Costa del Sol ~4 min read

Need an English-speaking doctor on the Costa del Sol for a repeat prescription?

In short. A pharmacy on the Costa del Sol cannot dispense a prescription-only medicine without a Spanish prescription, and a UK or other foreign prescription is not accepted at the counter. If you have run out of, lost, or had your regular medication stolen, a Spanish-registered, English-speaking doctor can review a continuation request online and, where safe and appropriate, issue a private electronic prescription (receta privada) you collect at any Spanish pharmacy.

The Costa del Sol is the stretch of Málaga-province coastline that runs through Torremolinos, Benalmádena, Fuengirola, Mijas, Marbella and Estepona, and it has one of Europe's largest British and international communities. Public care is run by the Servicio Andaluz de Salud (SAS) and the working language is Spanish; English is easy to find in the private sector but is not guaranteed in a public health centre or pharmacy.

This page explains the realistic options for replacing your regular medication while you are on the coast, what a Spanish pharmacy can and cannot do, and how an English-speaking, Spanish-registered doctor can issue a Spanish receta privada online where it is appropriate. For specific towns, see our pages for Málaga and Estepona.

On this page

Replacing medication on the Costa del Sol
Why a Spanish pharmacy cannot use your UK prescription
How The Holiday Doctor works
What we cannot help with

Replacing medication on the Costa del Sol when you've run out, lost it, or had it stolen

The main public hospital for the western coast is the Hospital Universitario Costa del Sol, near Marbella, whose 24-hour emergency department serves Marbella, Fuengirola, Mijas, Benalmádena and Estepona. Like all Spanish A&E, it works by triage rather than as a walk-in clinic for a routine refill, and an ordinary appointment runs through a local health centre in Spanish.

For a medicine you already take and are stable on, a short online review you complete in English from your accommodation is usually the quickest route to a Spanish prescription. If your medicine is one that should not be stopped abruptly, do not wait.

Why a Spanish pharmacy cannot use your UK prescription

Spanish pharmacies dispense prescription-only medicine against a Spanish prescription, either a private receta privada issued electronically through REMPe, or a public-system receta. A UK or other foreign prescription will not normally be honoured at the counter, although a pharmacist may use it as evidence of your regimen when you obtain a Spanish prescription. Out-of-hours and duty pharmacies across Málaga province rotate on a rota published by the Málaga pharmacists' college (ICOFMA).

A UK GHIC or EHIC card, and the public system (SAS), cover medically necessary and emergency treatment, with a prescription co-payment. They do not cover private care or routine repeat prescriptions arranged privately, so for medication you already take you usually need a private Spanish prescription.

How The Holiday Doctor works

You complete a short online request describing the medication you already take and your situation, in English. A Spanish-registered, English-speaking doctor reviews it. Where it is safe and clinically appropriate, the doctor issues a Spanish electronic private prescription (a receta privada on REMPe, with a QR code) that any Spanish pharmacy can dispense.

The review is EUR 50, and you only pay if a doctor issues a prescription. There is no charge if your request is declined. Any medication is paid for separately at the pharmacy that dispenses it. This is a continuation service for medication you are already established on, not first-time prescribing of new medicines.

English-speaking repeat prescriptions on the Costa del Sol.

If you have run out of, lost, or had your medication stolen on the coast, an online review is one route to a Spanish prescription. Start below; you only pay if a doctor issues a prescription.

Start a clinical review

What to have ready: the full name of the medication, the dose, how often you take it, the condition it is for, the name of your usual doctor, and a photograph of the box or a recent prescription if you have one. For UK patients, the NHS app usually has all of this in one place.

What we cannot help with

The Holiday Doctor scope is deliberately narrow, and the service is online only. We are not an in-person clinic on the Costa del Sol, and we are not an emergency service.

Out of scope - we cannot help with these

Controlled drugs - strong opioid painkillers, ADHD medications, benzodiazepines, sleeping tablets, and others
Weight-loss medication
Anticoagulants and medications requiring regular blood monitoring
Insulin starts and complex diabetes regimens
Complex psychiatric medication regimens, particularly antipsychotics
New conditions outside our published scope
Anyone under 18, or anyone not physically in Spain
Anything that needs an in-person examination to assess safely

For any of these, the right route is a health centre, Urgencias, or a private doctor in person. The coast has a strong multilingual private sector (for example HC Marbella, Hospiten and Vithas Xanit in Benalmádena) if you need in-person English-speaking care. For urgent or life-threatening symptoms, call 112. The consultation form will tell you immediately, at no charge, if your situation is outside scope.

Towns and guides

Common questions

Can a visitor get a repeat prescription on the Costa del Sol?

Yes, where it is clinically appropriate. A Spanish-registered doctor can issue a private Spanish prescription for medication you already take, which any Spanish pharmacy can dispense. You do not need to be a resident, but you do need to be physically in Spain.

Will a Spanish pharmacy accept my UK prescription?

Generally no. Spanish pharmacies dispense prescription-only medicine against a Spanish prescription. A UK or other foreign prescription will not normally be honoured at the counter, although it may be used as evidence of your regimen when obtaining a Spanish prescription.

There is a lot of English spoken on the Costa del Sol. Does that help?

Socially and in the private sector, yes. But the public health system and pharmacies work in Spanish, and a Spanish prescription is still required to dispense prescription-only medicine, which is where an English-speaking online review is useful.

Is The Holiday Doctor an in-person clinic on the Costa del Sol?

No. The service is online. The doctor reviews your request remotely and issues an electronic prescription where appropriate. For care that needs a physical examination, you would need an in-person doctor or, in an emergency, 112 or a hospital A&E.

How much does it cost?

The review is EUR 50, and you only pay if a doctor issues a prescription. There is no charge if your request is declined. Any medication is paid for separately at the Spanish pharmacy that dispenses it.

Will the prescription work at any Spanish pharmacy?

Yes. It is issued on the Spanish electronic prescription system (REMPe) with a QR code, which pharmacies across Spain can dispense.

Medical sources

This page is informational and reflects guidance from the sources below. It does not replace advice from your own doctor.

Important. Adults physically in Spain only. Not an emergency service. For urgent or life-threatening symptoms, call 112. A prescription is not guaranteed. Requests are assessed by a doctor, and some medicines or situations require in-person care.