60 days, a new certificate will be required.
Once all the required documents are received and your application is ready to be finalized, you will receive an email notification to make your final payment. You will need to log in to your account and pay for the certification fee. View the list of CDA fees on page three of Schedule A.
Once your certification fee has been processed, you will be sent an email from BCCOHP within three to five business days confirming that your status has been changed to active.
You cannot practise until you receive a certification confirmation email.
An extension is available to CDAs who currently hold limited or temporary certification and want to submit a request to extend certification.
Should your temporary or limited certification expire you must re-apply for certification. Please contact the registration department.
This designation is available to CDAs who have successfully completed a recognized dental prosthodontic module at an accredited program.
This designation is available to CDAs who have successfully completed a recognized dental orthodontic module at an accredited program.
CDAs who have successfully completed a recognized dental sedation assistant program have their designation recognized by the College. Sedation designation and the program attended will appear on CDA profiles in the Registrant Lookup and on certification cards. Please contact us via our contact form for more information about how to have this designation recognized.
This designation is available to applicants who have successfully completed a recognized dental radiography module at an accredited program in Canada.