# Illinois dental license requirements > Source-backed dentist licensure pathway, exam, residency, endorsement, reciprocity, and official-board signals for Illinois. URL: https://dentovio.com/dental-license-requirements/illinois Last verified: 2026-07-08 Dentovio is not a dental board. Confirm current application forms, education rules, exam acceptance, score windows, jurisprudence requirements, endorsement eligibility, reciprocity, credentialing, fees, and foreign-trained exceptions directly with Illinois Dept. of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) / Board of Dentistry. ## Direct answer For dentist license requirements in Illinois, Dentovio's sourced licensure record highlights education/pathway language, exam signals, and any residency, endorsement, reciprocity, or credentialing notes it could isolate. Education/pathway signal: Residency/advanced-education pathway accepted (alternative). Under 225 ILCS 25/9(c)(2) and 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1220.100(b), a graduate of a dental school OUTSIDE the US/Canada may qualify by EITHER (A) completing a minimum of 2 academic years (2850 clock hours) Exam signal: Written: iNBDE (integrated National Board Dental Examination), per 225 ILCS 25/9(e). Clinical: a regional exam accepted per 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1220. Confirm current requirements, application forms, score windows, endorsement eligibility, and foreign-trained exceptions with Illinois Dept. of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) / Board of Dentistry. ## Education and pathway signal Residency/advanced-education pathway accepted (alternative). Under 225 ILCS 25/9(c)(2) and 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1220.100(b), a graduate of a dental school OUTSIDE the US/Canada may qualify by EITHER (A) completing a minimum of 2 academic years (2850 clock hours) of general dental clinical training at a US/Canadian CODA-approved dental school and obtaining a DDS/DMD (advanced standing), OR (B) in the alternative, certification from the program director of a CODA-accredited advanced dental education program of completion of no less than 2 academic years — substituting for the 2 years of clinical training. The rule names advanced-education programs in prosthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics, endodontics, orthodontics, and oral & maxillofacial surgery as acceptable. ## Exam signal Written: iNBDE (integrated National Board Dental Examination), per 225 ILCS 25/9(e). Clinical: a regional exam accepted per 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1220.120 — CDCA-WREB-CITA, CRDTS, or SRTA (full restorative, periodontal, prosthodontic and endodontic portions). WREB retired Dec 31 2022 (now CDCA-WREB-CITA). ## Endorsement, reciprocity, or credentials signal Dentovio did not isolate a licensure-by-endorsement, reciprocity, credentialing, or portability signal in this sourced state record. Verify current out-of-state license options directly with the dental board. ## Residency signal Residency or advanced education is flagged as a possible pathway signal in the sourced state record; verify degree, program, exam, and applicant-status conditions with the board. ## Notes IMPORTANT nuance: the statutory/rule 'advanced dental education program' alternative (25/9(c)(2)(B); 1220.100(b)(2)(B)) requires NO LESS THAN 2 academic years and enumerates specialty residencies — a standard 1-year GPR/AEGD may not by itself satisfy the 2-year requirement; applicants should confirm program length/type with IDFPR. This is the pathway that lets a foreign-trained dentist avoid repeating a full DDS/DMD. ## Official sources - - - - ## Related - [All dental license requirements by state](https://dentovio.com/dental-license-requirements/index.html.md) - [Dental license by state](https://dentovio.com/dental-license-by-state/index.html.md) - [Illinois dental license reciprocity](https://dentovio.com/dental-license-reciprocity/illinois/index.html.md) - [Illinois dental licensure exams](https://dentovio.com/dental-licensure-exams/illinois/index.html.md) - [Illinois foreign-trained dentist licensure](https://dentovio.com/foreign-trained-dentist-license/illinois/index.html.md) - [Illinois dental board](https://dentovio.com/dental-boards/illinois/index.html.md) - [Illinois dental license lookup](https://dentovio.com/dental-license-lookup/illinois/index.html.md) - [Illinois dental license renewal](https://dentovio.com/dental-license-renewal/illinois/index.html.md)