Delaware is a small state with a specific, checkable rule set. The Board of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene publishes clear CE numbers on a two-year cycle. The Office of Radiation Control certifies the people who operate x-ray equipment rather than exempting them, which means a dental assistant taking radiographs in Delaware holds a credential that assistants in many neighboring states do not need. And Delaware's non-compete statute voids restrictive covenants among physicians, which raises an obvious question for dentists that the statute text does not answer.
Key takeaways
- Dentists need 50 hours of CE per two-year renewal cycle running June 1 to May 31 of even-numbered years, including at least 2 hours of infection control. Dental hygienists need 24 hours on the same cycle, also with at least 2 hours of infection control.
- All licensees must show completion of a current CPR course. First renewals are prorated: none if licensed under a year, half the hours if licensed more than one year but less than two.
- Anyone administering radiation to human patients who is not a state-licensed practitioner must be certified by the Office of Radiation Control. Licensed dentists and dental hygienists are exempt; dental assistants are not.
- Dental assistants must pass a Dental Assisting National Board exam and obtain a Delaware certificate to operate dental x-ray equipment. Certificates expire every three years, and the regulation's fee schedule lists $50 initial, $50 on-time renewal and $100 late.
Rules change, so verify before acting. Everything below was checked against an official Delaware or federal source in September 2026. We found two different fee figures for the dental radiation certificate on different state pages and flag that below rather than picking one. Confirm with the agency before you act.
Who regulates what
| Topic | Agency | Official link |
|---|---|---|
| Dentist and hygienist licensure and renewal | Delaware Board of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene, Division of Professional Regulation | Board of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene |
| Continuing education and audits | Division of Professional Regulation | Continuing education and audit information |
| License renewal | Division of Professional Regulation | License renewal |
| Dentistry statute | Delaware Code Title 24, Chapter 11 | Title 24 Chapter 11, Dentistry and Dental Hygiene |
| Radiation operator certification | DHSS Division of Public Health, Office of Radiation Control | Radiation technician and technologist information |
| Radiation certification rules and fees | Delaware Administrative Code Title 16 | Authority on Radiation Protection regulations |
| Non-compete agreements among physicians | Delaware Code Title 6, Chapter 27 | 6 Del. C. 2707, agreements not to compete |
| Amalgam separators and dental wastewater | US EPA rule, enforced by your local pretreatment control authority | EPA dental effluent guidelines |
License renewal and continuing education
The Division of Professional Regulation publishes the numbers directly:
- Dentists and dentist academic licensees: 50 hours per two-year renewal cycle, running June 1 to May 31 of even-numbered years, with a minimum of 2 hours in infection control.
- Dental hygienists: 24 hours on the same cycle, also with a minimum of 2 hours in infection control.
- Dentist community health licensees: 50 hours per two-year cycle, with the cycle timing tied to the individual license issuance date.
All licensees must provide evidence of successful completion of a current CPR course. New licensees get proration: no CE if licensed less than one year, half the required hours if licensed more than one year but less than two.
Fifty hours over two years is a real commitment, at the higher end of what states require, and Delaware audits. Build the hours across both years rather than cramming them into the spring of an even-numbered year, and keep certificates rather than trusting a portal.
X-ray equipment: operator certification and registration
Delaware's most distinctive rule is about people, not machines. The Office of Radiation Control states that all individuals administering radiation to human patients in Delaware who are not state-licensed practitioners must be certified. Licensed physicians, dentists and dental hygienists are exempt from that certification requirement. Dental assistants are not.
For dental assistants, the office describes a path with three parts: pass the Dental Assisting National Board examination, submit form R16S, and obtain a certificate through the Office of Radiation Control. The state's radiation regulation sets out the broader framework: applicants must be at least 18, must pass an approved certification exam demonstrating competency in the principles and practice of radiation protection, and the Authority accepts exams from recognized national credentialing bodies including ARRT, DANB, NMTCB, CCI and ISCD. Certificates expire every three years, and renewal requires proof that the national credential is currently valid, documented by a photocopy of the credential card or certificate in good standing.
On fees, the state's own pages disagree in a way worth flagging. The Office of Radiation Control FAQ describes a $10 fee for the dental path, while the regulation's fee schedule lists $50 for an initial application, $50 for an on-time renewal, $100 for a late renewal postmarked 1 to 180 days after expiration, and $25 for a returned check. Call the office and confirm the amount before you send a check.
If you hire an experienced dental assistant from Maryland, Pennsylvania or New Jersey, do not assume the credential transfers. Start the Delaware certificate process on day one and plan your radiography coverage around the gap, the same way a Texas practice plans around the RDA x-ray certificate.
Machine registration
Delaware's public pages were less forthcoming about x-ray machine registration than about operator certification. The state's Business First Steps page under radiation machine facilities describes registration for persons engaged in the business of installing or servicing radiation sources, with a biennial term and no fee, which is the service provider side rather than the practice side. The Office of Radiation Control's radiation machine registration permit manual would not load for us. Registration of machines is governed by Title 16 of the Delaware Administrative Code and Title 16 of the Delaware Code, Chapter 74, and the office takes questions by phone and email at the contacts listed on its pages.
Treat this as a call to make before you install anything. Ask what permit the practice itself needs, what the fee is, how often it renews, and what to file when you add, move or dispose of a machine.
For general mechanics, see dental x-ray registration and inspections, plus intraoral x-ray units and panoramic units.
Buying and selling used equipment in Delaware
The operator credential is part of your capacity planning
Buying a second intraoral unit does not add imaging capacity if nobody else in the office is certified to run it. In Delaware, staffing and equipment decisions are linked more tightly than in states that let any trained assistant push the button. Before you add a unit, count your certified operators and their certificate expiration dates.
Confirm the machine paperwork before closing
Because Delaware does not publish the practice-side machine registration requirements clearly, make it an explicit diligence item. Ask the seller for whatever permit or registration the Office of Radiation Control issued for the facility, the machine list, and the most recent inspection or survey report. Then call the office yourself and ask what the incoming owner must file. Our practice acquisition due diligence checklist covers the wider list.
Amalgam separators and wastewater
The federal EPA dental rule at 40 CFR Part 441 applies if you place or remove amalgam and discharge to a publicly owned treatment works: a compliant separator, best management practices (no flushing scrap amalgam, no oxidizing line cleaners), and a one-time compliance report filed with your pretreatment control authority, usually the municipal or county sewer utility. Ask what it expects at a change of ownership. See amalgam separators and dental waste disposal.
Run the pre-purchase equipment checklist and read the hidden costs of buying used equipment before you commit.
Non-competes and employment
Delaware Code Title 6, section 2707 is titled agreements not to compete, and it addresses physicians specifically. The provision makes void any covenant not to compete in an employment, partnership or corporate agreement between or among physicians that restricts the right of a physician to practice medicine in a particular locale or for a defined period of time upon termination of the principal agreement.
Two things follow. First, if you are a physician in Delaware, that is an unusually strong protection. Second, and more relevant here, the provision as written speaks to physicians and the practice of medicine. It does not name dentists. Whether a Delaware court would read it to reach a dentist's covenant is not something the text answers, and we are not going to guess.
So the practical advice for a Delaware dental associate or owner is to ask a Delaware employment attorney two questions. Does section 2707 apply to a dentist, and if not, what standard governs enforceability of a dentist's covenant under Delaware common law, including whether courts will narrow an overbroad restriction or void it? Get that answer before you sign, not after you resign.
At the federal level, the FTC's non-compete rule is not in effect. The Commission voted on September 5, 2025 to dismiss its appeals and accede to the vacatur, so state law governs. See our national overview of non-compete agreements for dentists, the associate contract red flags guide, and the associate contract review checklist.
What we could not confirm
- Delaware x-ray machine registration requirements, fees and renewal period for a dental practice. The permit manual would not load and the public pages we could read describe service provider registration.
- How often Delaware inspects dental x-ray facilities.
- The correct fee for the dental radiation technician certificate. The Office of Radiation Control FAQ says $10; the regulation's fee schedule lists $50 initial and $50 on-time renewal. Confirm with the office.
- Whether 6 Del. C. 2707 reaches dentists. The text speaks to physicians and the practice of medicine.
- Sales and use tax treatment of dental equipment. Delaware has no state sales tax but does levy gross receipts taxes on businesses, so ask your CPA how a purchase or a practice sale is treated.
- Delaware limits on non-dentist ownership of a dental practice. Read Title 24 Chapter 11 with a dental-specific attorney.
Where to verify
- Delaware Board of Dentistry and Dental Hygiene: board home, CE and audit information, and license renewal
- Delaware Code: Title 24 Chapter 11, dentistry and Title 6 Chapter 27, agreements not to compete
- Delaware Office of Radiation Control: frequently asked questions and radiation technician information
- Delaware Administrative Code: Authority on Radiation Protection certification rules and fee schedule
- US Environmental Protection Agency: dental effluent guidelines, 40 CFR Part 441
- Federal Trade Commission: September 2025 statement on the non-compete rule
Putting it to work
Three things belong on a Delaware practice's compliance calendar: the May 31 even-year CE deadline with a mid-cycle checkpoint, the three-year expiration date on every staff member's radiation certificate, and whatever renewal the Office of Radiation Control sets for your machines once you have confirmed it by phone. If you are hiring an assistant to take radiographs, start the DANB and state certificate process on day one. If you are signing an associate contract, get section 2707's reach to dentists answered by counsel before you sign.
Related reading: x-ray registration and inspections, the dental assistant career guide, the compliance chapter of the practice operations guide, and the rest of the state resources directory.
This guide is educational content and does not constitute legal, financial, tax, or clinical advice. Laws and regulations vary by state and change over time. Consult your own dental-specific attorney, CPA, and state dental board before acting.