Due to limited staff resources, the Board only reviews CE certificates at the time of an audit or when a licensee chooses to change the license status from inactive or retired to active status. To verify a provider, see section Verifying Registered CE Providers. You may contact the Board at (916) 263-1978 to speak with Board's Continuing Education Analyst for specific questions or fill out the online inquiry with any CE questions at Contact Us.

No. A live, in-person practice session, skills test and written examination is required to complete the BLS course. If the written examination is completed online the course is incomplete until the live, in-person practice session and skills test has been demonstrated. All CPR/BLS courses that are 100% online will not be accepted.

If you need assistance in retrieving your BLS pocket card or eCard, please contact the CE Provider directly.  A copy of your card will be required as proof of CE completion for a CE audit.

A licensee who fails to retain a copy of a CE course completion certificate should contact the CE provider for a duplicate copy of the certificate. Email confirmations, receipts, attendance sheets, or screenshots will not be accepted. If a duplicate CE course completion certificate cannot be obtained, the licensee will not receive CE credit for completion. Any CE certificates found to be submitted fraudulently may place the dental hygiene license in jeopardy and may result in further board action.

Any CE courses completed prior or after your CE audit renewal period will not be accepted towards the selected CE audit period. Continue to submit your CE certificates, including a copy of your Basic Life Support card, even if you have any deficiencies in units. If you do not have any CE certificates to submit for review, provide a letter of explanation. A deficiency in CE course completion for a CE audit will lead to further Board action. It is the licensee’s responsibility to ensure all required CE hours are completed within the designated time frame allowed (2 years) and by an approved CE provider prior to the license expiration date.

Failure of a CE audit will result in Board administrative or disciplinary action that may lead to a citation and fine. The determination of a fine amount cannot be provided during the audit process because the Citation and Fine process is the purview of the Enforcement Unit. However, licensees will be notified of this information through their address of record. There will be an opportunity to respond to the notice, once received. To avoid any enforcement action being taken against your license, including but not limited to the issuance of a citation and fine, you must satisfy the required number of continuing education units biennially for your license/permit type, as outlined in Title 16, CCR §1016, §1016.2 and §1017.

 Not all instructors are the primary CE Provider when conducting a course, so searching for them by name or license number may not produce any results. When verifying CE courses, either a Dental Board of CA’s Registered CE Provider Permit Number, a PACE logo with a provider ID number, or a CERP logo with the business name is stated. This will help you determine who the CE Provider is before verifying the course.

Yes; however, a licensee who changes their name shall provide the Board with documentation of the name change within 10 days by law (BPC § 1934). If there is no record of a name change, your certificates will not be accepted.

A licensee who changes their physical address of record or email address shall notify the Board within 30 days of the address change by law ( BPC § 1934 ). Contact the Board's CE Audit Analyst for additional direction.

No. All required CE units must be completed within the preceding two-year period prior to the license expiration date by law (BPC §1936.1). Any additional CE hours completed beyond the required amount to renew the license within a specific 2-year period does not carry-over to the next license renewal period.

If you hold a Current-Active license you may receive credit for up to 20% of the total required CE units per renewal period for the course or course(s) you teach for a provider other than yourself by law (Title 16, CCR §1016(h)(5)).

CCR §1017(i) Licensees who provide direct patient care as an unpaid volunteer at a free public health care event or non-profit community health clinic shall be issued continuing education credit of one unit per hour of providing unpaid volunteer dental services to patients, for up to three units of their total continuing education unit requirements for license renewal. Units of credit may be issued in half hour increments.

Current and active licensees enrolled in a full-time educational program in the field of dentistry, including dental school program, residency program, postdoctoral specialty program, dental hygiene school program, dental hygiene in alternative practice program, or registered dental assisting in extended functions program approved by the Board or the ADA Commission on Dental Accreditation shall be granted continuing education credits for completed curriculum during that renewal period. In the event of audit, licensees shall be required to present school transcripts to the Board as evidence of enrollment and course completion. Title 16 CCR 1017(s).

In the event of an audit, a licensee must:

• Be enrolled in a full-time educational program in the field of dentistry during the timeframe of the audit.
• Required to complete the mandatory CE courses; CA Dental Practice Act, Infection Control and CPR/BLS within the timeframe of the audit.
• Present school transcripts to the Board as evidence of enrollment and course completion.

Please note that a Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene Completion program is a program where licensees complete all of their remaining requirements for obtaining a Bachelor’s degree (remaining core curriculum) after completing their RDH program. These courses are not related to dental hygiene (usually general education courses such as philosophy, psychology, etc.) and would not apply as CE credit courses.