A new pay by instalments option for the annual retention fee (ARF) has been announced by the General Dental Council today, designed to support dental professionals who pay their own fee by enabling them to spread the cost over the year with quarterly direct debits. For dental care professionals (DCPs) this works out as four payments of £28.50 and for dentists it is four payments of £170.
To take advantage of the option in 2021, DCPs need to log in to eGDC from early May and select the quarterly direct debit option no later than May 31, 2021. The regulator is working to get this new option set up and says it will be in touch with DCPs when they are able to sign up.
GDC chief executive and registrar, Ian Brack, said, “We know that many dental professionals want more flexibility in how they pay the ARF and so we will be introducing a pay by instalments option. Detailed feasibility work has been completed and work is underway to make the necessary changes to our systems to allow us to offer this to DCPs this year.
“We expect this work to be complete by early May and DCPs who want to pay quarterly will then need to sign up by May 31. Detailed guidance will follow nearer the time.”
Dentists who wish to pay their ARF by instalments will be able to select this option later in the year.