Can a Spanish pharmacy fill a UK HRT prescription?
A common question from travellers and expatriates is whether a prescription from home can be used directly abroad. Can a Spanish pharmacy dispense medication using a UK HRT prescription, or are an assessment and a new prescription from a doctor in Spain required?
No, the rule that allows Spanish pharmacies to dispense prescriptions issued in other EU countries does not cover prescriptions from the UK, so you need a Spanish prescription for your HRT. Some UK HRT brands are sold under a different name in Spain, and some have no Spanish equivalent. A pharmacist cannot swap your UK product for a Spanish one, because a Spanish product needs a Spanish prescription. Spanish prescriptions must name the active ingredient. Before prescribing, our doctors take a full personal and family medical history and tell you when an in-person examination is needed. Having your UK prescription or packaging to hand helps our doctors see exactly what you use. If it is clinically appropriate, our doctors issue a private electronic prescription through a private e-prescription platform such as REMPe. The prescription is sent to your email as a PDF to take to a pharmacy. More information: https://urgentdoc.eu/prescriptions/hrt-medication/spain/ and https://urgentdoc.eu/medicine-translator/