The New Zealand Institute of Dental Technologists (NZIDT) is a professional network which facilitates the advancement of dental technology.

Our primary aim is to support the professional development of clinical and non- clinical dental technicians, and students.

On this page, you can find out about:

The Dental Council is the regulatory body that is a government appointed body. The main function of the Council is to protect the public and to oversee registration.

The Dental Council role is to:

  • ensure that undergraduate and postgraduate programmes leading to dental registration meet acceptable national and international standards
  • set the clinical, cultural and ethical standards that oral health practitioners must adhere to
  • authorise the registration of practitioners and considering applications for annual practising certificates
  • establish systems and processes to ensure that practitioners maintain competence throughout their practising lives
  • promote the health of practitioners and developing programmes for health-impaired practitioners to ensure a speedy return to practice while assuring public safety
  • deal with practitioners whose competence or fitness to practise has been called into question

Disciplining of practitioners is not a Council function. This is carried out by the separate and independent Health Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal.

Excerpt from a letter from DCNZ dated 24 March 2010

‘In order to register an overseas qualified dental technician, the Dental Technician Board must be satisfied that the dental technician [s15 Health Practitioners Competence Assurance Act 2003 (Link to Legislation,   Link to Ministry of Health)]:

  1. holds a prescribed or equivalent qualification
  2. is fit for registration
  3. is competent to practice dental technology.

Applicants with an overseas dental technology qualification may apply for registration and assessment of their qualification as compared to the prescribed qualification. Where the Board is unable to be satisfied of the applicant’s competence to practise, it may require the applicant to sit and pass an examination.

It is therefore open to overseas trained/qualified dental technicians to apply for registration and seek assessment of their qualification. Consideration of their application will not only include an assessment of their qualification, but also consideration of their fitness and competence to practise.

Application forms and further information are available on the Dental Council website

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