Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average waiting time is for the Overseas Registration Exam.

The General Dental Council (GDC) is the independent regulator of dentists and dental care professionals practising in the United Kingdom, and enforces the standards to which they must adhere. This includes operating the Overseas Registration Exam (ORE) through which overseas-qualified dentists, whose qualifications are not recognised for the purpose of achieving full GDC registration, can demonstrate that they have sufficient skill and knowledge to join the register. The Department does not hold data on the average waiting time for overseas qualified dentists waiting to take the ORE, as this data is held by the GDC.