Registration Procedures for International Pharmacy Graduates in Canada

This article summarizes information about certification and licensing in Canada for pharmacists.

The role of provincial governments and The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) in licensing

Each province in Canada is responsible for issuing a license to practice pharmacy in that province. All provinces, except Quebec, require applicants educated outside of Canada to have The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC) Certificate of Qualification.

This Certificate is a major requirement for licensing in each province, but the Certificate alone does not mean you have the right to practice.

In addition to the PEBC Certificate of Qualification, each province has additional licensing requirements. These may include practical experience, English or French language skills, and jurisprudence examinations. You must contact the licensing authority of the province in which you choose to practice to receive full information about their requirements. The contact information for the provincial and territorial regulatory authorities is available on the PEBC website.

How to receive PEBC Certificate of Qualification

As an international pharmacy graduate, you must follow the 2-step Evaluation Procedure before you can write the Pharmacist Qualifying Examination. Once you have favorably completed the two steps, you will then be eligible to take the Pharmacist Qualifying Examination.

1. Language Proficiency Requirements

Language Proficiency Tests are not required by the PEBC. However, Provincial Regulatory Authorities do require these tests.

Pharmacists seeking licensure must meet the respective provincial requirements in order to become licensed within an individual province. Therefore, candidates for licensure are advised to contact the licensing authority for the province in which they are seeking licensure to receive full information regarding language fluency requirements.

2. Immigration to Canada

For all matters regarding immigration, please contact your local Immigration Authorities directly. PEBC cannot provide information or answer questions about immigration.

Steps to Achieve PEBC Certification

Step 1: Document Evaluation

The PEBC must evaluate certain documents to ensure you have a degree in Pharmacy that is acceptable to the PEBC. If your documents are favorably evaluated, you must then write the Pharmacist Evaluating Examination.

To have your documents evaluated to determine if you are eligible for the Evaluating Examination, please see the section entitled Document Evaluation Application Procedures.

Step 2: The Pharmacist Evaluating Examination

This written examination is to determine whether or not you have completed a program of study comparable to that taught in Canada.

If you wish to be considered for the next sitting of the Evaluating Examination, please send in your examination application form and fee together with the application form and fee and documents, etc. required for Document Evaluation by the deadline date indicated in the Document Evaluation Application Procedures section.

Do not wait to hear if your documents have been evaluated as you may miss the deadline for submission of your examination application.

Please note: Once your documents have been favorably evaluated, you have up to five years to pass the evaluation examination.

Step 3: The Pharmacist Qualifying Examination, Part I (MCQ) and Part II (OSCE)

After your documents have been favorably evaluated and you have passed the Evaluating Examination, you can then take the Pharmacist Qualifying Examination, Part I (MCQ) and Part II (OSCE). You will receive information from the PEBC about the Qualifying Examination after you pass the Evaluating Examination.

The Qualifying Examination is designed to assess the competencies required for safe and effective practice. The examination is held twice a year and candidates may elect to take both parts of the Qualifying Examination at the same time, or each part at separate times.

The Qualifying Examination - Part I is a written examination in a multiple choice question (MCQ) format. It is divided into two sittings, taken on two consecutive half-days.

Part II of the Qualifying Examination is a practice-based examination designed in the format known as an “objective structured clinical examination” (OSCE), and is taken on a different day. The OSCE consists of a series of 7-minute tasks or simulations that are based on common and critical practical situations. For more information on this examination, see The Qualifying Examination of the home page for pharmacists on the PEBC website.

Document Evaluation Application Procedures

There are two separate application forms and two separate fees for Document Evaluation and the Evaluating Examination. The fee for Document Evaluation is CAD$530 and the fee for the Evaluating Examination is CAD$515. 

Please note: There is an additional administration fee of CAD$365 for the London, England site of the Evaluating Examination.

You will need to submit the following to be considered for Document Evaluation.

• Document Evaluation application form, properly witnessed
• CAD$530 fee
• Documents to support identity

1. Birth Certificate
2. Marriage Certificate (if necessary)
3. or Canadian Citizenship Card
4. or Statutory Declaration + supporting documents

• Documents to support graduation and licensing

1. University Degree Certificate
2. Transcript
3. Licensing Statement

Additional documents or information may be requested in support of the application.

Incorrectly submitted documents will delay the evaluation of your qualification.

If you have any questions regarding the documents required, please contact PEBC at pebcinfo@pebc.ca.

Deadline Dates

There is no deadline for Document Evaluation. However, if you wish to be considered for an upcoming Evaluating Examination, all documents and fees for both Document Evaluation and the Evaluating Examination must be correctly submitted.

Applications that are received after the deadline date will NOT be processed but will be held for a future examination date.

Instructions for document evaluation application form

• Enter your name on your application exactly as it appears on your identification.
• Fill out all other information requested being sure not to miss anything as it is all required.
• Staple 1 passport-sized photo to the top, left corner of the application form. The photo must be taken within one year of the date we receive your application and the date it was taken must be recorded on the back of the photo.
• Paste 1 passport-sized picture in the box provided in the bottom, right corner of the application. It must be the same photo you have attached to the top, left corner.
• You will need to find one of the following acceptable witnesses:

1. Notary Public
2. Commissioner for Oaths
3. Lawyer
4. The Canadian Embassy

• While in the presence of your witness:

1. Sign and date the application yourself in the space provided
2. Have your witness fill in city, date, name, signature and title/profession
3. Have your witness seal, stamp or sign the front of the photo located in the bottom, right corner of the application. The signature needs to cover part of the photo and the application Author ization

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Instructions for submitting necessary identification

Primary Identification

PEBC requires a properly witnessed copy of one of the following showing your name exactly as it appears on your application:

• Your birth certificate
• Both sides of your Canadian Citizenship Card

If your name has changed PEBC requires a properly witnessed copy of one of the following for each name change:

• Your marriage certificate
• Your change of name certificate

Acceptable Witnesses

• Notary Public
• Commissioner for Oaths
• Lawyer
• The Canadian Embassy

If you are unable to submit the required identification you will need to make a statutory declaration before a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths, or a lawyer that states:

• The official name of your statutory declaration is representing
• Your date of birth
• An explanation of the reasons for not being able to submit an acceptable form of identification

When submitting the declaration, notarized photocopies of two official documents showing the complete names with exactly the same spelling are also required. Acceptable documents include a social insurance card, passport, Canadian driver’s license, health card, or major credit card.

Instructions for submitting university degree certificate

• You will need to send PEBC a notarized copy of your university degree certificate with your application
• It must be a copy of the certificate that you would frame and hang on your wall
• If your certificate was issued in a language other than English or French, you will need to have an official translation made and attach the original official translation to the notarized copy of the original language certificate
• PEBC will not accept notarized copies of official translations
• PEBC will not accept a copy of the original language certificate that does not have the stamp of the witness on it

Instructions for university transcripts

• PEBC requires your university transcript for your pharmacy degree program sent to PEBC directly from your university
• Your transcript is a list of all the courses in your degree program with corresponding grades
• The issue date of your transcript must be within one month of the date we receive it
• If your university will not send it themselves, you may have a courier pick up your transcript directly from the university and deliver it to PEBC
• PEBC will not accept your transcript if it has been given to you or anyone else first. Do not send your transcript with your application as it will not be accepted.

Translations

If your transcript is issued in a language other than English or French, you will also need to request a copy of the transcript for yourself and have an official translation of it made that you will attach to your copy of the original language transcript and send to us yourself.

Germany

PEBC requires certified copies of the certificates of all three stages issued by the University and a certified copy of the pharmaceutical examination certificate with attached official translations

Instructions for licensing statements

• PEBC requires a licensing statement be sent to PEBC directly from all licensing authorities by which you are currently licensed
• Your licensing statement is a letter stating you are currently licensed and in good standing
• The issue date of your licensing statement must be within one month of the date we receive it
• If your licensing authority will not send it themselves, you may have a courier pick up your licensing statement directly from the licensing authority and deliver it to PEBC
• PEBC will not accept your licensing statement if it has been given to you or anyone else first. Do not send your licensing statement with your application as it will not be accepted.

Translations

If your licensing statement is issued in a language other than English or French you will also need to request a copy of the licensing statement for yourself and have an official translation of it made that you will attach to your copy of the original language licensing statement and send to us yourself.

If you are not currently Licensed

• You must submit a statutory declaration made before a Notary Public, Commissioner for Oaths, a lawyer or The Canadian Embassy, which states specifically that you are not currently licensed anywhere in the world and provides a brief explanation of the reason you are not currently licensed.
• You can send PEBC this document yourself 

Instructions for submitting a syllabus

• You do NOT need to submit a syllabus with your initial application for Document Evaluation
• If the university where you obtained your degree has not already been approved by PEBC, you will be asked to submit a syllabus from the year you graduated
• A syllabus lists all of the courses in your degree program and provides a description of the course content
• You can send the syllabus to PEBC yourself. It does not need to come directly from the university and it does not need to be notarized

Fee instructions

• Fee: $530 Canadian – fee must be received in Canadian dollars
• Make it payable to PEBC or The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada
• Acceptable forms of payment:

1. Canadian personal cheque
2. Money order
3. Bank draft

• All forms of payment must be currently dated. Post-dated cheques will be returned
• Be sure to sign cheques in the appropriate place

Checklist

A checklist has been provided that you will need to sign, date and include with your application. Please go through it carefully in order to double-check that you are including all of the information required. If all of these instructions are not followed we may have to ask for documents to be resubmitted which could cause you to miss the deadline.

Mailing instructions

You must send in your Application Form and documents via regular mail or via courier services to:

The Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada

717 Church Street

Toronto, ON M4W 2M4 Canada

Document evaluation results

Once PEBC has received all of the necessary documents your file will be considered complete and, from that date, it will take up to 8 weeks for the evaluation of your documents to be completed. Once it has been completed a results letter will be sent to you by a regular man. if you have a Canadian address you could have PEBC manent to, please let PEBC know as this helps ensure speedy delivery of important information.

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