Registration Renewal - IMPORTANT

The first registration renewal process to be administered under the new national system is due to occur over the coming weeks.  Dentists should receive renewal letters over the next week or so.  AHPRA has published new FAQ sheets on registration and renewal on their homepage.

Key differences from the previous processes in Victoria are an earlier deadline of 30 November and a shorter period of grace if you miss the deadline.  You now have only one extra month to renew before being removed from the Register (previously 3 months).

If you are removed from the Register you will be able to use a 'fast track' process rather than facing up to 90 days which can apply to a new registration.  It is not yet clear how much faster than 90 days the fast track process may be.  What is clear though is that a practitioner who practices while not being on the Register may face unprofessional conduct charges and other disciplinary action.

An unregistered person who holds themselves out to be registered would be in breach of provisions in the National Law, and may also breach Medicare regulations, Drugs and Poisons regulations, Radiation Safety regulations, hospital credentialing requirements and various other obligations.

Dentists who have been used to renewing their registration by 31 December each year may not have noticed that the deadline is a month earlier, and that the period of grace for late renewal now ends on 31 December, the same day that renewal was previously due.

This year, in recognition of the potential confusion, AHPRA will not charge a late fee for renewals occurring during the one month grace period.  However in future a late fee of $275 will apply during the grace period.  This is much more expensive than the late fee that previously applied in Victoria.  If you miss renewal before the end of the grace period your application to return to the Register will involve an additional fee.

Registration renewal is one clerical task that all members should make a high priority for prompt attention.