New pharmacies

Attention:

Application processing time is currently delayed and may take more than 15 business days.

New pharmacy opening

According to the Pharmacy and Drug Act, pharmacy services (i.e., storing, compounding, dispensing, or selling of drugs) can only be provided from a licensed pharmacy with an appropriate category of licence, or an institution pharmacy. Only a clinical pharmacist may apply for a licence and the pharmacist who holds the licence to operate a pharmacy is the licensee. The licensee must personally manage, control, and supervise the operation of the licensed pharmacy.

The following categories of licence may be issued to the licensee under the Pharmacy and Drug Act:

• Community pharmacy licence
  • This category of licence is required to provide pharmacy services to or for a patient for which the patient or patient’s agent attends the pharmacy to receive the service.
• Mail order pharmacy licence
  • This category of licence is required, in addition to a community pharmacy licence, when
    • the pharmacy provides pharmacy services to or for a patient for which neither the patient nor the patient’s agent regularly attends the pharmacy to receive the service, AND
    • a pharmacist does not regularly attend personally on the patient to assess the patient and monitor the patient’s response to drug therapy.
• Compounding and repackaging pharmacy licence
  • This category of licence is required to compound or repackage drugs for another licensed pharmacy or institution pharmacy that will dispense or sell the compounded or repackaged drugs to or for a patient.
• Satellite pharmacy licence
  • This category of licence is only issued on an exceptional basis when patients require a pharmacy service that cannot be effectively provided in a community pharmacy.

A pharmacist may only be a licensee at one pharmacy at a time.

As of October 1, 2020, all pharmacists applying for a pharmacy licence must meet the new criteria. These new requirements will provide assurances to ACP that the prospective licensee is qualified and capable of fulfilling their legislative responsibilities and the proposed pharmacy will be operated in compliance with the legislation that governs the practice of pharmacy in Alberta.

The applicant must be a pharmacist in good standing with ACP, submit an Enhanced Police Information Check, and complete Part A and Part B of ACP’s Licensee Education Program (LEP). The Enhanced Police Information Check and the Statements of Completion for the LEP must be submitted at the same time as when the application is submitted. Furthermore, an applicant must demonstrate they have the qualifications, experience, and/or support to fulfill their role as a licensee and is expected to meet at least two of the following attributes:

• The applicant has been registered on ACP’s clinical pharmacist register or as a pharmacist in another Canadian jurisdiction for the past two consecutive years or more.
• In the past five years, the applicant has served as a licensee or the equivalent in a Canadian jurisdiction for at least one consecutive year, without being subject to discipline proceedings.
• In the past 10 years, the applicant has served as a proprietor of one or more pharmacies in Alberta for at least two consecutive years, where there have been no discipline proceedings.
• The applicant will be practising in a licensed pharmacy where the proprietor’s representative is a regulated member in good standing with ACP.
• The applicant will be practising in a licensed pharmacy where, in the past five years, the proprietor’s representative has served as a licensee in Alberta for at least one year, without being subject to discipline proceedings.
• The applicant will be practising in a licensed pharmacy where, in the past 10 years, the proprietor has owned one or more pharmacies in Alberta for at least two consecutive years, where there have been no discipline proceedings.

For more information regarding the criteria, please refer to the FAQs.

According to the Pharmacy and Drug Act, proprietors own, manage, or direct the operation of the facility in which a licensed pharmacy is located and exercise a significant degree of control over the management and policies of the licensed pharmacy and the conduct of regulated members employed by the licensed pharmacy. The proprietor’s representative is the individual who is either the owner or the designated representative of the owner(s) who fulfils the responsibilities and obligations of a proprietor in accordance with the Pharmacy and Drug Act. Applicants to be a proprietor’s representative do not have to be a pharmacist but must submit an Enhanced Police Information Check and complete the Proprietor’s Self-Assessment or Part B of the LEP. The Enhanced Police Information Check and the Statement of Completion for the LEP must be submitted at the same time as when the application is submitted.  If the proprietor’s representative is a regulated member with ACP, they must be in good standing. For more information regarding the criteria, please refer to the FAQs.

Process

Before you consider opening a new pharmacy, review the process outlined in our Five steps to opening your new pharmacy guide. This document outlines the requirements, resources, and timelines of each step. All requested documentation (e.g., LEP Statement of Completion, Enhanced Police Information Check, floor plan(s), corporate documents, pharmacy inspection readiness form) must be submitted together as one submission otherwise your application is considered incomplete. Proposed opening dates should be at least 60 days from the date ACP receives a complete Letter of Intent.

Allow 15 business days for the assessment of submitted Letters of Intent or Applications for a New Pharmacy Licence. We will notify you via email if we have any questions and/or once we are ready to proceed to the next step in the application process. Incomplete applications and/or issues identified during the application process may result in further delays.

When the pharmacy has met the foundational requirements and is ready for the pre-opening inspection, the applicant may submit their application for a new pharmacy licence, along with all requested documentation (Step 3).

To submit the application forms, or for any questions or concerns about the process, email us at pharmacy@abpharmacy.ca.

Resources

• Five steps to opening your new pharmacy guide
• Who am I? Licensee vs proprietor's representative
• Licensee Education Program
• Foundational Requirements Guidance Document
• New pharmacy letter of intent
• Floor plan requirements guide
• Shared premises application form
• Pharmacy inspection readiness
• Digital evidence submission template
• Digital evidence submission template (compounding only)
• Foundational Requirements: Compliance Checklist (fillable pdf)
• General policies and procedures template