New Jersey Licensing Guides for Immigrant Pharmacists

Eligibility for New Jersey Pharmacist Licensing

The process for getting a license as a pharmacist in New Jersey is as follows:

Obtain FPGEC Certification

The purpose of the FPGEC Certification Program is to document the educational equivalency of your foreign pharmacy education. For specifics, refer to the most current FPGEC Application Bulletin on the NABP website: 2021 FPGEC Application Bulletin.

The following outlines the process:

• Submit an application package for the FPGEC Certification Program and the Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Equivalency Examination (FPGEE). The application is available on the NABP website. It requires several supporting documents, including proof of a foreign pharmacist license or an accepted substitute. The fee (as of Dec. 2021) is $550, which includes document evaluation ($450) and an application fee ($100).
• Submit a Credential Evaluation Application. Educational Credential Evaluators, Inc. is the only credentialing organization accepted by the NABP to verify your degree credentials.  You must submit your official transcripts and proof of degree, plus translations submitted according to the instructions found in the application package.
• Prepare for, register for, and pass the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT).  For applications submitted on or after January 1, 2020, you must pass the TOEFL iBT before being accepted to sit for the FPGEE. TOEFL iBT scores are valid for 2 years from the date of the administration of the test.  If you score less than the minimum required score in any section, your score report will not be accepted. The FPGEC does not accept “My Best” scores and will not consider a total score on the TOEFL iBT.  Passing scores are:
  • Reading – 22;
  • Listening – 21;
  • Speaking – 26; and
  • Writing – 24.

Pass the Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Equivalency Examination (FPGEE). The FPGEE will be explained in more detail in the section on testing.

– Important Notes on the FPGEC Certification

Your foreign credential evaluation does not occur early in the Certification Program.  If you graduated from your pharmacy institution in or after 2003 and believe that your pharmacy degree may not be equivalent to a 5-year professional (PharmD) degree, you are participating in this process at your own risk. Candidates like you have spent a lot of time and money before learning they are disqualified based on the credential evaluation. Get advice early on from FPGEC or a PharmD program to understand if your degree is likely to qualify.

• Your FPGEC Certification application and fees may be closed if you do not complete all application requirements within 2 years of submitting your application (including the TOEFL iBT requirement), or if you fail to pass the FPGEE within 2 years of being accepted to the FPGEC Certification Program.
• If you sit for the FPGEE and fail, you will have to retake the FPGEE if the next FPGEE administration falls within your 2-year period and pay a fee. If the next administration does not occur until after your 2-year period has ended, as the exam is only offered once per year, you will need to restart the process by applying to the FPGEC Certification Program again.
• Now is the time to make sure your name is the same on all of the major documents you will need for your licensing process. There can be real complications in your paperwork and licensing times if you do not have exactly the same name on your identification, applications, and foreign documents.
• Please note that the FPGEC has seen a rise in fraudulent documents. These fraudulent documents come from entities pretending to be official government offices with the right to approve documents. These entities say that they can speed the authentication of educational and licensure and/or registration documents for use abroad. Candidates should tell friends and relatives gathering documents for them to make sure that documents are from the issuing bodies only.  If the FPGEC receives fraudulent documents, the application will be delayed and your acceptance to the FPGEC Certification Program may be jeopardized.

Complete Your Pharmacy Intern Hours

You will need to complete at least 1,440 hours of practical experience as a pharmacy intern for your licensure by examination application.  You must be registered as a Pharmacy Intern before you begin to count your hours—it is not enough to have a job in a pharmacy (as a pharmacy technician, for example).

Intern hours do not have to be obtained in one pharmacy location but must be earned in the United States. Your internship must total 1,440 hours. The 1,440 hours of practical experience must be completed in no less than 34 weeks and no more than 104 weeks, under the supervision of an intern preceptor. Each week of your internship should consist of no less than 15 hours and no more than 45 hours of service.

The NJ Board asks that your intern preceptor provide a detailed written report outlining your progress, aptitude, and readiness to practice at the conclusion of your internship. You must also keep accurate records of your time spent on your internship.

Apply for a Pharmacy License

Once you have your FPGEC Certification and your 1,440 internship hours are complete, the next step is to prepare your Application for Pharmacist Licensure and Examination. The application package is available on the New Jersey Board of Pharmacy website, which includes the most current instructions, forms and fingerprint request forms. This Application will not result in a license now. Instead, once approved by the NJ Board, your application will allow you to take the NAPLEX and MPJE, which are two exams required for licensing.

The main items you will need to put together for your application to register as a New Jersey pharmacist include:

• Non-refundable application fee: $125 (current as of 2022)
• Pharmacist by Examination or Score Transfer Application
• US Social Security Number
• 2” x 2” passport type photo, taken within 6 months of filing the application
• Documentation to show mandatory education
• Verification of license in another state, if applicable
• Documentation of the required 1,440 pharmacy intern hours.
• Background check: after submitting your application you will receive a separate mailing from the Board regarding the criminal history background check and fingerprinting process
• Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Examination Committee (FPGEC) Certification

Allow 30 days for the application processing. You will be notified in writing if your application is incomplete or notification of your eligibility. To facilitate electronic communication, you can provide an email address.CERTIFICATION PROCESS:  For specifics, refer to the most current FPGEC Application Bulletin on the NABP website.

Pass Exams:  North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) and the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Exam (MPJE)

To be licensed in New Jersey as a pharmacist, you must pass the NAPLEX and the MPJE. NAPLEX tests your general practice skills and knowledge of pharmacy, while the MPJE tests your knowledge of jurisdiction-specification laws that apply to the profession. All pharmacy graduates must pass these exams before being licensed in New Jersey.

You will need to register and pay for NAPLEX and MPJE through the NABP website. Once your application and required documentation have been processed, NABP will send you an Authorization to Test (ATT) so that you can schedule your test with Pearson VUE. The ATT is valid for one year. The exams will be discussed in more detail in the next section.