How can I become a registered pharmacist by doing the pharmacy course abroad in UK/Australia?

You can become a registered pharmacist in the UK or Australia even with a foreign pharmacy degree, but you need to bridge that qualification through a specific national process before you can practice. Which country you choose determines whether you sit the OSPAP course or the OPRA exam, so decide your target country first. Both routes take roughly one to two years of bridging plus supervised practice.

UK vs Australia: Your Registration Pathway

Steps to Start Your Registration

• Apply to the GPhC for an OSPAP eligibility check if you already hold a foreign pharmacy degree and want to practice in the UK.
• Apply to the Australian Pharmacy Council for a skills assessment and book your OPRA exam if Australia is your target.
• Secure provisional registration with the Pharmacy Board of Australia through AHPRA before you start your internship hours.
• Consider studying your pharmacy degree directly in the UK or Australia if you have not started yet, since this skips the bridging exams entirely.

My Advice

Decide between the UK and Australia before you invest in exam prep, since the OSPAP and OPRA routes use completely different exams and registration bodies, and starting your English test and eligibility application now shaves months off a process that already takes over a year end to end.