The lipase from Candida rugosa was immobilized on three commercially available macroporous adsorptive resins for kinetic resolution of ibuprofen. One resin, CRB02, increased the enzyme activity by 50% to 0.027 g g(-1) min(-1). The deactivation constant (0.19 h(-1)) of the immobilized enzyme was half of that of the native enzyme and the enantioselectivity (E = 29.2) of the immobilized lipase was 2.2 times as much as that of the native lipase for the kinetic resolution of ibuprofen with 1-propanol in isooctane at 30 degrees C.