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  • NABP

US pharmacist license (FPGEE path)

From your pharmacy degree to a US pharmacist license: FPGEC certification, an English test, the FPGEE, your state's internship, the NAPLEX and the law exam.

  • 10 steps

Step by step

  1. Prepare

    Check that you are eligible

    You need a pharmacy degree from a recognized school outside the US: a curriculum of at least 5 years if you graduated on or after 1 January 2003 (at least 4 years before that), and an unrestricted license or registration to practise in another country.

    Read in the guide Official site
  2. Apply

    Apply for FPGEC certification and have ECE evaluate your degree

    Submit the FPGEC application in your NABP e-Profile, then post the notarized FPGEC Attestation, two passport photos and a notarized ID copy. Ask ECE for a General Evaluation Report with a copy sent to FPGEC, and send proof of your license to practise. From the application date you have 2 years to meet the acceptance requirements.

    • Cost: 750 USD

    Cost: $750 non-refundable FPGEC application fee (NABP). ECE sets its own fees.

    Read in the guide Official site
  3. Prepare

    Pass the TOEFL iBT or the OET

    Take the TOEFL iBT, or the OET for Pharmacy for tests taken from 11 January 2027, at a test centre in the US, Canada or another NABP jurisdiction, not in Egypt or the Gulf. Home Edition scores are not accepted. ETS sends the scores straight to FPGEC with code 9103, and NABP starts reviewing your application only after they arrive.

    Cost: Set by ETS or OET, not by NABP.

    Read in the guide Official site
  4. Exams Optional

    Practise with the official Pre-FPGEE

    NABP's official practice exam: 66 questions in 85 minutes, up to 2 attempts a year. MediHelp has no FPGEE question bank.

    • Cost: 90 USD

    Cost: $90 per attempt (NABP).

    Read in the guide Official site
  5. Exams

    Pass the FPGEE

    NABP reviews your application in about 12 weeks once every document has arrived. After acceptance you have 2 years to pass. The exam runs once a year in the continental US: 200 questions, and the pass mark is a scaled score of 75. Check the key dates for the current cycle on NABP's FPGEE page.

    • Cost: 750–850 USD

    Cost: $750 for the first attempt; $850 for a second attempt on the same application (NABP).

    Time: Results appear in your NABP e-Profile about 8 weeks after the exam.

    Read in the guide Official site
  6. License

    Receive FPGEC certification

    When every step is complete and you have passed both the English test and the FPGEE, you are certified. There is no paper certificate: the certification date appears in your NABP e-Profile.

    Read in the guide Official site
  7. License

    Complete your state's internship

    Each state board of pharmacy sets its own rules and intern hours for foreign graduates. Ask the board of the state where you want to practise what it needs before it issues an intern license.

    Cost: Intern and pharmacist license fees vary by state.

    Read in the guide Official site
  8. Exams

    Pass the NAPLEX

    225 questions over 6 hours. Apply for eligibility in your NABP e-Profile, buy the exam once your board grants eligibility, then book it with Pearson VUE after you receive your Authorization to Test (ATT).

    • Cost: 620 USD

    Cost: $100 eligibility application + $520 exam (NABP). Some states add an $85 eligibility processing fee.

    Read in the guide Official site Practise for this exam
  9. Exams

    Pass your state's law exam (MPJE)

    Take the state-specific MPJE, or the Uniform MPJE (UMPJE) in participating jurisdictions. Your board tells you which one applies.

    • Cost: 270–450 USD

    Cost: MPJE: $100 eligibility + $170 exam per state; UMPJE: $100 + $350 (NABP). Some states add an $85 eligibility processing fee.

    Read in the guide Official site
  10. License

    Get your US pharmacist license

    With FPGEC certification, your internship, the NAPLEX and the law exam behind you, apply to your state board for the pharmacist license.

    Time: Plan for at least two years from application to license. The FPGEE runs once a year, so a late document or a failed attempt usually costs a full year.

    Read in the guide Official site

General information, not legal or immigration advice. Rules, dates and fees change: check each step with NABP and your state board of pharmacy before you pay or book. MediHelp is not affiliated with NABP, ETS, ECE or any board of pharmacy.

Read the full guide

Frequently asked questions

Can I take the FPGEE in Egypt or Saudi Arabia?

No. NABP offers the FPGEE once a year at Pearson test sites in the continental United States only.

Can I take the TOEFL for FPGEC in Egypt?

No. NABP accepts only a TOEFL iBT taken at an ETS test centre in an NABP jurisdiction: the US states, DC, Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and 10 Canadian provinces.

How many times a year is the FPGEE held?

Once a year. In 2026 the exam was on 15 October.

Does a 4-year pharmacy degree count?

Only if you graduated before 1 January 2003. Graduates from that date on need a curriculum of at least 5 years.

Official sources

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