Guidelines for pharmacists qualified outside Denmark who want to work at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy
Guidelines for pharmacists who are nationals of an EU/EEA country or Switzerland and who have completed pharmacy training in one of these countries and want to work at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy
EU/EEA nationals or Swiss nationals having completed pharmacy training in one of these countries
Translation into Danish or English
Assessment and electronic processing of information
These guidelines describe the rules that apply to pharmacists who have completed training as a pharmacist in an EU/EEA country or Switzerland and who want to work as a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy.
EU/EEA nationals or Swiss nationals having completed pharmacy training in one of these countries
EU/EEA nationals or Swiss nationals who have completed pharmacy training in either of these countries, where the training meets the EU minimum requirements, are covered by Directive 2005/36/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications. The provisions of this directive are implemented into Danish law by executive order no. 1275 of 1 November 2007 on EU/EEA nationals’ access to and pursuit of the professional activities of a pharmacist in Denmark, etc. The executive order is being amended due to Directive 2013/55/EU of 20 November 2013 amending Directive 2005/36/EC.
Required documentation
You must submit the documentation as certified copies or in the original form.
All copies of original documents must be certified by an embassy, the police, authorities, notary public or the authority that issued the document with a stamp and signature on each copy to confirm that the copy is a true copy of the original document. Private individuals cannot make certified copies.
If you want to get your documents back, please contact us.
We may ask you to present the original documents. If you send the original documents, we recommend that you send the application by registered post.
Translation into Danish or English
Documents in English, Norwegian or Swedish do not have to be translated.
You may enclose a translation into Danish or English of the documents listed below with your application. You can also wait until we have processed your application and assessed which documents need to be translated. You should, however, expect an extended assessment time if you do not enclose translated documents.
A translation into Danish or English must be made by one of the following:
- The educational institution or authority that issued the document or
- An authorised translator. The translator’s name and stamp must appear clearly from the translation. If the stamp is not in Danish or English, it must be translated by an authorised translator. The translator must use a band, seal or the like to attach the translated document to the document in the original language. In some cases, we may accept that other translators translate the documents.
Knowledge of languages
Persons whose pharmacy training outside Denmark has been assessed as eligible to be treated as the training that Danish pharmacists receive (including persons who wish to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy on a temporary or occasional basis, who have submitted a prior written notification to the Danish Medicines Agency), must have a knowledge of languages necessary for practising the profession as pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy.
Executive order no. 922 of 26 June 2015 on pharmacies and hospital pharmacies’ operations provides that pharmacy staff must carefully and conscientiously process and examine prescriptions and other medicine order forms and dispense, sell and provide information about medicinal products. This implies that members of pharmacy staff must be sufficiently skilled in Danish in order to communicate reasonably and comprehensibly with pharmacy customers, medical staff and authorities, etc. The hiring pharmacist is responsible for ensuring that the pharmacy staff meet the provisions of the above-mentioned executive order.
Pursuit of the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy on a long-term basis
Any person who meets the requirements of nationality and country of training and who wants to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy on a long-term basis, must apply for permission from the Danish Medicines Agency, see section 36(2) of the Danish Pharmacy Act.
Application
Please enclose the following documents:
1) A copy of documentation of name, nationality and date of birth. (E.g. in the form of copies of the relevant pages of your passport).
2a) A copy of the diploma mentioned in Annex V, point 5.6.2. ”Evidence of formal qualifications of pharmacists” of Directive 2005/36/EC, and accompanied, where relevant, by a certificate.
2b) If your diploma does not correspond to the titles specified for the country of training in Annex V, point 5.6.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC, your diploma must be accompanied by a certificate issued by the competent authority of the country of training, certifying that your diploma in pharmacy has been issued for the successful completion of training in accordance with the provisions of Directive 2005/36/EC and that your qualifications are treated equally with the training specified in the Directive.
2c) If your diploma was issued before the reference date mentioned in Annex V, point 5.6.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC, and your diploma concerns a training course which was started before this date, you must enclose a certificate with your diploma, stating that you have been effectively and lawfully engaged in the activities of a pharmacist in the EU/EEA or Switzerland for at least three consecutive years during the five years preceding the award of the certificate.
3) If you have changed your name since you were awarded your diploma, you must enclose a copy of your marriage certificate or a change of name certificate.
Pursuit of the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy on a temporary or occasional basis
Any person who meets the requirements of nationality and country of training and who wants to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy on a temporary or occasional basis can submit a prior written notification to the Danish Medicines Agency. We will assess the temporary and occasional nature of the professional activities, in particular in relation to its duration, its frequency, its regularity and its continuity.
Application
Please enclose the following documents:
- A copy of documentation of name, nationality and date of birth. (E.g. in the form of copies of the relevant pages of your passport).
- A copy of the diploma mentioned in Annex V, point 5.6.2 ”Evidence of formal qualifications of pharmacists” of Directive 2005/36/EC, and accompanied, where relevant, by a certificate, as well as proof that the person concerned was not prohibited from performing this service at the time when the diploma/evidence was issued.
- If you have changed your name since you were awarded your diploma, you must enclose a copy of your marriage certificate or a change of name certificate.
- In the event that a Danish authority or educational institution has previously assessed your pharmacy training and your qualifications, you must enclose copies of any such assessments.
- If the conditions of items 1 and 2 above are met, we can assess the notification immediately. If the conditions are not met, you must meet one or more conditions of the items below.
- If your diploma does not correspond to the titles specified for the country of training in Annex V, point 5.6.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC, your diploma must be accompanied by a certificate issued by the competent authority of the country of training, certifying that your diploma in pharmacy has been issued for the successful completion of training in accordance with the provisions of Directive 2005/36/EC and that your qualifications are treated equally with the training specified in the Directive.
- If your diploma was issued before the reference date mentioned in Annex V, point 5.6.2 of Directive 2005/36/EC, and your diploma concerns a training course which was started before this date, you must enclose a certificate with your diploma, stating that you have been effectively and lawfully engaged in the activities of a pharmacist in the EU/EEA or Switzerland for at least three consecutive years during the five years preceding the award of the certificate.
Notifications related to the provision of temporary or occasional services as a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy, must be renewed once a year if you wish to maintain the possibility of providing such activities. You must submit a renewal notification to the Danish Medicines Agency. If changes have been made to the previously submitted documents, see items 1-7 above, you must notify the Danish Medicines Agency of this in your renewal notification.
Persons having completed pharmacy training outside Denmark who want to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy, on a temporary and occasional basis, must disclose to the pharmacy’s customers his or her professional title from the country of training. For example, by wearing a name badge with a title. The title must be in one of the official languages of the country of training, so as to avoid confusion with the Danish title used for a pharmacist. If your academic title from the country of training can be confused with a title which in Denmark requires additional training that you have not acquired, the Danish Medicines Agency may require you to use your academic title in an appropriate format specified by the Danish Medicines Agency.
Nationals of Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden who have been legally registered in one of these countries to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a pharmacy or hospital pharmacy
Nationals of Finland, Iceland, Norway or Sweden who have a legal registration from a competent authority in either of these countries to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a pharmacy or hospital pharmacy are, in addition to the rules governing EU/EEA pharmacists etc. described in chapter 2, also comprised by a Nordic agreement of 14 June 1993 between Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden on a common Nordic labour market for certain personnel groups within the health system and the veterinary system, see executive order no. 81 of 8 September 1994, as amended.
Any person who meets the above-mentioned requirements of nationality and legal registration and who wants to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a Danish pharmacy or hospital pharmacy must apply for permission from the Danish Medicines Agency, see section 36(2) of the Danish Pharmacy Act.
Application
Please enclose the following documents:
- A copy of documentation of name, nationality and date of birth. (E.g. in the form of copies of the relevant pages of your passport).
- A copy of the diploma mentioned in Annex V, point 5.6.2. ”Evidence of formal qualifications of pharmacists” of Directive 2005/36/EC.
- A copy of certificate issued by the competent authority in Finland, Iceland, Norway or Sweden. The copy certifies that you have the right to pursue the professional activities of a pharmacist at a pharmacy in the issuing country (Certificate of Good Standing). The certificate must not be more than three months old on the date of presentation. If you are in possession of a Nordic registration, you must submit that instead.
- If you have changed your name since you were awarded your diploma, you must enclose a certified copy of your marriage certificate or a change of name certificate.
Please send the documents to
There is not a special application form for this purpose. Please send the documents to:
Danish Medicines Agency
Pharmacies & Reimbursement
Axel Heides Gade 1
DK-2300 Copenhagen S
Email: Send an email
Assessment and electronic processing of information
We will acknowledge receipt of the documents within one month of receipt, at which time we will also inform you if we need any further documents.
The usual assessment time is a maximum of three months after the presentation of a fully documented application.
The information and documentation relating to your pharmaceutical training, including continuing training, will be processed electronically by the Danish Medicines Agency, which for example implies that we will record relevant personal data in our electronic records. If necessary, the information and documentation will be disclosed to professional experts and other authorities in order to assess your qualifications as a pharmacist.
Pursuant to the Danish Act on Processing of Personal Data, an applicant or notifier has the possibility to request access to the information being processed about you, just as you have the right to object to the processing of the information and the right to request corrections, blocking or erasure of information that is incorrect, misleading or in some other way has been processed contrary to the provisions of the law.
Complaints
If you want to complain about the Danish Medicines Agency’s decision or the processing of your application or notification, please send your complaint to the Danish Ministry of Health. The Ministry will then assess whether the applicable procedural rules have been observed and will assess the legal framework on which the Danish Medicines Agency has based its decision. The Danish Ministry of Health cannot assess the health professional aspects on which the decision is based.
Danish Ministry of Health
Holbergsgade 6
DK-1057 Copenhagen K
Email: Send an email
www.sum.dk