Pharmacy License from Georgia to Illinois: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Illinois accept a Georgia pharmacist license?
A pharmacist license transfers from Georgia to Illinois by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — State Board of Pharmacy, verify your Georgia license, and meet Illinois's endorsement requirements. NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP eLTP. Illinois requires the Illinois-specific MPJE; alternatively, a transferring pharmacist may satisfy the Illinois jurisprudence requirement by completing the Illinois Pharmacist Readiness and Orientation Program (ILPRO) in lieu of the IL MPJE. Illinois has not adopted the Uniform MPJE.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Your Georgia license transfers into Illinois through the NABP Electronic Licensure Transfer Program — NABP forwards your license and NAPLEX history to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — State Board of Pharmacy — but Illinois gates the license behind its own pharmacy-law exam. Coming from Georgia neither speeds this up nor slows it down; the eLTP is origin-neutral, so the timeline below is Illinois's standard out-of-state queue. Open the e-Profile transfer and book the law exam as early as Illinois allows.
What's different between Georgia and Illinois
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Illinois. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Georgia to Illinois (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Illinois to Georgia (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Georgia matter?
Coming from Georgia does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Illinois.
- Application fee
Illinois lists $200 for an out-of-state applicant and Georgia lists $500 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
Georgia lists 6–7 weeks for the reverse move; Illinois has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Illinois and Georgia carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Illinois (this move): NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP eLTP. Illinois requires the Illinois-specific MPJE; alternatively, a transferring pharmacist may satisfy the Illinois jurisprudence requirement by completing the Illinois Pharmacist Readiness and Orientation Program (ILPRO) in lieu of the IL MPJE. Illinois has not adopted the Uniform MPJE.
- Georgia (the reverse move): NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP eLTP. Georgia requires registering with and paying NABP to sit for the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE) and passing it with an overall score of at least 75. Georgia has not adopted the Uniform MPJE.
What changes, Georgia → Illinois
| Georgia (current) | Illinois (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $500 (Georgia application fee $500 (non-refundable), submitted with a separate $50 non-refundable decorative wall-certificate fee ($550 total, in two checks); separate NABP eLTP fees ($300 application + $100 per jurisdiction) and the MPJE exam fee apply) | $200 (Illinois endorsement fee $200 for a pharmacist licensed in another state/territory (Ill. Admin. Code tit. 68 sec. 1330.20(b)(3), effective 6/2/2023); separate NABP eLTP fees ($300 + $100 per jurisdiction) and the MPJE exam fee apply) |
| Processing time | 6–7 weeks (board's reciprocity application supplement states 30 business days (~6 weeks); the Pharmacy/Pharmacist FAQ states approximately 35 business days (~7 weeks); both exclude NABP eLTP review (3-5 business days) and MPJE scheduling) | IDFPR does not publish a fixed processing-time estimate for pharmacist endorsement; NABP eLTP review is 3-5 business days |
| Licensing authority | Georgia Board of Pharmacy | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — State Board of Pharmacy |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Illinois sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Illinois's current requirements on the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — State Board of Pharmacy website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — State Board of Pharmacy (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Submit the license transfer through the NABP eLTP and file the Illinois endorsement application via IDFPR Online Services.
- Provide verification of licensure from every state where you have ever held a pharmacist license.
- Pass the Illinois MPJE, or complete ILPRO in lieu of the IL MPJE.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Do I retake the NAPLEX moving from Georgia to Illinois?
No — the NAPLEX is a one-time national exam that transfers with your record.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- IDFPR — Pharmacy (application forms; ILPRO as MPJE alternative) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Illinois Administrative Code tit. 68 sec. 1330.20 — Fees (endorsement $200) (via Cornell LII) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NABP — Electronic Licensure Transfer Program (eLTP) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Georgia Board of Pharmacy — Pharmacist Reciprocity Application Information and Supplement (PDF) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Georgia Board of Pharmacy — Reciprocity Licensure Requirements (PDF) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Georgia Board of Pharmacy — Pharmacy and Pharmacist FAQs (reciprocity process, fees, MPJE) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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