The Michigan Board of Dentistry is the state body, housed within the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), that licenses dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, and dental therapists, sets the continuing education rules those licensees must follow, and disciplines practitioners who violate the Public Health Code. Its authority comes from Act 368 of 1978, and the practical consequences of its decisions reach from a first-time applicant’s exam schedule all the way to a $250,000 fine or a permanently revoked license.
What the Board Controls
The Board develops the practice rules codified in the Michigan Administrative Code, evaluates applicant credentials, approves continuing education providers, and initiates disciplinary proceedings when complaints arise. It is made up of general dentists, specialty-certified dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, a dental therapist seat added by a 2018 amendment, and public members.1Michigan Legislature. MCL – Section 333.16621
Michigan law prohibits anyone from practicing dentistry, dental hygiene, or dental assisting without a license or other authorization under the Public Health Code.2Michigan Legislature. MCL – Section 333.16611 That makes the Board the gatekeeper for every chair in the state.
Getting Licensed as a Dentist in Michigan
Licensure moves through several gates in sequence. Miss one and the file stops.
Education and the Written Exam
You need a DDS or DMD from a dental program that meets the Board’s educational standards. After graduation, you must pass the Integrated National Board Dental Examination (INBDE), which replaced the older two-part National Board Dental Examinations.3Michigan Legislature. Dentistry – General Rules The INBDE is scored pass/fail. Passing candidates get no numeric score. If you fail, you must wait at least 90 days before retesting, and after a third failure the waiting period jumps to one year.4JCNDE.org. INBDE Facts for State Boards
Clinical Exam
Michigan requires a clinical examination for hands-on skills. The state accepts the ADEX exam conducted by the Commission on Dental Competency Assessments-Western Regional Examining Board (CDCA-WREB), or another regional testing agency the Board recognizes.3Michigan Legislature. Dentistry – General Rules One trap for applicants arriving from other states: the Central Regional Dental Testing Service (CRDTS) exam is not accepted in Michigan.5CRDTS. CRDTS – Examinations If that is what you took, you will need an accepted clinical exam before you can apply here.
Background Check and Good Moral Character
Every applicant submits fingerprints for a criminal background check under MCL 333.16174.3Michigan Legislature. Dentistry – General Rules You must disclose prior disciplinary actions, malpractice claims, and criminal history. A past issue does not automatically disqualify you. The Board asks whether you can currently serve the public in a fair and honest manner.6State of Michigan. Michigan Dentist Specialty Licensing Guide
Specialty Licenses
Michigan recognizes 12 dental specialties, including endodontics, oral and maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics, prosthodontics, dental anesthesiology, dental public health, oral and maxillofacial radiology and pathology, oral medicine, and orofacial pain. To practice in any of them you must hold a general Michigan dentist license first, then apply separately for the specialty license. Each specialty requires graduation from a CODA-approved training program and the relevant national board exam. For a few specialties, including dental anesthesiology and oral and maxillofacial radiology, applicants who have not taken the standard board exam can petition the Board for a credential review instead.6State of Michigan. Michigan Dentist Specialty Licensing Guide
Renewal, CE, and Lapsed Licenses
Michigan dental licenses renew on a three-year cycle. The current renewal fee for a dentist is $296.40.7State of Michigan. License Renewal Fees You must complete the continuing education, pay the fee, and confirm compliance on the renewal application.
Dentists need at least 60 hours of Board-approved continuing education per cycle, with carved-out minimums inside that total:8Legal Information Institute. Michigan Administrative Code R 338.11701 – License Renewal for a Dentist
- At least 3 hours in pain and symptom management, covering topics such as pharmacology, drug interactions, stress management, or the psychology of pain.
- At least 20 hours in clinical issues directly related to delivery of care, dental materials, or pharmacology.
- At least 1 hour in infection control, which must cover sterilization of handpieces, personal protective equipment, and CDC infection control guidelines.
Keep your course completion records on file. The Board audits a percentage of renewals and will ask for documentation. Hours earned through volunteer dental services do not count toward the pain management, clinical issues, or infection control minimums.
If your license lapses, the reinstatement path depends on how long it has been expired. Licenses lapsed for less than three years have the lightest requirements; those lapsed three to five years, or five or more, face escalating hurdles including additional fingerprint submission and potentially retaking examinations.3Michigan Legislature. Dentistry – General Rules A license that was suspended or revoked, rather than simply lapsed, takes a formal reinstatement application, a criminal background check, at least two notarized affidavits attesting to your good moral character and ability to practice safely, and evidence that you complied with all terms of the original discipline order.9State of Michigan. Application for Reinstatement of Suspended or Revoked License The Board weighs whether reinstatement serves the public interest, so approval is not automatic.
What Triggers Discipline, and What It Costs
MCL 333.16221 lists the grounds for discipline, and the list is broader than many licensees expect.10Michigan Legislature. MCL – Section 333.16221 The categories that come up most often:
- Negligence or failure to exercise due care, which covers not just your own clinical errors but also negligent delegation to or supervision of employees, whether or not the patient was actually injured.
- Incompetence, treated as a separate ground from negligence and addressing fundamental inability to practice at an acceptable level.
- Substance use disorder, when it impairs or may impair the ability to practice safely.
- Criminal convictions, including felonies, certain misdemeanors involving controlled substances or health care fee fraud, and specific sex offenses.
- Lack of good moral character, evaluated case by case.
- Adverse action in another jurisdiction. A certified copy of another state’s discipline, or a federal agency’s, is conclusive evidence in Michigan.10Michigan Legislature. MCL – Section 333.16221
Once misconduct is established, the Board’s disciplinary subcommittee can impose a reprimand, probation, suspension, revocation, or a fine. For violations involving negligence or personal disqualifications under MCL 333.16221(a) or (b), the maximum fine is $250,000 per violation. If the violation causes a patient’s death, there is a mandatory minimum fine of $25,000.11Michigan Legislature. MCL – Section 333.16226 Severe cases involving gross negligence that harms patients can result in permanent revocation.
When the Board receives a complaint, it opens an investigation. If sufficient evidence exists, a formal hearing lets the accused practitioner present a defense. Being under open investigation can itself affect your standing, because other states may ask about pending complaints when processing applications.
Discipline does not stay inside Michigan. State dental boards must report adverse licensure actions to the National Practitioner Data Bank within 30 days. Reportable actions include revocation, suspension, reprimand, censure, probation, and surrendering a license while a proceeding is pending.12National Practitioner Data Bank. What You Must Report to the NPDB Malpractice insurers must report any payment made on your behalf within the same 30-day window. Those reports follow you nationally and surface whenever another state board, hospital, or health plan queries the database.
Scope Boundaries That Commonly Trip People Up
Sedation and Anesthesia
Administering sedation beyond nitrous oxide requires additional credentials. A general dentist who does not hold a specialty license in dental anesthesiology or oral and maxillofacial surgery cannot provide general anesthesia or deep sedation alone. They may collaborate with a physician anesthesiologist, oral surgeon, or nurse anesthetist in a dental office, but only if the dentist and all directly involved staff hold current BLS for Healthcare Providers certification with a hands-on component.13Legal Information Institute. Michigan Administrative Code R 338.11601 – General Anesthesia, Deep Sedation Registered dental assistants and registered dental hygienists may not adjust medication levels during procedures, except for nitrous oxide and oxygen.
Delegation to Assistants and Hygienists
You can delegate a range of procedures, but the required supervision level varies by procedure and by the credential of the person doing the work. Supervision falls into three categories: assignment (the broadest autonomy, available for registered dental assistants), general supervision (the dentist authorizes the work but need not be present), and direct supervision (the dentist must be in the office and available). A registered dental assistant can take radiographs, apply sealants and fluoride, place and remove dental dams, and fabricate temporary restorations under assignment. A dental assistant performing the same tasks typically needs general or direct supervision. Higher-risk procedures such as cementing orthodontic bands require direct supervision even for registered dental assistants.
Informed Consent
Before treatment, you must explain the procedure, risks, benefits, and alternatives in terms the patient can understand. The patient must be mentally capable of giving consent, and for patients under 18 a parent or legal guardian must provide it. For telehealth dental services, you must confirm the patient understands they are being treated remotely, identify yourself and your credential type, and explain the capabilities and limitations of telemedicine. The patient can decline telehealth at any time.14Legal Information Institute. Michigan Administrative Code R 338.11613 – Consent, Scope of Practice Document consent in the record. Poor documentation is a red flag during Board investigations and can support a negligence or malpractice claim on its own.
Federal Rules Sitting Alongside Your Michigan License
A state license is not the whole picture. Three federal regimes carry their own penalties and operate independently of the Board.
Any dentist who prescribes, dispenses, or administers controlled substances must hold a valid DEA registration. The registration runs three years at a fee of $888 set in a 2020 rulemaking.15Federal Register. Registration and Reregistration Fees for Controlled Substance and List I Chemical Registrants Prescribing without a current registration is a federal offense entirely separate from state discipline.
Dental practices that transmit any health information electronically are HIPAA-covered entities. The Security Rule requires administrative, physical, and technical safeguards for electronic patient records. Violations can bring federal fines or criminal prosecution depending on whether the breach was accidental or willful. Electronic billing, digital records, and routine email usually trigger coverage, so this reaches nearly every practice.
Dentists who bill federal programs like Medicaid face exposure under the federal False Claims Act for fraudulent claims. Civil penalties range from $5,000 to over $10,000 per false claim, plus treble damages, meaning three times the amount the government lost.16eCFR. 20 CFR 429.211 – Are There Any Penalties for Filing False Claims A practice that upcodes procedures or bills for services not rendered can accumulate serious liability very quickly under that formula.