Bringing medication to Ireland

The rule for most arrivals is short. The Department of Health states that "Visitors to Ireland may bring up to 3 months' supply of prescription medicines with them for their own personal use."

It adds a recommendation rather than a requirement: bring the medicines "in their original packaging, with their name clearly displayed." Carrying the prescription, or a letter from the prescriber, is the sensible companion to that, because it is the document that connects the box to you.

Three months is a ceiling, not a target. For a move rather than a holiday, it is the bridge that lasts while you register with an Irish GP and get a local prescription.

Source: gov.ie, Department of Health: travelling into Ireland with prescribed narcotics and/or psychotropic substances, read 16 October 2026.

Ireland is not a full Schengen member, and since 1 April 2023 that has a practical consequence for some medicines. The Department of Health states that Schengen residents need an Article 75 Schengen Certificate, issued by their own country's competent authority, to carry certain prescribed narcotics or psychotropic substances into Ireland from inside the Schengen Area.

• Which medicines: those containing a controlled drug listed in Schedule II or Schedule III of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2017.
• How much: the certificate covers a maximum of 30 days' supply for personal use.
• How many certificates: a separate certificate is required for each prescribed controlled drug.
• Opioid substitution: the Department names methadone and buprenorphine as Schedule II drugs that may be brought in from the Schengen Area with a certificate.

If you do not know whether your medicine is on those schedules, the Department's advice is to ask your medical practitioner or dispensing pharmacist. Our Schengen medication certificate guide explains how the certificate itself works.

Source: gov.ie, Department of Health: travelling into Ireland with prescribed narcotics and/or psychotropic substances, read 16 October 2026.

The same page is unambiguous on one category: "prescribed cannabis-based products are not permitted to be brought into Ireland."

That applies even with a prescription from a country where the product is lawful. If you rely on one, the conversation to have is with your prescriber about an alternative, well before you travel.

Source: gov.ie, Department of Health: travelling into Ireland with prescribed narcotics and/or psychotropic substances, read 16 October 2026.

Citizens Information states that under EU rules a prescription from a doctor in one EU country is valid in all other EU and EEA countries, as long as it contains certain information. It also warns that some medicines may not be available in other countries, or may be sold under other names.

For British movers, the Foreign Office says you can use a UK prescription to get medicines from pharmacies in Ireland, and that you will have to pay in full for any prescription medicine. Citizens Information adds a narrower exception: a prescription issued by a UK-registered doctor through an online service to someone living in Ireland is not valid in Ireland.

Irish doctors can email prescriptions to Irish pharmacies, but Citizens Information notes that this system does not work for a pharmacy outside Ireland, so ask for a paper copy if you will need it filled abroad.

Source: Citizens Information: cross-border prescriptions, read 16 October 2026.

Source: UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office: Ireland travel advice, health, read 16 October 2026.

• Count the supply: up to 3 months from outside Schengen, 30 days for a Schedule II or III drug under an Article 75 certificate.
• Keep the original packaging with your name on it, and carry the prescription or a prescriber's letter.
• Coming from Schengen? Check with your pharmacist whether each medicine needs its own certificate.
• Leave cannabis-based products behind, prescribed or not.
• Plan the handover: register with an Irish GP before the supply runs out.

This guide is general information from official sources, not medical or legal advice.