Who needs FPGEC certification?
FPGEC Certification Process
Read This Bulletin Carefully
Documentation Needed for First Time Applications and Reapplications
The Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Examination Committee™ (FPGEC®) oversees the FPGEC certification process and grants FPGEC certification under the supervision of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy® (NABP®).
The FPGEC evaluates the qualifications of pharmacists licensed and educated outside the United States who wish to become licensed pharmacists in a state or jurisdiction of the US.
FPGEC certification is required before a foreign pharmacy graduate can apply for pharmacy licensing in the US and most US territories. Passing pharmacist licensing exams is one component of the pharmacist licensure process. Examinations include the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination® (NAPLEX®) and the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination® (MPJE®).
To be eligible to take the NAPLEX and MPJE, the following groups need FPGEC certification:
Foreign Pharmacy Graduates. If you received your primary pharmacy degree from a recognized school of pharmacy that is not Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE)-accredited, you are considered a foreign pharmacy graduate. Status as a foreign pharmacy graduate is independent of citizenship and is based solely on recognition of your school of pharmacy and its ACPE-accreditated status. US citizens who have completed their pharmacy education from non-ACPE-accredited schools are considered foreign pharmacy graduates. Non-US citizens who have graduated from ACPE-accredited schools are not considered foreign pharmacy graduates.
Graduates of ACPE-accredited, post-baccalaureate pharmacy programs whose initial pharmacy degree is from a program that is not a US entry-level, ACPE-accredited pharmacy program.
Graduates of professional pharmacy degree programs based outside the US and its territories that have ACPE program status of Certification, Precertification, Provisional Certification, International-Accreditation, International Pre-Accreditation, or Provisional International-Accreditation.
FPGEC certification is not a license to practice pharmacy. To practice in the US, you must be licensed by the state or jurisdiction in which you seek to practice. Because licensure requirements vary by state, you should directly contact the board(s) of pharmacy for the state(s) in which you want to practice. This is the best way to obtain up-to-date information on state laws and requirements. Contact information for the boards of pharmacy is available on the NABP website.
NABP reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to refuse to accept any application, registration form, documentation, or payment that does not conform to applicable US laws and regulations and FPGEC candidate requirements.
To obtain FPGEC certification, you must:
Complete and submit all required documentation for the FPGEC certification application, including a passing Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-based Test (TOEFL iBT) score report submitted to the FPGEC directly by the Educational Testing Service (ETS).
Pass the Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Equivalency Examination® (FPGEE®).
Your official FPGEC certification date will be available for you to view in your NABP e-Profile® “Application History” tab. This is also visible to all the boards of pharmacy. (Proof of FPGEC certification is not available as a paper certificate).
Read this Bulletin thoroughly to ensure that you understand all the requirements, policies, and procedures before you submit your application.
The information in this Bulletin will guide you through the steps of the FPGEC process, including registering to take the FPGEE. It answers the most frequently asked questions about the FPGEC application process and contains important exam policies and procedures.
Unless otherwise stated, the policies and procedures specified in this Bulletin apply to all open applications regardless of submission date.
FPGEC does not waive or make exceptions to any FPGEC requirement.
FPGEC does not extend any FPGEC program expiration dates.
See Section 18 for a list of all associated program fees.
FPGEC Attestation Page, with two current loose photographs
A properly notarized photocopy of a current (unexpired) acceptable photo ID
Acceptable license/registration documentation. If previously submitted documents are older than 2 years at the time of your application, you are required to resubmit these items.
Current ECE Report. If your previously submitted Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE) Report, was created more than 2 years ago, you are required to resubmit a current ECE Report when submitting your application.
A passing TOEFL iBT submitted to the FPGEC directly by ETS
Additional documentation may be needed for some applications. If additional documentation is needed, it will be requested at the conclusion of your application evaluation.
July 2026