How to use the BP

The British Pharmacopoeia (BP) is the only comprehensive collection of authoritative official standards for UK pharmaceutical substances and medicinal products. It contains all texts and monographs of the European Pharmacopoeia (signposted with a chaplet of stars), as well as the national standards developed by the BP. You can find more information about European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) texts in Supplementary Chapter IV. European Pharmacopoeia.

This guide is designed to help you become more familiar with the requirements of the BP, where to locate the different types of information and how to use and interpret the requirements of a formulated preparation monograph. We value your feedback as users of the BP, if you would like to suggest improvements and changes to the guide, please email us at bpcom@mhra.gov.uk.

Download the updated how to use the BP Guide

This document, updated for 2025, is a guide to using the BP, detailing its structure, content, and how to interpret monographs for pharmaceutical substances and products. It covers key sections like the general notices, formulated preparations, appendices, and supplementary chapters, with examples. It explains testing methods, system suitability, impurities, labelling, and the use of Analytical Quality by Design principles, while also providing guidance on contributing to monograph development and accessing BP resources.

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