ADA Raises Serious Concerns Over Proposed Changes to Registration Pathways

The Australian Dental Association (ADA) has significant concerns about the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) and National Boards’ consultation on streamlined registration pathways for experienced internationally qualified practitioners, including dentistry.

The ADA are deeply concerned that the proposed changes risk lowering safeguards and undermining the rigorous standards that protect patient safety and public confidence in the dental profession. The ADA does not support changes that weaken existing assessment frameworks or dilute the robust protections currently in place.

The proposed changes are based on the premise that there are not enough dentists in Australia. The ADA argues that there is a maldistribution issue, not a supply issue. This proposal will not deliver for regional Australia.

The ADA is actively and strongly advocating on this issue. We are engaging directly with Ahpra and the Dental Board of Australia, raising concerns about the potential impacts on clinical standards, regulatory oversight, and fairness to ADC graduates, existing ADC candidates, and to domestically trained practitioners. In parallel, the ADA will write to the Minister for Health and is advocating across Parliament, making it clear that any reform must prioritise patient safety, transparency, and professional integrity.

To inform our advocacy, the ADA is urgently gathering member input to support a strong, evidence-based submission. We encourage members to share their views, experiences and concerns so that the profession’s collective voice is clearly heard. Please contribute to contact@ada.org.au or https://peer.org.au/home/memberhome.