As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 2, 2002
                                                  Registration No. 333-_________
================================================================================
                       SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                             Washington, D.C. 20549

                                    FORM S-8
                          REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER
                           THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933


                          BIOMARIN PHARMACEUTICAL INC.
             (Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

               Delaware                              68-0397820
    (State or Other Jurisdiction of               (I.R.S. Employer
     Incorporation or Organization)              Identification No.)


                     371 Bel Marin Keys Boulevard, Suite 210
                            Novato, California 94949
                    (Address of Principal Executive Offices)

                           1997 STOCK PLAN, AS AMENDED
                            1998 DIRECTOR OPTION PLAN
                        1998 EMPLOYEE STOCK PURCHASE PLAN
                            (Full title of the Plans)

                                Fredric D. Price
                      Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
                     371 Bel Marin Keys Boulevard, Suite 210
                            Novato, California 94949
                     (Name and Address of Agent For Service)

                                 (415) 884-6700
            (Telephone Number, Including Area Code, of Agent for Service)

                                   Copies to:
                           Siobhan McBreen Burke, Esq.
                      Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP
                       555 South Flower Street, 23rd Floor
                           Los Angeles, CA 90071-2371
                                 (213) 683-6000

                         CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

                                                                                                          

====================================================================================================================================
            Title Of                     Amount                Proposed Maximum          Proposed Maximum              Amount of
           Securities                     To Be                 Offering Price          Aggregate Offering           Registration
        To Be Registered             Registered (1)              Per Share (2)               Price (2)                  Fee (2)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Common Stock, $0.001 par value,
issuable pursuant to the 1997 Stock
Plan, as amended.                      5,917,229               $9.67                     $57,219,604.43               $5,625
====================================================================================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Common Stock, $0.001 par value,
issuable pursuant to the 1998 Director
Option Plan.                             400,000               $9.67                     $3,868,000.00                $356
====================================================================================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Common Stock, $0.001 par value,
issuable pursuant to the 1998 Employee
Stock Purchase Plan.                     400,000               $9.67                     $3,868,000.00                $356
====================================================================================================================================



(1)      Pursuant to Rule 416 promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as
         amended (the "Securities Act"), this Registration Statement shall also
         cover any additional shares of Common Stock which become issuable under
         each of the 1997 Stock Plan, the 1998 Director Option Plan and the 1998
         Employee Stock Purchase Plan, by reason of any stock dividend, stock
         split, recapitalization or other similar transaction effected without
         the receipt of consideration which results in an increase in the number
         of the outstanding shares of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. Common Stock.
(2)      Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the amount of the
         registration fee in accordance with Rules 457(c) and (h) under the
         Securities Act, on the basis of the average of high and low sale prices
         for a share of common stock of BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) as
         reported on the Nasdaq National Market on April 1, 2002.







                                     PART I

                     STATEMENT UNDER GENERAL INSTRUCTION E.
                      REGISTRATION OF ADDITIONAL SECURITIES

     The shares  covered by this  Registration  Statement  represent  additional
shares of the Registrant's  Common Stock that have become available for issuance
under the BioMarin  Pharmaceutical  Inc. 1997 Stock Plan,  as amended,  the 1998
Director  Option  Plan and the 1998  Employee  Stock  Purchase  Plan (the "Stock
Plans") as a result of an "evergreen provision" of each of the Stock Plans which
automatically  increase the number of shares authorized for issuance  thereunder
on the first day of each fiscal year. Since adoption,  the evergreen  provision,
the number of shares  available for issuance under the Stock Plans has increased
from 5,694,259 to 12,411,488. Unless otherwise noted herein, the contents of the
Registrant's Form S-8 Registration  Statement (File No.  333-84787)  relating to
the Stock Plans are incorporated by reference into this Registration Statement.


                                     PART II

Item 8.  Exhibits


     Exhibit       Description
     -------       -----------
     5.1           Opinion of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP.
     23.1          Consent of Arthur Andersen LLP, Independent Auditors.
     23.2          Consent of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP (included in
                   Exhibit 5.1).
     24.1          Power of Attorney (contained on the signature page).






                                   SIGNATURES1

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the
Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all
of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration
Statement  to be  signed  on its  behalf  by  the  undersigned,  thereunto  duly
authorized, in the City of Novato, State of California, on March 29, 2002.

                                                BIOMARIN PHARMACEUTICAL INC.

                                                By:   /s/ Fredric D. Price
                                                 ----------------------------
                                                Name: Fredric D. Price
                                                Title: Chairman, Chief Executive
                                                       Officer and Director
                                                       (Principal Executive
                                                       Officer)

                                POWER OF ATTORNEY

     KNOW ALL  PERSONS  BY THESE  PRESENTS,  that each  person  whose  signature
appears  below  constitutes  and  appoints  Fredric D. Price and Emil D. Kakkis,
M.D., Ph.D. as such person's true and lawful  attorney-in-fact  and agent,  with
full power of substitution and resubstitution,  for him or her and in his or her
name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments
(including  post-effective  amendments) to this Registration  Statement,  and to
file the same,  with all exhibits  thereto,  and other  documents in  connection
therewith,  with the  Securities  and Exchange  Commission,  granting  unto said
attorneys-in-fact  and agents,  and each of them, full power and authority to do
and perform each and every act and thing  requisite  and necessary to be done in
connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or
could  do  in  person,   hereby   ratifying   and   confirming   all  that  said
attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their or his or her substitutes
or substitute, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

     Pursuant to the  requirements  of the  Securities  Act,  this  Registration
Statement has been signed below by the following  persons in the  capacities and
dates indicated.

       Signatures                    Title                               Date

 /s/ Fredric D. Price     Chairman, Chief Executive Officer       March 29, 2002
-----------------------   and Director (Principal Executive
Fredric D. Price          Officer)

/s/ Kim Tsuchimoto-Evans  Vice President, Controller              March 29, 2002
------------------------  (Principal Financial and Accounting
Kim Tsuchimoto-Evans      Officer)

/s/ Grant W. Denison, Jr. Director                                March 29, 2002
------------------------
Grant W. Denison, Jr.

/s/ Phyllis I. Gardner    Director                                March 29, 2002
-----------------------
Phyllis I. Gardner, M.D.

/s/ Erich Sager           Director                                March 29, 2002
-----------------------
Erich Sager

/s/ Gwynn R. Williams     Director                                March 29, 2002
----------------------
Gwynn R. Williams

                                       2



                                INDEX TO EXHIBITS

     Exhibit       Description
     -------       -----------
     5.1           Opinion of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP.
     23.1          Consent of Arthur Andersen LLP, Independent Auditors.
     23.2          Consent of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP (included in
                   Exhibit 5.1).
     24.1          Power of Attorney (contained on the signature page).




                                       3






                                   Exhibit 5.1

                OPINION OF PAUL, HASTINGS, JANOFSKY & WALKER LLP


April 1, 2002

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc.
371 Bel Marin Keys Boulevard, Suite 210
Navato, California 94949

Ladies and Gentlemen:

     We are furnishing this opinion of counsel to BioMarin  Pharmaceutical Inc.,
a  Delaware  corporation  (the  "Company"),  for  filing as  Exhibit  5.1 to the
Registration Statement on Form S-8 (the "Registration Statement") to be filed by
the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Act
of 1933,  as amended,  relating to the issuance and sale by the Company of up to
6,717,229  shares (the "Shares") of its Common Stock,  par value $.001 per share
("Common Stock"),  pursuant to the Company's 1997 Stock Plan, the Company's 1998
Director  Option Plan and the  Company's  1998 Employee  Stock  Purchase Plan as
amended (as each may have been so amended, the "Plans").

     We have  examined the  Certificate  of  Incorporation  and Bylaws,  each as
amended to date,  of the  Company,  and the  originals,  or copies  certified or
otherwise identified, of records of corporate action of the Company as furnished
to us by the Company, certificates of public officials and of representatives of
the Company, and such other instruments and documents as we deemed necessary, as
a basis for the opinions  hereinafter  expressed.  In such examination,  we have
assumed the  genuineness of all  signatures,  the  authenticity of all corporate
records  and  other  documents  submitted  to us,  the  conformity  to  original
documents  submitted  to us as  certified  or  photostatic  copies  and  the due
execution and delivery of all  documents  where due execution and delivery are a
prerequisite  to the  effectiveness  thereof.  We have also assumed that, at the
time the Shares are issued,  the Company  will have  sufficient  authorized  and
unissued shares of Common Stock.

     Based  upon  our  examination  as  aforesaid,  and  in  reliance  upon  our
examination   of  such   questions  of  law  as  we  deem  relevant   under  the
circumstances,  we are of the opinion that the Shares, when purchased and issued
as described in the  Registration  Statement  and in  accordance  with the Plans
(including  the receipt of the full purchase  price  therefor),  will be validly
issued, fully paid and nonassessable.

     We express no opinion  with respect to the  applicability  or effect of the
laws of any jurisdiction other than the Delaware General  Corporation Law, as in
effect as of the date hereof.

     We hereby  consent to the filing of this  opinion of counsel as Exhibit 5.1
to the Registration Statement.



                                        Very truly yours,

                                       /s/ Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP







                                  Exhibit 23.1


                    CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS


We consent to the incorporation by reference in this  Registration  Statement on
Form S-8  pertaining to the (i) 1997 Stock Plan, as amended;  (ii) 1998 Director
Option  Plan;   and  (iii)  1998  Employee   Stock  Purchase  Plan  of  BioMarin
Pharmaceutical  Inc., of our report dated February 21, 2002, with respect to the
financial  statements  of BioMarin  Pharmaceutical  Inc.  included in its Annual
Report  (Form  10-K)  for the year  ended  December  31,  2001,  filed  with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.


                                                  /s/  Arthur Andersen LLP

San Francisco, California
March 28, 2002