Pharmacy License from Texas to Colorado: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Colorado accept a Texas pharmacist license?
A pharmacist license transfers from Texas to Colorado by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Colorado State Board of Pharmacy (DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations), verify your Texas license, and meet Colorado's endorsement requirements. NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP eLTP. Colorado requires passing the Board-approved jurisprudence examination — the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE) — before the transferred license is granted.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Your Texas license transfers into Colorado through the NABP Electronic Licensure Transfer Program — NABP forwards your license and NAPLEX history to the Colorado State Board of Pharmacy (DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations) — but Colorado gates the license behind its own pharmacy-law exam. Coming from Texas neither speeds this up nor slows it down; the eLTP is origin-neutral, so the timeline below is Colorado's standard out-of-state queue. Open the e-Profile transfer and book the law exam as early as Colorado allows.
What's different between Texas and Colorado
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Colorado. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Texas to Colorado (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Colorado to Texas (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Texas matter?
Coming from Texas does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Colorado.
- Application fee
Texas lists $255 for the reverse move; Colorado has no verified fee figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Processing time
Texas lists about 8 weeks for the reverse move; Colorado has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Colorado and Texas carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Colorado (this move): NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP eLTP. Colorado requires passing the Board-approved jurisprudence examination — the Multistate Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (MPJE) — before the transferred license is granted.
- Texas (the reverse move): NAPLEX is not retaken; license history transfers via the NABP Licensure Transfer (eLTP). Texas requires passing the Texas Pharmacy Jurisprudence Examination (the MPJE for Texas), minimum score 75, before the reciprocal license is granted. TX had not adopted the Uniform MPJE (UMPJE) as of 2026-07-21.
What changes, Texas → Colorado
| Texas (current) | Colorado (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $255 (Texas reciprocity application fee $255 paid to TSBP; the NABP Licensure Transfer/eLTP fees ($300 application + $100 per jurisdiction, 2026-07-21) and the MPJE exam fee are separate and paid to NABP) | Colorado (DORA / Division of Professions and Occupations) does not publish the pharmacist license-transfer application fee on an openly accessible page; the fee is stated on the application form inside DPO Online Services. Separate NABP eLTP fees apply ($300 application + $100 per jurisdiction) plus the MPJE exam fee |
| Processing time | ~8 weeks (TSBP advises allowing at least 8 weeks to review the application and supplemental documents (older reciprocity instructions stated 6 weeks); excludes NABP preliminary/eLTP processing (~4-6 weeks) and MPJE result reporting (~3 weeks); licenses are issued weekly, generally on Fridays) | No board-stated processing time for pharmacist license transfer; NABP eLTP verification typically takes several business days before the Division reviews the application |
| Licensing authority | Texas State Board of Pharmacy | Colorado State Board of Pharmacy (DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Colorado sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Colorado's current requirements on the Colorado State Board of Pharmacy (DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Colorado State Board of Pharmacy (DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Submit the license transfer preliminary application through your NABP e-Profile (eLTP), then the official application to the Division.
- Pass the Board-approved jurisprudence examination (MPJE).
- Have been licensed as a pharmacist for at least one year in another state, or have met Colorado internship requirements at original licensure.
- All licenses held in any state must be active, current, and in good standing with no active disciplinary action.
- 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 Texas to Colorado?
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.
- Colorado State Board of Pharmacy — Applications and Forms ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- 3 CCR 719-1 — Colorado pharmacy rules, Licensing / license transfer ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NABP — Electronic Licensure Transfer Program (eLTP) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Texas State Board of Pharmacy — Apply: Reciprocity ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Texas State Board of Pharmacy — Instructions and Requirements for Licensure by Reciprocity (LIC-014) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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