Overseas Pharmacist Registration In Uk
All applicants wishing to work in the UK as a pharmacist must register with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
International applicants with qualifications obtained outside the EEA must follow the GPhC Overseas Pharmacists Assessment Programme (OSPAP) to apply for registration.
Overseas Pharmacists Assessment Programme in UK :
This is a postgraduate diploma undertaken as the first part of the route to registration required by those who have qualified as a pharmacist from outside of the EEA.
The OSPAP is a one-year course designed to ensure that those who have qualified overseas receive the appropriate education and training to prepare them for UK practice and entry to pre-registration training.
The OSPAP course is available to those who hold an overseas pharmacy qualification and are registered, or eligible to register, as pharmacists in their country of qualification.
Universities which currently offer the OSPAP course- Aston University, University of Brighton, University of Hertfordshire, Kington University London, and the University of Sunderland.
After completing the OSPAP course, applicants are required to complete:
- 52 weeks of pre-registration training in England, Scotland or Wales signed off as satisfactory by your tutor
- the GPhC registration assessment with a pass result
English Proficiency
- IELTS test- overall score of at least 7, and with no score less than 7 in each of the four areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking, at one sitting of the test.
- OET score of minimum ‘B’ in each of the 4 areas of reading, writing, listening and speaking
- A recent pharmacy qualification that has been entirely taught and examined in English in a mainly English-speaking country other than the UK.
- Recent practice for at least two years as a pharmacy professional in a mainly English-speaking country.
IELTS/ OET test scores that are more than two years old may be accepted if the applicant can provide evidence that you have maintained your English language proficiency during that time. E.g., working as a pharmacy professional in a mainly English-speaking country, or east 75 per cent of your day-to-day interaction with patients, carers, their families, and other healthcare professionals has been in English.
Assessing your pharmacy qualification:
If your pharmacy qualification is not assessed as equal to at least a UK bachelor’s degree in pharmacy, you must carry out an assessment of the syllabus of the degree that you studied.
Immigration
All applicants will require a Tier 2 visa (sponsored by the applicant’s employer).
Biometric residence permits
Issued to foreign nationals, a biometric residence permit (BRP) is a card which holds your biographic details (name, date and place of birth), your ‘biometric information’ (fingerprints and digital facial image) and shows your immigration status and your entitlements while you are in the UK.
Individuals are issued a BRP automatically when they apply for a visa or immigration. A sticker or vignette, valid for 30 days, is issued in passports, allowing enough time to travel to the UK. On arrival, you will have ten days to collect your BRP from a post office branch, as specified in your decision letter.
As part of recruitment practice in the NHS, verification of identity checks is used to determine that an identity is genuine and that it belongs to the individual presenting it.
BRP cards can be used to verify identity and complete this check.