Arizona Dental License Renewal: CE, Fees, and Deadlines

An Arizona dental license renewal is due on or before the last day of your birth month every third year, and you file it online with the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners after completing your continuing education, paying the triennial fee, and submitting a citizenship affidavit. The same three-year birth-month cycle governs dentists, dental hygienists, dental therapists, and denturists.

When Your Renewal Is Due

Your application and fee must reach the board by the last day of your birth month in your renewal year. If you were born in September, your deadline is September 30. The license itself does not expire until 30 days after the end of your birth month, but that gap exists so the board can process timely applications. It is not a grace period.¹ The parallel statute for hygienists sets the same timeline.²

Miss the birth-month deadline and your license expires. Getting it back costs an extra $100 on top of the renewal fee.

Continuing Education You Need

Every licensee must complete the required CE hours during the 36 months leading up to the expiration month. Hours earned outside that window do not count. Totals and required topics depend on your license type.

Dentists

Dentists need 63 hours of recognized continuing dental education per renewal period. At least 36 of those hours must cover clinical and scientific subjects, including diagnosis and treatment planning, clinical procedures, managing medical emergencies, pain management, and dental public health.³ Within the 63 hours, specific topics are mandatory:

3 hours in infectious diseases or infection control
3 hours of CPR at the healthcare-provider level
3 hours of opioid-related education
3 hours in ethics or Arizona dental jurisprudence

These mandatory-topic hours count toward the 63-hour total, not in addition to it.⁴

Dental Hygienists

Hygienists need 45 hours per renewal period. At least 25 hours must fall in clinical areas such as periodontal disease, care of implants, radiology safety, managing medical emergencies, and pain management. No more than 11 hours can come from practice management and patient communication. At least 3 hours must cover ethics, risk management, Arizona dental jurisprudence, chemical dependency, or tobacco cessation.⁵

Approved Providers and Records

The board accepts courses from providers approved through the ADA’s Continuing Education Recognition Program (CERP) and the Academy of General Dentistry’s Program Approval for Continuing Education (PACE), along with other providers it recognizes. Keep your certificates. The board requires you to retain documentation for the most recently completed renewal period and can audit you.⁴ Discarding certificates after you file is the mistake that turns a routine audit into a real problem.

First-Time Renewal and CE Extensions

If you received your initial Arizona license within the year immediately preceding your expiration date, this is a first renewal and no CE affidavit is required. You check the first-renewal box in the application and skip the CE portion.⁶

If you are not a first-time renewer but are short on hours, you can submit a written extension request with your renewal application before the birth-month deadline. The board evaluates these under its rules and may grant additional time. If the board denies the request, your license expires 30 days after your birth month.¹

Fees and Documents

Triennial renewal fees set by board rule currently stand at:

Dentist: $650
Dental therapist: $375
Dental hygienist: $325
Denturist: $300

The board must review these amounts in a public meeting at least once every three years, so confirm the current figure on the board’s website before you pay.⁷

Along with the fee, you submit a Statement of Citizenship or lawful-presence documentation required under A.R.S. 41-1080. This same form applies across Arizona professional licensing, not just dental.⁸ You also complete the affidavit confirming you have met the CE requirements for the renewal period.

Filing Online

The board strongly encourages online submission through its renewal portal, with separate application links for dentists, dental therapists, hygienists, and denturists. The system walks you through personal information, citizenship status, and the CE affidavit, where you choose among affirming full compliance, requesting an extension, or marking the first-renewal exemption.⁴

After you complete the required fields and sign digitally, you pay the fee online. The board accepts Visa and MasterCard. Once the submission processes, your renewed status appears in the board’s online records.

If You Miss the Deadline

An expired license has a 24-month reinstatement window. During that period you can reinstate by submitting a complete renewal application, paying the full renewal fee, and paying an additional $100 penalty.¹ Reinstatement runs only through the remainder of your existing three-year period, not a fresh three years from the reinstatement date. If your cycle ends in 2027 and you reinstate in 2026, you still renew again in 2027.

After 24 months, reinstatement is no longer available. You have to reapply from scratch, through the full new-applicant process, which includes jurisprudence examination fees and credential review.⁷

While your license is expired, you cannot practice. Under A.R.S. 32-1261, practicing dentistry without a valid license, including practicing after expiration, is a class 6 felony in Arizona. That covers performing dental services, advertising dental services, or operating a dental practice without a current license. Class 6 is the lowest felony classification in the state, but it still carries possible prison time and a permanent criminal record, and the board can pursue separate disciplinary action that complicates any later reinstatement or reapplication.

Keep Your Address Current

Arizona law requires you to notify the board in writing within 10 days of changing your primary mailing address. Dentists must also report changes to their practice address and notify the board within 10 days of opening any additional practice location. Missing the 10-day window triggers a $50 penalty; after 30 days, the penalty rises to $100.² These penalties are automatic. Because renewal notices go to the address on file, an outdated one can also cause you to miss the deadline itself.

Retired and Disabled Status

If you have stopped practicing and do not plan to return to clinical work, you can apply for retired or disabled status. The triennial renewal fee drops to $15, and CE requirements are reduced to 24 hours for retired dentists and 18 hours for retired dental hygienists.⁴ Licensees with a permanent disability should contact board staff about their specific requirements, which may differ.

Retired and disabled licensees can still volunteer dental services at recognized charitable institutions and keep the classification.¹ The status prohibits regular clinical practice, and applying for it requires you to relinquish any prescribing privileges. Returning to active practice later means applying to restore full active licensure under the board’s current CE and application requirements.

1
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 32 Section 32-1236
2
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 32 Section 32-1287
3
Cornell Law School. Arizona Administrative Code R4-11-1203 – Dentists and Dental Consultants
4
State Board of Dental Examiners. Online License Renewal
5
Cornell Law School. Arizona Administrative Code R4-11-1204 – Dental Hygienists
6
State Board of Dental Examiners. Continuing Education Affidavits
7
Cornell Law School. Arizona Administrative Code R4-11-403 – Licensing Fees
8
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Revised Statutes Title 41 Section 41-1080