Dispensing of European e-prescriptions

• Information on the Electronic Cross-border Prescription in Estonian
• The identity of the customer is confirmed with a passport (europa.eu) or ID card (europa.eu). You can check the links below to see which Estonian identity documents are accepted.
• An Estonian personal identity code is provided when the prescription is requested to be dispensed. The person must have Estonian citizenship or residence permit in Estonia as well as an Estonian address. If the address of record is not in Estonia, the prescription cannot be dispensed.
• No consent is required, but the citizen can refuse sending of prescription data overseas.
• As a rule, prescriptions are issued with a generic name, and the reason for using the commercial name must be given on the prescription.
• Unless the doctor has limited the duration of the prescription validity, prescriptions are valid for 60 days and after renewal for 180 days. The majority of prescriptions issued for continuous medication are valid for 180 days. Prescriptions for drug preparations are valid for 30 days.
• Prescriptions for narcotics cannot be dispensed in Finland. In addition, due to country-specific restrictions with Estonia, it is not possible to dispense certain psychotropic preparations.
• A saved dispensing event cannot be rectified or invalidated retrospectively. The patient can contact the doctor and request a new prescription.
• There are not restrictions concerning the processing of prescription data of an underage person.

• Information on the Electronic Cross-border Prescription in Croatian
• The customer must consent to the release of prescription details abroad through the Croatian Health Portal. Persons over 16 years of age can give this consent.
• The customer is identified by a photo ID card (europa.eu). In addition, they must show a health insurance card. You can check the link below to see which Croatian identity documents are accepted.
• When collecting prescriptions, the customer must provide a 9-character insurance code (MBO) from the health insurance card.
• Prescriptions are valid for 15 days. Prescriptions containing psychotropic substances are valid for 5 days and prescriptions for antibiotics for 3 days.

• The service is temporarily disabled. Portugal is looking into the cause of the problem.
• Information on the Electronic Cross-border Prescription in Portuguese
• The customer must consent to the release of prescription details abroad through the Portuguese NHS Portal.
• The customer is identified by a passport (europa.eu) or ID card (europa.eu). You can check the links below to see which Portuguese identity documents are accepted.
• When collecting a prescription, the customer's health insurance code is provided. The code can be found on the back of the identity card (NHS patient ID). In addition, the prescription code and dispensation PIN code are provided. They are on the prescription printout or in the customer’s mobile app.
• Prescriptions for acute ailments are valid for 30 days and for long-term ailments for six months.
• Prescriptions are usually issued under a generic name, the use of a trade name must be justified in the prescription.
• There are not restrictions concerning the processing of prescription data of an underage person.

• Information on the Electronic Cross-border Prescription in Polish
• The customer must consent to the release of prescription details abroad through the Polish patient's online account (https://pacjent.gov.pl/).
• The customer is identified by a passport (europa.eu) or an identity card with a photo (europa.eu). You can check the links below to see which Polish identity documents are accepted.
• When collecting an e-prescription, the customer's Personal ID Number is provided (PESEL).
• Cross-border e-prescriptions can be dispensed only by adults (18+).
• Cross-border e-prescriptions validity:
  • A standard prescription for normal medicines and OTC medicines: 30 days
  • A prescription for immunological medicines: 120 day

  • A prescription for antibiotics: 7 days

• Due to national restrictions in Poland, 
  • it is not permitted to dispense psychotropic medicines, central nervous system agents, and medicines which are prepared extemporaneously at the pharmacy; and
  • the prescribed and delivered products cannot have different ATC codes.
• Cross-border e-prescriptions are normally provided with a brand name.

• Information in Spanish (pdf)
• Clients are identified by means of a health insurance card with a photograph (‘tarjeta sanitaria’ in Spanish, abbreviated as TASA). If the client’s health insurance card does not have a photograph, they must additionally present a passport or photo ID in addition to the health insurance card.
  • There are two options for identification, both of which are presented below. 

Identification option 1, national identification code

• The national identification code consists of 8 B letters and 8 other characters (a total of 16 characters)

Identification option 2, regional personal identity code + regional identifier

Each region in Spain has a different health insurance card, a regional personal identity code and a regional identifier. For assistance in identifying these, please refer to the table below. 

• Regional personal identity code = Código de Identificación Personal Autonómico de la tarjeta sanitaria pública in Spanish, abbreviated as CIPA
• Regional identifier = Código Ide.

Note! Not all regional health insurance cards have a regional identifier. In such cases, the client must be able to provide their regional identifier, otherwise they cannot be identified.

• Please note that the abovementioned identifiers are entered into different fields in different pharmacy systems. Contact your system vendor to ensure the correct course of action.
• The customer does not need to give consent to the disclosure of prescription data for dispensing abroad.
• Spanish prescriptions will not be sent abroad if they are prescribed
  • during a private doctor’s appointment
  • in a region in Spain, which is not the ‘domicile’ region of the client. Only the prescriptions from the region that issued the client’s health insurance card will be sent abroad.
• Prescriptions can either be generic or indicate trade names.
• Due to country-specific restrictions in Spain, Finnish pharmacies cannot dispense prescriptions that prescribe
  • preparations containing more than four compounds (multivitamins)
  • medicines that are prepared at the pharmacy (ex tempore)
  • vaccines
  • non-medicinal products (such as wound care products).
• Prescriptions for medicines for chronic diseases are valid for a year.
• Doctors, nurses, and dentists can prescribe medication.

• Information for customers in Czech 
• The customer’s identity will be verified from their passport (europa.eu) or identity card (europa.eu). 
• The passport or identity card number must be provided when collecting a prescription. A 12-character prescription code is also required. The code can also be read using a QR code. 
• No consent to prescribe medicines abroad is required. 
• As a rule, prescriptions are valid for 14 days, but a doctor can extend the period of validity up to a maximum of one year. 
• Prescriptions marked "urgent treatment" are only valid for one day from the date on which the prescription was issued.
• Medicines are prescribed by trade name.
• Opioid prescriptions cannot be issued to a foreign country.
• A prescription can only be dispensed once. If the customer requires more medication after the prescription has been dispensed, they should request a new prescription.
• The customer must be a Czech citizen or have a permanent address in the Czechia.