Canada · Licensing examWho needs the NDAEB certificate
The NDAEB lists British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador as requiring its certificate for new dental assisting graduates who want to register or be licensed. In Ontario you need it to perform intra-oral (Level II) duties, and it doesn’t replace Ontario’s separate Healing Arts Radiation Protection (HARP) certificate.
The provincial dental assisting regulator decides, so the NDAEB tells you to confirm with the regulator where you’ll work. The certificate is a one-time award with no yearly renewal. The US Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) is a third, unrelated board.
How does the NDAEB Theory Exam work?
It’s a computer exam of 200 multiple-choice questions, many of them case-based, in English or French. You get up to four hours, and paper and pens aren’t allowed, though there’s an on-screen notepad. It’s held at sites across Canada and not outside it, and if your preferred site is full you may have to take it by online remote proctoring.
The pass mark changes with each version of the exam. The NDAEB sets it with the modified Angoff method, and its handbook says that on average it generally falls between the low and mid 60s%. Results arrive by email within six weeks and appear on the Candidate Portal.
You get three attempts. After three fails you can ask for a fourth, remedial attempt if you meet the NDAEB’s conditions; candidates who failed three times in the past five years may apply until December 31, 2026. Otherwise you retake a full dental assisting program.
| Theory Exam section | Share of questions |
|---|---|
| Ethical and legal practice | About 5% |
| Dental sciences | 7 to 12% |
| Clinical support procedures | 10 to 15% |
| Patient records | 10 to 12% |
| Patient care procedures | 40 to 50% |
| Practice management procedures | 5 to 10% |
| Preventive procedures | 15 to 20% |
The NDAEB practical exam: Clinical Practice Evaluation
The CPE checks nine skills on a manikin, and you get one re-attempt at each skill within the time allowed. To pass a skill you need an acceptable grade on every critical criterion, on the first or the second try. Evaluators don’t tell you during the exam whether you passed.
From January 1, 2026, graduates of programs not accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC) count as non-registered program graduates and pass the CPE first, then the Theory Exam. Graduates of registered non-accredited programs don’t need the CPE for the NDAEB certificate until December 31, 2030, though their provincial regulator may still require it. The nine skills are:
- Exposing digital radiographic images
- Taking preliminary impressions for study models
- Applying and removing a dental dam
- Selective coronal polishing
- Applying a treatment liner
- Applying and removing a matrix band and wedge
- Applying anti-cariogenic topical fluoride gel
- Applying pit and fissure sealant
- Applying topical anesthetic
The NDAEB runs the CPE three or four times a year, depending on demand, at up to nine sites in Canada. The NDAEB lists its sites as Vancouver, Edmonton, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa and Halifax, with Halifax serving the Maritimes, and there’s none in Quebec. Its Innovation and Testing Centre in Ottawa takes CPE registrations all year. Sessions are usually on weekends, and you’re given one day.
NDAEB exam dates for 2027
| Theory Exam dates | Application deadline |
|---|---|
| March 23 to 25, 2027 | February 1, 2027 |
| June 23 to 25, 2027 | May 3, 2027 |
| September 22 to 24, 2027 | July 30, 2027 |
| December 8 to 10, 2027 | October 18, 2027 |
Registration for all four sittings opens on January 4, 2027, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern time, and each deadline is at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. Seats go first come, first served. The NDAEB’s schedule page shows January 4, 2026 in the December row, but its summary gives January 4, 2027 for every 2027 sitting.
CPE sessions are posted on the NDAEB’s CPE schedule page, and its Ottawa centre takes CPE registrations all year.
NDAEB exam fees
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Theory Exam, with application fee | $730 |
| CPE, all nine skills, with application | $1,785 |
| CPE retake of four skills or fewer | $365 a skill plus $100 |
| Credential assessment, non-registered | $320 |
| Practice exam | $75 |
| Theory Exam withdrawal | $210 |
| Fourth remedial attempt request | $50 |
| Certificate reprint | $50 |
Amounts are in Canadian dollars, from the NDAEB’s fee schedule effective January 1, 2023, and both application fees ($100 each) are non-refundable. A Theory Exam withdrawal is allowed only 15 days or more before the exam. Retaking five or more CPE skills costs the full CPE fee.
NDAEB practice test: the Preparation Test
The NDAEB’s own practice test is the Preparation Test, open only to candidates registered for the Theory Exam. Each one has 75 questions in 90 minutes and can’t be paused, and your result comes back by each of the seven dental assisting domains, not question by question. You get up to three tokens per registration: the first has been free for registered candidates from January 1, 2024, and you can buy two more in the Candidate Portal up to 48 hours before your exam session starts. Use a desktop or laptop, not a phone or tablet.
The Theory Exam Candidate Handbook also has sample questions with an answer key, and the NDAEB says to study its Domain Description for Dental Assisting.
NDAEB login: the Candidate Portal
You log in to the Candidate Portal with your email address, your NDAEB ID or certificate number, and your password. Your registration letter, receipts and results are there. The NDAEB office is at 2283 St. Laurent Boulevard, Suite 204, Ottawa, Ontario K1G 5A2, phone 613-526-3424, open 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern time, Monday to Friday.
Sources: NDAEB and 9 more. Checked October 2026.
- NDAEB: Home ↗
- NDAEB: Theory Exam ↗
- NDAEB: Theory Exam Schedule ↗
- NDAEB: Theory Examination Candidate Handbook, revised January 2026 ↗
- NDAEB: Clinical Practice Evaluation ↗
- NDAEB: CPE Schedule ↗
- NDAEB: CPE Candidate Handbook, revised April 2026 ↗
- NDAEB: Fees ↗
- NDAEB: Preparation Test Instructions ↗
- NDAEB: Candidate Portal ↗
Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.
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