The route
Buying a dental practice in the UK: the steps and the costs
Updated
Buying a UK dental practice runs like any business purchase with two extra steps: you register as the provider with the nation's regulator, and an NHS contract has its own rules on who may hold it.
The steps, in order
1. Set the price range
The 33 UK practices read list at a median £793,023, with half between £435,000 and £1,401,608.50. Private practices list lower than mixed and NHS ones on this sample.
Source: UK Dental Practice Price Index: every row, with its source
2. Register with the regulator
In England the buyer registers with the Care Quality Commission as the provider of the practice's regulated activities before it can run them. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland each have their own regulator.
Source: CQC: registration
3. Check the NHS contract
An NHS practice in England holds its NHS work under a contract with the commissioner, and the General Dental Services Contracts Regulations 2005 set the terms of a General Dental Services contract, including who may hold one. Read the contract before you agree a price.
Source: legislation.gov.uk: The General Dental Services Contracts Regulations 2005
4. Make sure every treating dentist is registered
Every dentist treating patients at the practice must be on the General Dental Council's register.
Source: General Dental Council: registration
5. Share purchase or asset purchase
Buying the company's shares through a stock transfer form carries stamp duty at 0.5% of the price, rounded up to the nearest £5.
Source: GOV.UK: Tax when you buy shares
6. Property
Buying the freehold of the premises in England carries Stamp Duty Land Tax at the non-residential rates.
Source: GOV.UK: SDLT non-residential and mixed rates
The regulators, by nation
The Care Quality Commission registers dental providers in England. Wales has Healthcare Inspectorate Wales, Scotland has Healthcare Improvement Scotland for private dental services, and Northern Ireland has the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority.