Work as a pharmacist in the USA: FPGEE and NAPLEX (2026)

• A pharmacy degree from a recognized or accredited school outside the US, or a US school that is not ACPE accredited.
• At least a four-year program if you graduated before January 1, 2003, or at least five years if you graduated on or after that date.
• An unrestricted, permanent license or registration to practice pharmacy in a country outside the US, documented by the issuing agency in a sealed envelope.
• An ECE General Evaluation Report less than two years old, with a copy sent directly to the FPGEC.
• TOEFL iBT at the FPGEC's section scores (from January 21, 2026: Reading 4, Listening 5, Speaking 5, Writing 4.5), taken at an approved center in North America. OET for pharmacy is accepted for tests from January 11, 2027.
• A pass on the FPGEE (scaled score 75) within two years of FPGEC acceptance and within five attempts.
• An intern license and the practice hours set by your state board, for example 1,500 hours in California.
• Passes on the NAPLEX and the law exam your state requires (MPJE, UMPJE or a state exam such as the CPJE in California).
• For employment, legal permission to work in the US, which usually means employer sponsorship if you are not a citizen or permanent resident.

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• NABPNational Association of Boards of Pharmacy

  Pharmacists

  How to register with the NABP

1. 1

   1. Pick a state and check its board's requirements

   Choose the state where you want to work and read its board of pharmacy rules on foreign graduates, intern hours, the law exam and extra waiting periods. NABP advises contacting the board directly because requirements vary. This decides how many hours you need and which law exam to buy later.
2. 2

   2. Apply for FPGEC certification

   Create your NABP e-Profile, then submit the FPGEC application and the nonrefundable $750 fee by card. Use your name exactly as it appears on your transcripts and passport. Do not mail documents before the application is submitted.
3. 3

   3. Send your attestation, photos, ID and license proof

   Mail the notarized FPGEC Attestation with two passport-size photos, a notarized copy of your ID, and your license documentation sealed by each licensing agency. NABP accepts no electronic documents and advises sending everything within three months of applying. Unsealed envelopes, missing seals and untranslated stamps are common causes of delay.
4. 4

   4. Get your ECE evaluation

   Apply to Educational Credential Evaluators for a General Evaluation Report with an extra copy for the FPGEC, and have your school send official transcripts with course titles, hours and grades. NABP says ECE takes about 12 weeks. Reports older than two years must be redone for a new application.
5. 5

   5. Pass the TOEFL iBT in North America

   Book the TOEFL iBT at an ETS test center in the US, a US territory or one of ten Canadian provinces; the at-home test is not accepted. You need Reading 4, Listening 5, Speaking 5 and Writing 4.5 (new scale, tests from January 21, 2026). Send scores to FPGEC code 9103; they are valid for two years.
6. 6

   6. Pass the FPGEE

   When your application is Accepted, buy the FPGEE ($750) in the registration window and book a Pearson seat after you receive your Authorization to Test. It is a 200-question, 4.5-hour exam held once a year in the fall. You need 75 to pass and get results in about eight weeks; then your FPGEC certification date appears in your e-Profile.
7. 7

   7. Register as an intern and complete your hours

   Apply to your state board for an intern license and complete the supervised practice hours it requires. California, for example, issues foreign graduates a two-year intern license and requires 1,500 hours of pharmacy practice experience. Hours rules and which settings count differ by state, so confirm before you start.
8. 8

   8. Pass the NAPLEX

   Apply for eligibility through NABP ($100, plus $85 processing in some states), buy the NAPLEX ($520) and schedule with Pearson. The six-hour exam has 225 scenario-based questions and results are pass or fail. After a fail you wait at least 45 days, and you have a maximum of five attempts.
9. 9

   9. Pass your state's law exam

   Most states use the state-specific MPJE ($170) or the Uniform MPJE ($350); California uses its own CPJE. The MPJE has 120 adaptive questions in 2.5 hours. Check which exam your board requires before buying, as boards choose whether to accept the UMPJE.
10. 10

    10. Get your license and start work

    Your board issues the license once all requirements and background checks are complete. Employers then run their own checks. If you later move states, you transfer your license through NABP's eLTP and pass that state's law exam.

• FPGEE

  200 questions in 4.5 hours, computer-based, covering foundational biomedical sciences (12%), pharmaceutical sciences (31%), social, behavioral and administrative sciences (20%) and pharmacy practice and clinical sciences (37%). Held once a year in the fall at Pearson centers in the continental US, Puerto Rico and Guam. Passing scaled score 75; maximum five attempts.

• TOEFL iBT

  The English requirement for FPGEC: Reading 4, Listening 5, Speaking 5, Writing 4.5 on the new ETS scale, all from one sitting (or MyBest scores from November 1, 2026), at an ETS center in an NABP member jurisdiction.

• NAPLEX

  Six hours, 225 questions (200 scored), mostly scenario based with patient profiles, two optional 10-minute breaks. Pass or fail. Three attempts per 12 months and five in total unless a board decides otherwise.

• MPJE or UMPJE

  Jurisprudence exams of 120 adaptive questions (100 scored) in 2.5 hours. The MPJE is unique to each state; the UMPJE, launched in 2026, covers law common to most states plus federal law. Five attempts per jurisdiction; 30-day wait after a fail.

• State law exams

  Some states set their own exam instead. California requires the California Practice Standards and Jurisprudence Examination for Pharmacists (CPJE) as well as the NAPLEX.

• TOEFL iBT tests from January 21, 2026 (new ETS scale): Reading 4, Listening 5, Speaking 5, Writing 4.5.
• TOEFL iBT on the earlier scale, for applications accepted from October 25, 2025: Reading 21, Listening 22, Speaking 25, Writing 22.
• Scores are valid for two years and must go from ETS directly to the FPGEC (code 9103). All four sections must come from one sitting unless you use MyBest scores, accepted from November 1, 2026.
• The TOEFL iBT must be taken at an ETS center in the US, its territories or one of ten Canadian provinces. The at-home version is not accepted.
• OET for pharmacy will be accepted for tests taken from January 11, 2027 at an approved center in an NABP jurisdiction; NABP will publish the scores.
• No exemptions: native English speakers, US citizens and graduates of English-medium schools must also pass.

Estimate your total cost

• ECE evaluation: about 12 weeks, according to NABP.
• FPGEC: two years from application to complete requirements, and two years from acceptance to pass the FPGEE.
• FPGEE: once a year in the fall (October 15, 2026), with results about eight weeks later. Missing the window means waiting a year.
• Intern hours: set by the state; California's 1,500 hours equal about 38 weeks at 40 hours a week.
• NAPLEX and MPJE: results usually within 14 business days where boards use NABP's online results; 45-day and 30-day waits after a fail.

Median annual wages from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025 OEWS data. Pay varies by state, employer and setting; there is no national pharmacist pay scale.

• Pharmacists (all)

  $140,910

  BLS median, May 2025 ($67.75 an hour).

• Hospitals (state, local and private)

  $157,290

• Ambulatory health care services

  $153,920

• General merchandise retailers

  $151,370

• Pharmacies and drug retailers

  $132,940

• Pharmacy interns: Set by employerNo national scale.

• Community pharmacy chains and drug retailers are the largest employers; BLS reports a median of $132,940 in pharmacies and drug retailers.
• Hospitals pay the highest median by industry ($157,290 in May 2025, according to BLS). Requirements for clinical roles vary by employer.
• General merchandise retailers, ambulatory care, mail-order and specialty pharmacy, and long-term care pharmacy also hire licensed pharmacists.
• Intern posts are where most foreign graduates gain the hours their state requires. Many chains and hospitals hire interns; confirm with your board which settings count.
• If you need a work visa, ask employers early whether they sponsor. Universities and their affiliated nonprofit hospitals are cap exempt for the H-1B, which can make them easier sponsors.

• There is no pharmacist-specific US work visa. Most foreign pharmacists who are not US citizens or permanent residents need an employer to sponsor them.
• H-1B: USCIS says H-1B workers in specialty occupations can generally be admitted for up to three years, extendable to a total of six. The annual cap is 65,000 plus 20,000 for US master's degree holders.
• Cap-exempt employers: USCIS says institutions of higher education, their affiliated or related nonprofits, nonprofit research organizations and government research organizations are not subject to the H-1B cap.
• H-1B payment: USCIS says certain new H-1B petitions filed after 12:01 a.m. Eastern on September 21, 2025 require an additional $100,000 payment under a Presidential Proclamation. Check current USCIS guidance with your employer.
• You may need to be in the US for the TOEFL iBT, the FPGEE and intern hours before you have a work visa; check with the US Department of State which visa fits each trip, and remember that intern work counts as work.
• Visa rules change often and this is not legal advice. Use an immigration attorney for your case.

1. 1

   License proof: your DHA, DOH Abu Dhabi, MOHAP, SCFHS, QCHP or other GCC pharmacist license can serve as the unrestricted license the FPGEC requires, if it is permanent and unrestricted. Ask the regulator to certify it with issue date, license number, seal and inked signature, and to seal it in an envelope with the seal across the flap. Any disciplinary action may be reported to US boards.

2. 2

   Degree length: if you graduated on or after January 1, 2003, your degree must be at least five years. A four-year BPharm from that period does not qualify, even with years of Gulf experience, though the FPGEC may review certain postgraduate clinical degrees case by case.

3. 3

   Exams are not available in the Gulf: the TOEFL iBT must be taken in the US, its territories or Canada, and the FPGEE only in the continental US, Puerto Rico or Guam. Budget for at least two trips and plan around the single October FPGEE date.

4. 4

   Gulf licensing exams and credential checks (such as DataFlow reports or Prometric-based Gulf exams) do not transfer. NABP requires its own ECE evaluation and the FPGEE, and no state waives FPGEC for foreign graduates.

5. 5

   Experience: Gulf hospital and community experience does not replace US intern hours. Count on completing your state's full requirement, for example 1,500 hours in California, after FPGEC certification.

6. 6

   Paperwork: keep your Gulf license history, employment letters and any Arabic documents ready with certified word-for-word English translations, as NABP requires them for non-English stamps or seals.

• Application plan with every step, fee and deadline

• Document checklist tailored to you, and a review of each document before upload

• Timeline built around the regulator's closure windows and document validity periods

• Help completing the application forms accurately and consistently

• Support with profession-specific evidence, such as the HCPC standards of proficiency mapping

• Guidance on certificates of good standing, references and certified translations

• Preparation for identity checks and declarations on health and character

• Tracking your application and help responding to regulator requests

• Next steps after the decision: exams, adaptation, PIN or licence and your first job

Regulators make all registration decisions and set all fees. Our fee is separate from the regulator's fees, exam fees and translation costs.

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