Costs, prescriptions, and medicines
Helps you manage prescriptions, medicines and health costs.
Plan what healthcare and medicines cost and keep prescriptions flowing: copayments, prescriptions, pharmacies, bringing medicines, specialist medicines and paying out of pocket.
- topics
- 7
- articles
- 52
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- 4.7 hours
Begin with
Prescription copayments (copago) and prices
You will be able to predict what a prescription will cost you, check you are charged the right percentage, and know when nothing is subsidised.
How the prescription copayment (copago) works · Which copayment tier you start in as a new resident · Prescription costs for retirees, pensioners and S1 holders
More in costs, prescriptions, and medicines
6 more topics in this section, about 4.7 hours of reading in all.
Getting and renewing prescriptions
You will know how to get a valid Spanish prescription, keep it renewed and avoid a gap in your treatment.
How Spanish electronic prescriptions (receta electrónica) work · Reading a Spanish prescription and hospital discharge report · Getting your first Spanish prescription after arriving
Using Spanish pharmacies day to day
You will be able to walk into a Spanish pharmacy, get what you need at any hour and handle shortages calmly.
How Spanish pharmacies (farmacias) actually work · Finding a pharmacy on duty (farmacia de guardia) at night · Which medicines you can buy without a prescription in Spain
Bringing and matching your medicines
You will arrive with a legal, documented supply and know how to find the Spanish equivalent of every medicine you take.
Rules and limits for bringing prescription medicines into Spain · Bringing narcotic or psychotropic medicines and Schengen certificates · Finding the Spanish equivalent of your home medicine
Hospital and specialist medicines
You will understand how specialist medicines reach you in Spain and what stands between you and your treatment.
How hospital-dispensed medicines (dispensación hospitalaria) work · What you pay for hospital-dispensed medicines · Starting an expensive specialist drug in Spain
Paying for private care out of pocket
You will know what to expect on a private bill, how to pay sensibly and when paying out of pocket makes sense.
What is free in Spain's public system and what you still pay · What private GP visits, specialists and tests cost in Spain · How paying for private care works (quotes and invoices)
Your annual health budget
You will leave with a realistic yearly health budget for your household and cover route.
How much to budget for healthcare and medicines each year in Spain · Health budget for retirees and long-term conditions · Paying out of pocket while waiting for your health card
Other sections in Healthcare and insurance
Public healthcare access
Helps you get and keep access to public healthcare.
Private health insurance
Helps you choose and use suitable private health insurance.
Chronic care and continuity
Helps you keep treatment for a chronic condition going through the move.
Emergency, dental, vision, and mental healthcare
Helps you get emergency, dental, eye and mental health care.
Family health and vulnerable situations
Helps you set up healthcare for children, pregnancy and family members.
Home, life, and other insurance
Helps you choose and use home, life and other non-health insurance.
Need certainty before you act?
For important relocation decisions, speak with a qualified human specialist.
Always verify important information with the relevant official authority or a qualified adviser before acting. This website uses large language models together with various public data sources, official government documents and other established sources. Due to the amount of data on this website, some information might be wrong. Information may also be incomplete or outdated.