NSW Dentists: New Medicine Laws Start 5 November 2026. A Practice Checklist

New South Wales is replacing its poisons and therapeutic goods laws, and the change reaches every dental practice that prescribes, stores or obtains scheduled medicines. From 5 November 2026, the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 2022 and the Medicines, Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Regulation 2026 replace the old Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act and Regulation.

This guide summarises NSW Health's fact sheet for dentists (last updated 24 August 2026) so your team can check what applies to your practice before the change takes effect.

This article is general information for practice owners and dentists in NSW, not legal advice. The Act, the Regulation and NSW Health guidance are the authority. Check them for the full requirements.

Key takeaways

• The new laws start on 5 November 2026 and replace the previous NSW poisons laws.
• Dentists can only prescribe, supply or administer Schedule 8 (S8) medicines that are on the Dental Schedule of the PBS, with an exception for patients in a public health entity or private health facility.
• Mandatory storage standards and electronic drug register standards apply to S8 and S4D medicines.
• The S8 balance in your drug register must be recorded at least every 3 months.
• Only unexplained losses of S8 and S4D medicines must be reported, but every S8 loss must still be recorded in the register.
• Penalties are tiered and higher than before.

What changes for prescribing

Schedule 8 medicines

Dentists may only prescribe, supply or administer an S8 medicine if it is listed on the Dental Schedule of the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. The exception is a patient in a public health entity or private health facility.

No self-prescribing or self-supply

Dentists can't prescribe S8 or Schedule 4D (S4D) medicines for themselves. They also can't obtain S8 or S4D medicines through a wholesaler for self-administration. Samples of S4D and S8 medicines are no longer permitted.

Time limits

• S4D prescriptions are now valid for 12 months, up from 6 months. S4D includes anabolic-androgenic steroidal medicines.
• Continuous use of a scheduled medicine is limited to a total of one month. That total includes earlier prescriptions or supplies from the same dentist. Previously the limit applied only to prescribing, and now it also covers supply.

Prescription writing

• "For Dental Treatment Only" no longer has to appear on prescriptions.
• Handwritten prescriptions must be legible to be valid.
• Dentists no longer need to underline high or unusual doses.
• Labelling now follows the Poisons Standard (Appendix L) instead of the Regulation.

What changes for storage and records

Storage standards

Mandatory Medicines Storage Standards apply to all health practitioners from 5 November. They cover the safe and secure storage of S4D and S8 medicines. NSW Health's fact sheet doesn't spell out the requirements, so read the standards themselves and check your storage against them.

Drug registers

Mandatory Electronic Drug Register Standards apply from 5 November for recording S8 transactions. In private practice, an authorised practitioner is responsible for keeping a compliant register on the premises where S8 medicines are kept.

Stocktakes

Dentists must record the S8 balance in the drug register at least once every 3 months.

Reporting losses

• Record every S8 loss in the drug register.
• Report only unexplained losses of S8 and S4D medicines to Pharmaceutical Services.
• Examples of explained losses include residual volume left in a syringe or needle hub, and a witnessed spill that can't be recovered.

Urgent supply from pharmacies

If you need a medicine urgently:

• You may only request registered Schedule 4 and Schedule 8 medicines for urgent or emergency use. Unregistered products are no longer permitted.
• The medicine doesn't have to be on the PBS Prescriber Bag list.
• You must give the pharmacy a written and signed order.
• Keep a record of the request for two years.

For non-urgent needs, dentists can still use a wholesaler.

Penalties

Offences are grouped into 5 tiers. Penalties range from 20 to 400 penalty units for individuals and 100 to 2,000 penalty units for corporations. NSW Health says more information on compliance notices and penalties will be released later.

Dental hygienists, therapists and oral health therapists

The fact sheet also lists changes for other members of the dental team:

• They can obtain Schedule 2, 3 or 4 synthetic local anaesthetics, and administer certain Schedule 2, 3, 4 or 8 medicines under a dentist's direction.
• They can obtain and administer adrenaline for anaphylaxis.
• Dental therapists and oral health therapists can also obtain tetracycline and triamcinolone for dental pulp treatment preparation.

Other changes to know about

• New restrictions apply to supplying nitrous oxide for non-therapeutic purposes. NSW Health has a separate page on these.
• Pharmacists no longer keep repeat paper prescriptions for certain S8 and S4 Appendix D medicines. Repeats are returned to the patient.
• The terminology changes. "Schedule 8" replaces "drug of addiction", "Schedule 4" replaces "restricted substance", and "Schedule 4D" replaces "prescribed restricted substance".

A checklist for this week

1. Check storage. Compare how S8 and S4D medicines are stored against the new Medicines Storage Standards.
2. Check your register. Make sure a compliant electronic or paper drug register is on the premises, and diarise a stocktake at least every 3 months.
3. Train the team on recording every S8 loss and reporting only unexplained ones.
4. Stop self-prescribing and self-supply of S8 and S4D medicines.
5. Review prescribing habits. Continuous-use prescribing and supply is limited to one month in total, and S8 items must be on the PBS Dental Schedule unless the patient is in a public hospital or private health facility.
6. Update urgent-supply routines. Use written, signed orders and keep them for two years.
7. Update templates. Remove "For Dental Treatment Only" and check handwritten prescriptions are legible.
8. Read the sources (listed below) and ask your indemnity insurer or the ADA NSW if anything is unclear.

Frequently asked questions

Does this apply outside NSW?

No. These are NSW laws. Other states and territories have their own medicines and poisons laws, so check with your state or territory health department.

Do I need an electronic drug register?

The fact sheet says mandatory Electronic Drug Register Standards apply from 5 November for using electronic registers to record S8 transactions, and that you can keep an electronic or paper register. Check the standards to see what applies to your practice.

Do I have to report every lost S8 medicine?

No. You must record every S8 loss in the register, but you only report unexplained losses of S8 and S4D medicines to Pharmaceutical Services.

How long is an S4D prescription valid?

Twelve months, up from 6 months.

Next steps

Start with the NSW Health fact sheet on medicine laws for dentists and the ADA NSW advisory update. Compliance work lands on the practice manager, so it helps to protect their time. See our guides on the NSW radiation management plan requirement, the dental practice cyber security checklist and how AI phone agents work, or book a demo to see how IntelliDent takes routine calls and bookings off your front desk.