Mr. Trinh Chi Hai lives in Dong Thap province but wants to apply for a pharmacy practice certificate in Binh Duong province, is that possible? If yes, what documents does he need?

Mr. Hai also wants to know, how long is the certificate of seniority valid? He has been practicing at a pharmacy for 2 years, so can the pharmacy confirm his seniority?

In this regard, the Ministry of Health responded as follows:

The relevant legal documents (Law on Pharmacy, Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP, 155/2018/ND-CP) do not stipulate that the Department of Health only issues pharmacy practice certificates to residents in the province, so people living in Dong Thap province can apply for a pharmacy practice certificate in Binh Duong province.

The legal documents do not stipulate the validity expiration date of certificates of internship duration.

Dossier of application for a pharmacy practice certificate

The application file for a pharmacy practice certificate is specified in Article 24 of the Law on Pharmacy, Article 3 of Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP, Clause 1, Article 4 and Clause 2, Article 5 of Decree No. 155/2018/ ND-CP, specifically includes the following documents:

- An application form for a pharmacy practice certificate under Form No. 2, Appendix I issued together with Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP, with a portrait picture of the applicant which was taken within the last 6 months.

- Certified true copy of the applicant’s qualification. If the qualification is issued by a foreign training institution, it must be enclosed with a certified true copy of the equivalence certification issued by a competent authority in charge of equivalence recognition as prescribed in Clause 2, Article 18 of Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP;

- A certificate of suitable health for pharmacy practice issued by a competent health facility;

- The original or certified true copy of the certificate of internship as prescribed in Form No. 03 in Appendix I issued together with Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP. If the internship took place in more than one facility, the internship duration will be the total duration of the internship at the facilities according to the certificates of internship issued by such facilities.

In case the application for a pharmacy practice certificate with different scopes of practice and requires different internship durations and facilities, the application shall be enclosed with a certificate of internship of one or several facilities that meet the requirements of each scope and position. In case scopes of professional practice have the same requirements on internship duration and facilities, a separate certification is not required for each scope of professional practice;

- A certificate of completion of the training program and refresher program in pharmacy if the applicant had his/her pharmacy practice certificate revoked as prescribed in Clause 9, Article 28 of the Law on Pharmacy (a pharmacy practitioner does not have the certificate of completion of a training program and refresher program in pharmacy within 03 years from the issuance date of the pharmacy practice certificate or the issuance date of the latest certificate of completion of training program and refresher program in pharmacy);

- A certified copy of the citizen's identity card, ID card, or passport;

- A judicial record. If the applicant is a foreigner or Vietnamese citizen residing overseas, it is required to have a judicial record or written certification issued by a foreign competent authority that the applicant is not a criminal or facing criminal prosecution, not banned from pharmacy practice or banned from doing pharmaceutical works under a court’s sentence or ruling.

- The original copy or certified true copy of the confirmation of examination result issued by the examination organization specified in Clause 2 Article 28 of Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP if the pharmacy practice certificate has to be obtained after passing an examination;

- In case the pharmacy practice certificate is revoked as prescribed in Clause 3, Article 28 of the Law on Pharmacy (the pharmacy practice certificate is incorrect because of the issuing authority), the applicant shall only need to submit an application for a pharmacy practice certificate according to the above provisions.

In Article 19 of Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP, it stipulates “specialized internship-offering establishments are establishments specified in Clause 2, Article 13 of the Law on Pharmacy, including pharmacy business establishments, pharmaceutical divisions of medical examination and treatment facilities, specialized pharmacy training institutions, pharmacy research institutions, laboratories testing drugs and medicinal ingredients, pharmacy authorities, or representative offices of foreign traders operating in pharmacy field in Vietnam (hereinafter referred to as pharmacy establishments); medical examination and treatment facilities suitable for the interns’ professionals”.

Therefore, the pharmacy shall confirm the internship duration for the interns at the establishment according to Form No. 03 in Appendix I issued together with Decree No. 54/2017/ND-CP and take responsibility for the contents of certification following regulations.