The General Pharmaceutical Council has said it will launch a public consultation next year on its new approach to registration in the UK for internationally qualified pharmacists which will see the current two-year scheme replaced by a one-year programme of university study and in-practice training.

The regulator said it decided to pursue a one-route approach for all internationally qualified pharmacists from non-European Economic Area (EEA) and non-European Free Trade Association (EFTA) countries having “carefully” considered feedback from stakeholders.

The GPhC had been developing proposals for three routes to international registration which it said would have taken “different lengths of time, depending on how similar the education and training the internationally qualified pharmacist had completed was to pharmacist education and training in Great Britain.”

The GPhC said it will draft updated standards for the education and training of internationally qualified pharmacists before it launches its consultation some time next year. It stressed applicants will still need to pass the registration assessment.

To help it develop the proposals and updated standards, the regulator said it will set up a working group which will include representatives from statutory education bodies and providers of the overseas pharmacists' assessment programme as well as the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the UK Black Pharmacists Association, employers and other representative bodies.

The GPhC also said it will “continue to engage closely with different organisations representing internationally qualified pharmacists and other key groups” to ensure the proposals “are as inclusive and equitable as possible.”

Concerns 'about the fairness' of the original proposals

GPhC chief executive Duncan Rudkin said although stakeholders “generally welcomed” the original proposal to reduce the time and cost to complete the education and training, there were concerns “about the fairness” of those original proposals.

“Our Council has listened to these concerns,” Rudkin said, insisting a “significant proportion of overseas applicants” who would need to complete a one-year programme are from India, Pakistan and Nigeria.

He said shortening the course from two years to one will “significantly reduce the burden” on internationally qualified pharmacists and “help to increase the pharmacist workforce in the long-term.”

“As an organisation we’re committed to delivering equality, improving diversity and being inclusive in all our work as a healthcare regulator and an employer,” Rudkin added.

“We want to make sure that all our proposals and policies protect the public and maintain standards in ways that are demonstrably inclusive and equitable.”

Pharmacists who qualified in EEA or EFTA countries can apply for recognition of their qualifications in the UK but from September 2028, EEA-qualified pharmacists may need to take the single route for registration.