Dental Regulatory and Law Enforcement Office
About us
- Introduction
- Dental Regulatory and Law Enforcement Office (DRLEO) was established in July 2019 under the Dental Services of the Department of Health.
- Scope of work:
- Oversees the licensing and regulatory functions under the Private Healthcare Facilities Ordinance (Cap. 633) (PHFO).
- Oversees exemption of small practice clinics under the PHFO.
- Provides professional support to the Hong Kong Police Force in investigation of illegal dental practice in Hong Kong.
About the Private Healthcare Facilities Ordinance (Cap. 633) (PHFO)
- The PHFO was gazetted on 30 November 2018. The Ordinance aims to protect patient safety and rights by establishing a new regulatory framework for Private Healthcare Facilities (PHFs). Under the Ordinance, four types of PHFs are subject to regulation: namely hospitals, day procedure centres, clinics, and health service establishments.
- Details of Implementation Timetable
- Details of PHFs with valid licence / letter of exemption are listed on the Private Healthcare Facilities Register
Types of Private Healthcare Facilities
Hospital
- A hospital is a premises provides lodging or medical procedures to patients with duration more than 12 hours, or provides hospital-only medical procedures stipulated in the “Code of Practice for Day Procedure Centres”.
- Application for hospital licence was commenced on 2 July 2019. Hospital licences under PHFO took effect on 1 January 2021.
Day Procedure Centre
A day procedure centre is a premises where registered medical practitioners and/or registered dentists practise:
- Provide medical services without lodging;
- Continuous confinement of patients within the facility should not exceed 12 hours;
- Providing scheduled medical procedures (please refer to section 2 of and Schedule 3 to the PHFO);
- Not providing the hospital-only medical procedures stipulated in the “Code of Practice for Day Procedure Centres”; and
- Not forming part of the premises of a hospital.
Application for day procedure centre licence was commenced on 2 January 2020. The first batch of day procedure centre licences under PHFO took effect on 1 January 2021. Penalty provision pertaining to the operation of a day procedure centre without a licence commenced on 30 June 2022. A person operates a day procedure centre without a licence commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine at level 6 and to imprisonment for 3 years.
Clinic
A clinic is a premises where registered medical practitioners and/or registered dentists practise:
- Provide medical services without lodging;
- Continuous confinement of patients within the clinic should not exceed 12 hours;
- Not providing scheduled medical procedures (please refer to section 2 of and Schedule 3 to the PHFO) or the hospital-only medical procedures stipulated in the “Code of Practice for Day Procedure Centres”; and
- Not forming part of the premises of a hospital, a day procedure centre or an outreach facility.
Application for day procedure centre licence was commenced on 2 January 2020. The first batch of day procedure centre licences under PHFO took effect on 1 January 2021. Penalty provision pertaining to the operation of a day procedure centre without a licence commenced on 30 June 2022. A person operates a day procedure centre without a licence commits an offence and is liable on conviction on indictment to a fine at level 6 and to imprisonment for 3 years.
Types of Licence or Letter of Exemption for Clinic
- Full clinic licence
- Provisional clinic licence
- Letter of exemption for small practice clinic (SPC)
For details, please visit the thematic website.
*The DH starts to accept applications for clinic licences and requests for letters of exemption for small practice clinics on 13 October 2025.
What's new [Briefing session]
Attention! [Dental Practice] Briefing Sessions
Useful Information
- Forms
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Important Documents
- Code of Practice
- Pursuant to section 102 of the PHFO, the Code of Practice (CoP) is issued by the Director of Health to provide standards for all private hospitals, day procedure centres and clinics licensed under the PHFO. The CoP sets out the licensing standards in respect of the governance, physical conditions, service delivery and care process, infection control, risk management and contingency, and other matters related to the operation of a hospital, day procedure centre or clinic.
- Guidance Notes
- This document serves as a general guide for applications under the PHFO.
- Code of Practice
- Information for Healthcare Engineering System
- Promotional Materials
- The materials include dental related leaflets and videos/ aminations
- Useful Reference
Contact us
| Address : | Room 1801, 18/F, Guardian House, 32 Oi Kwan Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong |
| Email : | drleo@dh.gov.hk |
| Hotline : | 2631 1782 |
| Fax : | 2384 0468 |
Related websites
- Department of Health
- Dental Services, Department of Health
- Office for Regulation of Private Healthcare Facilities
- The Dental Council of Hong Kong
- Committee on Complaints Against Private Healthcare Facilities