Pharmacist migrating from the UK to Australia

So you are a pharmacist registered with the GPhC looking to migrate from the UK to Australia.

Foreign pharmacists account for over a quarter of registered pharmacists in Western Australia with most pharmacists originating from India, the United Kingdom and South Africa, so you are not alone! The heat map below shows the originating destination of pharmacists taking the APEC Exam.

Pharmacist Immigration to Australia

Figure 1. Pharmacist migration heat map to Australia, courtesy of APECExam.com.

Reasons to migrate

  • Australia is ranked in the top 10 highest wage destinations for pharmacists.
  • Relatively low population level, low pollution and plenty of fresh air available along with some great natural landscapes and beautiful scenery are the things, which make people choose this country as their home.

Steps to migration

  1. Whilst you are in the UK, you should contact the Australian Pharmacy Council to start your eligibility assessment. The reason why this should be your first step is that during this eligibility assessment the APC may find that your ineligible to become a pharmacist in Australia due to the lack of “good standing“. Good standing means that the APC will do a background check on your degree and assess your fitness to practice, if this is found to be deficient then the application could be denied. A ket part of this is a Criminal history check done through the APHRA website. Once you have figured out that the APC will accept you the next step would be to apply for a VISA.
  2. Get a visa to work – this is issued by the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection. Occasionally this process becomes easier if the government decides to list Pharmacists in their nominated program via Skillselect (as of 2020 this is not the case), however, anyone under 30 can come and work in Australia on a temporary work visa that lasts a year. This year has to be 2 lots of 6 months (i.e. 6 months for one employer + 6 months for another employer). The main pharmacy employers in Australia include:
    • Epic Pharmacy
    • Australian Pharmaceutical Industries
    • Chemist Warehouse
    • Amcal
    • Pharmacy4Less
    • Blooms the Chemist
    • Pharmacy Warehouse
    • Cincotta Chemist
    • Pharmacy 777
    • Guardian Pharmacy
    • Sigma Wholesale
    • Terry White Chemmart
    • Capital Chemist
    • National Pharmacies
    • Wizard
    • My Chemist
    • Chemist King
    • Chemist Direct, Discount Drugs
    • United Discount Chemists
    • Chemplus
    • Chemist Works
    • You Save Chemists
  3. Fly to Australia. Once over in Australia, you should find a job, it would be best to work within one of the pharmacy chains so that you get some experience of the pharmacy profession in Australia. Whilst you are working you can proceed with your APC application, which would mean you need to do your 6-week internship and subsequent oral exam to have your license recognised and work as a pharmacist.
  4. Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) – as you are from the UK you may be eligible for the quicker route to registration Stream B.
  5. Lastly, to live in Australia permanently you need to have been granted permanent residency. This entails a further application that can be sponsored by your new employer.