Dental costs
The Health Service provides the dental care and treatment necessary to keep your mouth and teeth healthy. Depending on your circumstances, you may have to pay for all or some of your dental treatment. You should be advised of costs before starting any private dental treatment.
Health Service dental charges
If you aren't entitled to free treatment or help with the treatment cost, you need to pay for some Health Service dental treatment.
The charge is 80 per cent of the dentist’s fee up to £384.
The table below shows sample treatment prices.
Examples of Health Service dental charges
| Dental treatment/ service | Price |
|---|---|
| Examination (basic – extensive) | from £7.62 to £23.94 |
| One x-ray | £3.72 |
| Two x-rays | £5.30 |
| Scale and polish |
£12.09 |
| Amalgam filling | from £8.13 to £20.92 |
| White filling (mainly front teeth only with Health Service) | from £15.12 to £38.40 |
| Root filling molar | £91.74 |
| Root filling premolar | from £51.36 to £59.54 |
| Root filling incisor or canine | £43.59 |
| White crown on front tooth | from £76.93 to £114.66 |
| Metal crown on back tooth | from £76.93 to £102.84 |
| Simple extraction | from £7.51 to £45.35 |
| Surgical extraction | from £20.92 to £51.82 |
| Full upper and lower denture | £165.64 |
| One full denture | £103.36 |
| One partial denture | from £64.83 to £102.22 |
| Denture repair | Free |
These are examples of treatment charges. The cost of your Health Service treatment may be different.
Continuing Care
If you are registered for Continuing Care with your dentist, you may ask your dentist for a treatment plan. This is free and explains:
- what treatment your dentist recommends
- the price for each part of the treatment
- the likely total cost
Eligible for free dental treatment
Information on who is eligible for free dental treatment in Northern Ireland is available at:
Missing an appointment
Health Service and private dentists can charge you if you miss an appointment.
Different rules may apply in a private practices, so you should check what their policy is.