Selling or partnering your dental practice in France: dental centres, fund-backed groups and new rules

For decades, a dental practice was handed on from one practitioner to another: the departing owner sold their patient list and equipment to a young colleague. This model still exists, but it has become more complicated. Young graduates want to work in groups and, increasingly, as employees; dental health centres multiplied until a prior approval requirement was reinstated in 2023; fund-backed groups have built networks of dozens of practices; and the agreement signed with the national health insurance fund in 2023 reshaped fees and installation rules.

For a practitioner approaching retirement or wanting to shed management, the buyers, deal structures and preparation required are no longer those of ten years ago.

A profession that is growing, getting younger and grouping together

France had 47,600 practising dentists on 1 January 2025 according to the health ministry's statistics directorate DREES, up 4.1% in a year and 17.7% since 2012. ¹ The average age has fallen by four years in thirteen years, to 44.3. The mode of practice has changed even faster: 59% of practitioners work in group practices against 46% in 2012, 16% in health centres against 7%, and solo practice now concerns only 22% of them against 44%. ¹ Three quarters are exclusively self-employed, but 18% are exclusively salaried, a share that reaches 27% among those under 35. ¹ Salaried dentists in health centres have risen from 2,800 in 2012 to 7,600. ¹

Health centres, all disciplines combined, numbered nearly 3,000 in 2023 against 2,121 in 2020, and 43% of them are dental, according to the September 2024 French Senate report. ² Xerfi estimates that dental centres account for around 15% of reimbursable dental care spending, more than €2.5 billion, excluding implantology and adult orthodontics, which are barely reimbursed. ³ National density, around 62 practitioners per 100,000 inhabitants, has been stable since 2012, with persistent gaps between a well-served South and territories where patients without a regular dentist accumulate. ¹

The drivers of consolidation

Young practitioners' expectations. Group practice, part-time, salaried work or associate positions without management: graduates setting up look for an already organised structure. For a solo owner, finding a successor to take over the practice alone is becoming difficult; joining a larger group is often the route to succession.
Capital intensity. 3D imaging, intraoral scanning and CAD/CAM for prosthetics, guided surgery, practice management software: modern equipment represents a heavy investment, quickly renewed, that several practitioners amortise better than one.
The 2023-2028 dental agreement. Signed on 21 July 2023, it commits more than €600 million over its term, revalues conservative care, adds zirconia to the "100% Santé" zero-cost basket and reduces reimbursement for post-and-core restorations. ⁴ Above all, it makes installation in well-served areas conditional on a colleague leaving, which gives new value to practices already established in those areas, and redirects aid towards under-served areas. ^3,4
Tighter regulation of health centres. The law of 19 May 2023, known as the Khattabi law, reinstated prior approval by the regional health agency (ARS) for any dental activity in a health centre, with a one-year provisional approval and disclosure of the health project, managers' interests and contracts with third-party companies. ⁵ The June 2024 decree provided for penalties of up to €500,000. ⁶ The Senate report also notes €58 million of fraud detected in health centres in 2023 against €7 million the previous year. ² This tightening has slowed openings and strengthened the relative value of self-employed practices and irreproachable centres.
The platform logic. Pooling purchasing, reception, accounting, recruitment and marketing across ten or fifty sites produces gains a three-chair practice cannot reach, and that is what attracts investors.

Who buys practices and centres today

The legal framework shapes the form of transactions. In a professional practice company (SEL), practising dentists must, since the ordinance of 8 February 2023 in force from 1 September 2024, hold directly or through a professional holding company (SPFPL) more than half of the capital and voting rights. ⁷ Investors therefore act through service companies billing support services, holdings, debt or preference shares, structures the September 2024 Senate report proposes to regulate by enshrining the notion of effective control in law. ² Health centres, run by non-profit structures that cannot distribute profits, have sometimes been used to overcharge rent, equipment and services through commercial companies, a practice now targeted by inspections. ² Each structure must therefore be examined carefully. Four buyer profiles stand out.

Fund-backed groups. Dentego grew with the support of Tikehau Capital and Dentylis-Ophtalys is backed by MBO+, according to Xerfi. ³ Their buy-and-build logic is to build a network, pool support functions, then sell the whole within five to seven years. After a phase of euphoria, Xerfi describes a model entering normalisation, with site closures and development that will now follow a clearer, better-regulated model. ³
European groups. Colosseum Dental Group, owned by Jacobs Holding and present in nine countries with more than 300 practices, entered France in 2021 by buying Dentelia, then 14 practices and 220 professionals, describing France as Europe's second-largest dental market and little consolidated. ⁸ The founder kept a significant stake, a typical partnership structure. ⁸
Mutual insurers and hospital operators. Mutual groups such as Aésio, VYV or Oxance run networks of dental centres, and private hospital operators such as Ramsay Santé are among the players studied by Xerfi. ³
Growing colleagues. Combining two or three practices in the same area, or the purchase of a neighbouring practice by an already structured SEL, remains the most frequent and natural transaction, without an outside investor. In areas where installation is now regulated, an existing practice is also worth its right to practise.

What this changes for the practice owner

There is no longer a single succession model, but several.

A full sale to a colleague, group or centre suits practitioners close to retirement, with a transition period of six months to two years.
A partnership with reinvestment is for practitioners, whatever their age, who still have several years of activity ahead: they sell a majority of their shares to a group, reinvest part of the price in its holding, shed management and share in the value created at the next sale.
A combination between colleagues creates a territorial group controlled by practitioners, finances equipment jointly and attracts young partners or associates.
A capital reorganisation such as an OBO lets the owner monetise part of their shares through a debt-financed holding, and bring an associate into the capital.

Whatever the structure, buyers look at the same things, and for a health centre, final approval and transparency of contracts with third-party companies are examined first. The criteria that come up in every file are the following.

Chairs and expansion potential. Number of chairs, schedule occupancy, the possibility of adding more in the current premises and the area's attractiveness for recruiting an additional associate.
Equipment. Age and financing of imaging, intraoral scanning, CAD/CAM and software; recent, paid-off equipment adds value, equipment to be renewed is deducted.
Activity mix. Split between conservative care, prosthetics, implantology and orthodontics, share of procedures outside the fee schedule and exposure to tariff changes under the 2023-2028 agreement.
The team. Stability of assistants, associates and, where relevant, salaried practitioners; a team that carries part of the patient base reassures on continuity after the sale.
Premises and lease. Remaining lease term, rent relative to market, accessibility and compliance of the premises determine the site's sustainability.
Legal and contractual compliance. SEL and SPFPL articles compliant with the 2023 ordinance, regular associate contracts, and for a health centre, ARS approval and readable contracts with service companies.
Normalised profitability. Real earnings once partners' pay is brought to market level, rent normalised and recurring investments taken into account.

You are thinking of selling: is this the right moment for you?

This is the first question we ask. The right moment for a sale or partnership is never automatically "right now", even in a market with many buyers. It depends on two things: you, meaning your life plans, personal horizon and wealth objectives, and your practice, meaning its ability to realise today all the value it holds. We encounter two situations.

Your practice is almost ready. Activity is diversified, equipment is recent and paid for, the team is stable and profitability is readable. Or you want your practice to become part of a larger project, that of a group, often under LBO, that brings the tools, expertise and resources to absorb changes in fees, regulation and equipment, which is reassuring for you and for your teams. In this case, a few weeks of preparation are enough to go to market, and the large number of buyers works in your favour.
Your practice needs time. Activity relies too heavily on a single type of procedure whose reimbursement is changing, a recent investment still weighs on margins, an associate who carried a large share of revenue has just left, or a compliance upgrade is unfinished. Selling remains possible, but it means accepting a discount and less favourable terms. We will then tell you frankly that it is better to spend several months, sometimes a few years, working on these points, and we can support you through that phase before launching the transaction when you are truly ready.

The workstreams that make the difference in dentistry are well known: balance activity between care, prosthetics, implantology and orthodontics, plan equipment renewal and its financing, stabilise and formalise the team, update procedures and associate contracts, normalise partners' pay and prepare the legal side, SEL, SPFPL and agreements. Depending on your starting point, they take a few weeks or a few years.

The benefit of talking early, even without being sure you want to sell, is knowing which of these two situations you are in, and deciding with full knowledge rather than under the pressure of an unexpected approach, a partner's departure or a health problem.

Facing groups that complete several acquisitions a year with dedicated teams, a practitioner negotiating alone is rarely on an equal footing. The value of a practice is not just a headline price: it depends on the deal structure, cash portion, earn-out, reinvestment, the warranties given, practice conditions after the sale, the future of the teams and the clinical autonomy retained.

The role of an independent M&A adviser is to value the practice objectively, identify all relevant buyers, fund-backed groups, European players, mutual networks and colleagues, put them in competition in a structured and confidential process, and negotiate terms beyond price alone. This competition protects the seller and lets them choose the project that suits them.

Frequently asked questions

Can an investment fund buy a dental practice in France?

Not a majority of the capital directly. In a professional practice company, practising dentists must hold, directly or through an SPFPL, more than half of the capital and voting rights. ⁷ Fund-backed groups therefore act through service companies billing support functions, holdings, debt or preference shares, structures the 2024 Senate report proposes to regulate.

Can you sell your dental practice and continue to practise?

Yes, that is the partnership with reinvestment model: the practitioner sells a majority of their shares to a group, reinvests part of the price in its holding, sheds management, continues to treat their patients and shares in the value created at the next sale.

How long does it take to sell a dental practice?

Generally six to twelve months between the first conversation and signing: preparing the file, confidentially approaching buyers, offers, accounting, legal and compliance due diligence, negotiation, then formalities with the professional order and, for a health centre, the ARS. Add the seller's transition period, from six months to two years.

Who buys dental practices and centres today?

Fund-backed groups building networks of dozens of practices, European dental groups that entered France by acquisition, mutual insurers and hospital operators running health centres, and above all colleagues: combining two or three practices in the same area or the purchase of a neighbouring practice by an already structured SEL remains the most frequent transaction.

Is a dental practice in a well-served area worth more?

Since the 2023 dental agreement, installation in a well-served area is conditional on a colleague leaving. An existing practice in these areas is therefore also worth its right to practise, which strengthens its position in a sale or combination. In under-served areas, aid and unmet demand support activity, but recruiting a successor can be harder.

Should you sell the patient list or the SEL shares?

Selling the patient list and equipment suits a solo practice taken over by a colleague; selling SEL or SPFPL shares is the route for group practices and deals with a group or centre. The choice has tax and legal consequences and affects the warranties requested, and it depends on the buyer's profile.

When should you start preparing the sale of your dental practice?

Two to three years before the target date, to have time to balance activity between care, prosthetics, implantology and orthodontics, plan equipment renewal and its financing, stabilise and formalise the team, update associate contracts and articles, and normalise partners' pay. Talking early tells you whether the practice is ready or needs time.

Why put several buyers in competition to sell your dental practice?

Because a fund-backed group, a European player, a mutual network and a colleague offer neither the same price, nor the same structure, nor the same practice conditions after the sale. A confidential process that puts them in competition allows you to compare genuinely different projects and negotiate beyond the headline price: cash portion, earn-out, reinvestment, warranties, the future of the team and the clinical autonomy retained.

Public sources consulted

DREES, La démographie des pharmaciens, chirurgiens-dentistes et sages-femmes au 1er janvier 2025, jeu de données et synthèse (juillet 2025) : https://drees.solidarites-sante.gouv.fr/jeux-de-donnees/DATA_250728-demographie-pharmaciens-chirurgiens-dentistes-sages-femmes (high reliability)
Sénat, Rapport d'information sur la financiarisation de l'offre de soins, C. Imbert, B. Jomier, O. Henno (25 septembre 2024) : https://senat.fr/rap/r23-776/r23-7761.pdf (high reliability)
Xerfi, Le marché des soins et centres dentaires, les centres dentaires à l'horizon 2030, présentation de l'étude (mise à jour juin 2026) : https://www.xerfi.com/presentationetude/le-marche-des-soins-et-centres-dentaires_SME88 (high reliability)
Académie nationale de chirurgie dentaire, Le point sur la convention dentaire (octobre 2024) : https://academiedentaire.fr/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Le-point-sur-la-convention-dentaire-octobre-2024.pdf (good reliability)
Ministère de la Santé, DGOS, Instruction n° DGOS/R2/2023/124 du 28 juillet 2023 relative à l'agrément des centres de santé dentaires, ophtalmologiques et orthoptiques : https://peps.sante.gouv.fr/themes/odonto/23_dgos_instruction124.pdf (high reliability)
Le Quotidien du Médecin, Centres de santé : jusqu'à 500 000 euros d'amende en cas de dérives, un décret durcit les règles du jeu (24 juin 2024) : https://www.lequotidiendumedecin.fr/liberal-soins-de-ville/centres-de-sante/centres-de-sante-jusqua-500-000-euros-damende-en-cas-de-derives-un-decret-durcit-les-regles-du-jeu (good reliability)
Bpifrance Création, La société d'exercice libéral (SEL), règles de détention du capital issues de l'ordonnance du 8 février 2023 : https://bpifrance-creation.fr/encyclopedie/structures-juridiques/entreprendre-a-plusieurs/sel-societe-dexercice-liberal (high reliability)
Colosseum Dental Group, communiqué : Colosseum Dental Group enters the French market by acquiring Dentelia (janvier 2021) : https://colosseumdental-prod.druid.fi/newsroom/colosseum-dental-group-enter-french-market-acquiring-dentelia (good reliability)