Canada job guide
Pharmacist in Canada: your Express Entry path, step by step
Picture yourself running a Canadian community pharmacy or working in a hospital, with permanent residence for your family. Pharmacists (NOC 31120, TEER 1) are on IRCC's 2026 healthcare and social services list: 12 months of work in the last 3 years, in Canada or abroad, puts you in the healthcare draws as well as the regular rounds. Pharmacists have one Express Entry rule of their own: if you claim pharmacist as your main job and it needs a licence, your educational credential assessment must come from the Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada (PEBC).
At a glance
- Occupation
- Pharmacists · NOC 31120 · TEER 1
- Express Entry group
- Healthcare and social services
- Latest healthcare round
- September 4, 2026, cut-off 475
- Median wage in Canada
- $55.49 an hour Job Bank, wages updated November 19, 2025
Your way into the Express Entry pool
Every invitation needs a profile in the Express Entry pool. Pharmacists usually qualify through:
- Federal Skilled Worker. Experience must be in a TEER 0, 1, 2 or 3 job; pharmacists are TEER 1.
- Canadian Experience Class. For skilled work experience already gained in Canada.
The PEBC rule. For Express Entry, IRCC requires pharmacists whose job needs a licence to get their educational credential assessment from PEBC, its designated body for the profession, not from a general assessment organisation. If your pharmacist job does not need a licence, for example in industry or government, another designated organisation can do the assessment. PEBC's Document Evaluation for licensing and its ECA report for immigration are separate products.
The healthcare draws
These draws rank only people with recent experience in one of the 37 listed health and social services jobs. The panel above shows the latest one. You need at least 12 months of full-time work (or the same part-time) as a pharmacist within the last 3 years. The months do not have to be in a row, and the work must match the NOC description of the job.
Getting licensed
Community and hospital pharmacists must be licensed in every province and territory. The provincial pharmacy regulators license; the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities (NAPRA) coordinates them.
- Pharmacists' Gateway Canada. Everywhere except Quebec, you start by enrolling in the Gateway, run by NAPRA, which gives you a national ID number.
- PEBC Document Evaluation. You then apply to PEBC to have your documents evaluated.
- PEBC exams. PEBC is changing its pathway in January 2027: the Evaluating Examination will no longer be required (October 2026 is its last sitting), and candidates with a valid Document Evaluation will go straight to the Qualifying Examination Part I and then Part II.
- The province. PEBC certification alone does not make you eligible for a licence: you meet the language requirement and your province's own requirements, then get your licence from the provincial regulator.
Quebec runs its own process through the Ordre des pharmaciens du Québec, and Gateway enrolment is not needed there.
What pharmacists earn
The panel above shows Job Bank's median hourly wage for pharmacists across Canada, with pay by province and region on Job Bank.
What to do next
Frequently asked questions
- Can I use WES for my Express Entry ECA as a pharmacist?
Not if pharmacist is your main job and it needs a licence: IRCC requires the assessment from PEBC. A pharmacist job that does not need a licence can use another designated organisation.
- Do I still need the PEBC Evaluating Examination?
Not from January 2027. October 2026 is its last sitting, and the new pathway goes from Document Evaluation to the Qualifying Examination.
- Is Quebec different?
Yes. Quebec has its own process through the Ordre des pharmaciens du Québec, and Pharmacists' Gateway Canada enrolment is not required there.
Last updated October 20, 2026