Short answer: Twelve jurisdictions have adopted the Uniform MPJE as of this writing — Arizona, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Montana, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, Washington, and West Virginia. Every other state still uses the state-specific MPJE, its own jurisprudence exam, or no law exam at all.
But the list is only half the story. Several of these states haven't retired their old MPJE yet, which means candidates there currently have a choice — and most don't realize it. That's covered below.
The current list
| Jurisdiction | UMPJE begins | State MPJE retires | Required for license transfer? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | April 1, 2026 | March 31, 2026 | Yes |
| Florida | June 1, 2026 | May 31, 2026 | No |
| Iowa | April 1, 2026 | March 31, 2026 | Yes |
| Kansas | April 1, 2026 | March 31, 2027 | Yes |
| Maryland | June 1, 2026 | May 31, 2027 | Yes |
| Montana | June 1, 2026 | May 31, 2026 | Yes |
| Nebraska | June 1, 2026 | May 31, 2028 | Yes |
| North Carolina | April 1, 2026 | March 31, 2026 | Yes |
| Ohio | April 1, 2026 | September 30, 2026 | Follow the eLTP process |
| Rhode Island | April 1, 2026 | March 31, 2026 | Yes |
| Washington | July 2, 2026 | December 29, 2026 | Yes |
| West Virginia | June 1, 2026 | August 1, 2026 | Yes |
Washington registration opened June 16, 2026. Source: NABP UMPJE Participating States. Verify before acting — this table changes.
The detail most candidates miss: overlap windows
Look at the bolded retirement dates. In six jurisdictions, the state-specific MPJE is still being administered after the UMPJE became available:
- Nebraska — state MPJE runs until May 31, 2028. Nearly two more years.
- Maryland — until May 31, 2027
- Kansas — until March 31, 2027
- Washington — until December 29, 2026
- Ohio — until September 30, 2026
- West Virginia — until August 1, 2026
If you're licensing in one of these, you may currently be able to sit either exam. Confirm with your board, because eligibility during an overlap is a board decision, not an NABP one.
Which should you take? Depends entirely on your plans:
Take the UMPJE if you expect to seek licensure in more than one participating state. One exam covering several jurisdictions is the whole point of the redesign, and it saves real money and time.
Consider the state MPJE if you're staying put in one state, you've already built your study plan around that state's law, and the retirement date is comfortably ahead of your test date. There's no prize for switching to a newer exam.
Do not choose based on perceived difficulty. They're differently hard, not comparably hard.
Florida is the exception worth knowing
Florida is the only jurisdiction on the list where the UMPJE is not required for licensure transfer. Every other state answers yes to that column, and Ohio routes transfers through its own eLTP process.
Practically: if you're a licensed pharmacist transferring into Florida, the UMPJE requirement that applies to initial licensure candidates doesn't apply to you the same way. Confirm your specific pathway with the Florida Board — but don't assume Florida works like the other eleven, because on this point it doesn't.
If you already passed your state's MPJE
You're fine. NABP's position is clear: a passing MPJE result for a participating jurisdiction, achieved on or before that jurisdiction's transition date, means you do not also need to take the UMPJE.
Your license isn't in jeopardy and you aren't being asked to re-examine.
If you have an MPJE appointment after your state's retirement date
That appointment won't happen. NABP cancels MPJE appointments scheduled on or after a jurisdiction's retirement date and issues a full refund.
If you'd rather switch voluntarily before then, you can contact NABP Exam Services to close an active MPJE application and receive a full refund of the application and exam cost.
States that are not on this list
Still using the state-specific MPJE. The majority of jurisdictions. NABP administers a law exam for 45 boards as part of initial licensure, and most of those remain state-specific for now.
Running their own jurisprudence exam. Arkansas, California, Nevada, and Puerto Rico administer their own. California's CPJE is the best known.
No jurisprudence exam for initial licensure. Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Vermont, and the US Virgin Islands.
If your state isn't listed as a UMPJE adopter, keep preparing for the state-specific MPJE. But check periodically — this list has grown through 2026 and will keep growing.
What the UMPJE actually covers
Four content domains, weighted by NABP as follows out of approximately 100 scored questions:
| Domain | Weight |
|---|---|
| Pharmacy and Pharmacist Practice | 30% |
| Medication Use Process | 30% |
| Regulatory Authority and Legal Obligations | 20% |
| Pharmacy Operations | 20% |
The first two domains together are 60% of your score. Weight your studying accordingly — most candidates over-invest in regulatory authority material because it feels like "law," and under-invest in the medication use process, which is where most of the questions live.
NABP publishes the full detailed outline as a free PDF. Read it before you buy any prep material.
Frequently asked questions
Does passing the UMPJE license me in all twelve states? No. It satisfies the jurisprudence exam requirement in participating jurisdictions. Each state still has its own application, fees, background requirements, and in some cases additional state-specific steps. The UMPJE removes one barrier to multi-state licensure; it doesn't remove all of them.
Will more states adopt it? The list grew steadily through 2026 and adoption is a board-by-board decision. Check NABP's participating states page rather than any third-party list, including this one.
Can I take the UMPJE if my state hasn't adopted it? You apply through your primary jurisdiction. If that jurisdiction hasn't adopted the UMPJE, the state-specific MPJE is your exam.
I'm licensed in a UMPJE state and want to transfer to another UMPJE state. Do I need to retake anything? Check the transfer column above for your destination state, then confirm with that board. This is the exact scenario the UMPJE was designed to simplify, but requirements still vary.
Is there an official practice exam? Yes — the Pre-UMPJE, 40 questions, purchased through your NABP e-Profile. Useful for calibration. Not sufficient as preparation.
The bottom line
Twelve jurisdictions currently use the UMPJE. If you're in one of the six with an overlap window — Nebraska, Maryland, Kansas, Washington, Ohio, or West Virginia — you may have a genuine choice between exams, and the right answer depends on whether you plan to practice in more than one state. Florida is the one jurisdiction where the UMPJE isn't required for license transfer. And if you already passed your state's MPJE before its transition date, nothing changes for you. Verify anything that affects your application directly with NABP and your board, because this list is still moving.
References
- National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. UMPJE Participating States. nabp.pharmacy — includes the jurisdiction table, transition dates, and transition FAQs
- National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Uniform MPJE Content Outline (2025) — four content domains and exam weights
- National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Which states require the MPJE or UMPJE? nabp.pharmacy
- National Association of Boards of Pharmacy. Pre-MPJE and Pre-UMPJE practice exams. nabp.pharmacy
- Florida Board of Pharmacy. Uniform MPJE™ to be Implemented June 1, 2026. floridaspharmacy.gov
About the author Adetayo Ogunsanya, PharmD, is a licensed clinical pharmacist with over a decade of experience in managed care, utilization management, and prior authorization. He holds active pharmacist licenses in six jurisdictions and has gone through multi-state licensure firsthand.
This article is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy or any state board of pharmacy. MPJE® and Uniform MPJE™ are trademarks of NABP. Transition dates and licensure requirements change; verify current requirements with NABP and your board of pharmacy before making decisions about your application or examination.
Free: UMPJE 4-Week Study Tracker
A printable tracker built around the NABP domain weights — weekly checklists, a domain score log, and the test-day format at a glance.
Go deeper on the UMPJE
The UMPJE Comprehensive Study Guide covers the four NABP content domains in full, and the UMPJE Question Bank gives you timed practice weighted by domain so you can see exactly where you stand.