OPRA Exam Dates 2027: What's Confirmed, What's Not, and How the Sittings Work

If you are an overseas-qualified pharmacist planning your OPRA exam for 2027, here is the straight answer first: as of now, the Australian Pharmacy Council (APC) has not released the 2027 OPRA calendar. Only the 2026 sessions are published.

That doesn't mean you can't plan. The OPRA runs on a predictable rhythm of fixed sitting windows with strict registration deadlines, and there is plenty you can line up before the 2027 dates drop. This guide explains how OPRA scheduling works, what the 2026 pattern tells you about when 2027 windows are likely to fall, current fees, and the later steps in the pathway — without pretending any 2027 date is confirmed.

First, the terminology: OPRA, not KAPS

If you studied this pathway a couple of years ago, you'll remember KAPS. That exam was retired after its final November 2024 sitting. Since March 2025 the knowledge-stream exam for overseas-qualified pharmacists has been the OPRA® (Overseas Pharmacist Assessment). If a resource is still talking about "KAPS 2027 dates," it's out of date — the exam you're sitting is the OPRA.

Where OPRA sits in the pathway

For an overseas-qualified pharmacist seeking general registration in Australia, the standard route runs roughly like this:

1. Eligibility check / skills assessment with the APC.
2. OPRA exam — the knowledge-stream exam (this guide). The alternative CAOP exam is the separate competency/performance-stream route; which one applies depends on your qualifications and experience.
3. Provisional/limited registration and supervised practice (an internship period) via the Pharmacy Board of Australia / Ahpra.
4. Australian Intern Written Exam (APC) — a later, separate exam.
5. Oral (practice) examination, run by Ahpra for the Pharmacy Board. The intern written and oral exams together form the registration examination, and both must be passed within an 18-month window.
6. General registration with the Pharmacy Board via Ahpra.

This post is about step 2 — the OPRA.

How OPRA sittings actually work

OPRA is a fixed-sitting exam, not an on-demand one. It is a closed-book, computer-delivered multiple-choice exam (2.5 hours, 120 questions) sat at approved test centres. Key mechanics that matter for planning:

• The APC opens a registration window for each sitting — historically opening roughly two months before the exam and closing about a month before exam day.
• Late registrations are not accepted. There is no grace period, so the registration close date is a hard deadline.
• You book a specific day within the multi-day exam window at your chosen test centre. Test-centre venues are subject to change at short notice, so confirm yours before booking travel.
• Results are released about four weeks after the sitting, on a fixed date the APC publishes for each session.

What the 2026 calendar tells you about 2027

The APC has not published 2027 dates, but the 2026 schedule shows the cadence you can plan around. Treat this as an illustration of the rhythm, not as 2027 dates:

2026 session (for reference only)	Registration	Exam	Results
Mid-year	28 Apr – 15 Jun 2026	13 – 15 Jul 2026	11 Aug 2026
End-of-year	18 Aug – 19 Oct 2026	23 – 25 Nov 2026	22 Dec 2026

In 2026 the OPRA ran across the year (an earlier sitting was held in March, with mid-year and November windows following). The pattern has historically been around three sittings a year — but the APC has not confirmed how many 2027 sittings there will be or when, so use the 2026 shape only to estimate, and watch the APC page for the official 2027 release.

The one thing to take from that table: registration closes roughly a month before each exam, and skills-assessment/eligibility steps have to be done first — so the effective deadline to act is always earlier than the exam date itself.

Fees (current, and subject to change)

The APC's published fees carry no year qualifier, so these are the current amounts as at 21 July 2026, not confirmed 2027 fees:

Item	Current fee (AUD)
OPRA® exam	$2,245 per attempt
CAOP® exam	$2,100 per attempt
Australian Intern Written Exam	$790 per attempt
Eligibility check	$810 per request
Skills assessment outcome	$300 per request

Confirm the current amount on the APC fees page before you pay — regulator fees can be revised, and the APC has not published a separate 2027 schedule.

What you can lock in now, before the 2027 dates drop

Because the exam windows aren't out yet, focus on the things that gate them:

• Complete your eligibility check / skills assessment. You can't register for an OPRA sitting until this is done, and it takes time.
• Sort your English evidence. English is a Pharmacy Board / Ahpra requirement, verified separately — confirm the currently accepted tests and scores on Ahpra's own page, and start early because it's a common bottleneck.
• Budget for the full pathway, not just the OPRA — the intern written and oral exams and their fees come later.
• Watch the APC page for the 2027 OPRA calendar, and register the moment your window opens, since late registrations are not accepted.

What's changed — and what it means for you in 2027

No change to the OPRA exam itself takes effect in 2027 — the APC has published no change to its format, blueprint, duration or pass standard. A few related items are worth knowing:

• Don't be alarmed by the "Accreditation Standards for Pharmacy Programs 2027." They do take effect on 1 January 2027, but they govern the accreditation of Australian degree and intern training programs. They do not change OPRA eligibility, content or conduct. The name causes needless panic.
• OPRA is closed book — you cannot bring any reference materials. This matters because the Australian Intern Written Exam you sit later moved to restricted open book from January 2026 (one original physical copy each of the AMH and APF, with strict limits on annotation and flags, at a test centre only). Two different exams, two different rules — don't practise for the wrong one.
• Skills Assessment Outcome renewals changed on 1 July 2026. An SAO holder can now apply to renew, with the three-year validity restarting from the new issue date, without re-sitting the exam.
• The Pharmacist Capability Framework does not affect your 2027 sitting. The published timetable aligns the APC Intern Written and Ahpra oral examinations to it from exam sessions commencing October/November 2029.

For reference, the OPRA blueprint weightings are unchanged: therapeutics and patient care 45%, biomedical sciences 20%, pharmacology and toxicology 15%, medicinal chemistry and biopharmaceutics 10%, and pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics 10%.

Before you rely on any of this

The 2026 dates above are published by the Australian Pharmacy Council and were read on 21 July 2026; no 2027 OPRA dates were published at that time. Anyone advertising confirmed "2027 OPRA dates" right now is guessing. Fees and scheduling can change. Confirm the current details on pharmacycouncil.org.au before making plans you can't easily undo.

For more detail, see our companion guides: the complete OPRA 2026 guide (prior-year dates and format), knowledge stream vs competency stream (which exam applies to you), the pharmacy registration cost breakdown, and the intern written exam guide.

Where we fit in

The dates are the APC's to release — your readiness is the part you control. Our OPRA Written Exam preparation is built around the knowledge-stream exam, with Australian-context questions and full-length practice, so you can register for a 2027 sitting already exam-ready.

Explore OPRA exam preparation

---

This article summarises publicly available APC and Ahpra information as at 21 July 2026 and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the Australian Pharmacy Council or Ahpra. Examination dates, fees and requirements are set by those bodies and are subject to change. Always confirm current details on the official APC and Ahpra websites before making decisions.