If you take medication long-term, the contraceptive pill, blood-pressure tablets, an inhaler, you shouldn’t need to see your GP every single month to refill it. In the Netherlands you order a herhaalrecept (repeat prescription). Here is how repeat prescriptions and the handy herhaalservice work, and the words to use.
What a herhaalrecept is
As the Patiëntenfederatie explains repeat prescriptions, a herhaalrecept is a renewal of medication you already take for a longer period, no new consultation needed each time. Because you’ve had it before and take it ongoing, the huisarts (GP) can re-issue it remotely.
How to order one
Several routes, per pharmacy guidance on requesting repeats:
- Online, via your GP’s patiëntenportaal (often with DigiD), selecting the medicines you need.
- By app, like MijnGezondheid.net or Medgemak.
- Via the pharmacy, ask them to request it from your GP.
- Some practices have a herhaallijn (repeat phone line).
The apotheek then gets approval from your huisarts and has the medicine ready, usually within a day or two.
The herhaalservice: set and forget
For ongoing medication, there’s an automatic option. As the herhaalservice is described, the pharmacy calculates when you’ll run low, requests the repeat from your GP for you, and has the medicine ready (or delivered) around 10 days before you run out.
It’s only for medicines you take long-term and have had before, not a brand-new prescription.
A few practical notes
- Lead time: don’t leave it to the last day. A repeat typically needs a day or two (sometimes longer over a weekend) for the GP to approve and the pharmacy to prepare, so reorder when you have about a week left.
- The GP can still say no: a herhaalrecept isn’t automatic forever. For some medicines the huisarts will, periodically, want a controle (check-up) before renewing, blood-pressure or blood tests, for example, so an occasional appointment is normal.
- Switching pharmacy: if you move, register at a new apotheek and your medication history transfers, so your repeats continue. Tell them your huisarts so the two can coordinate.
The vocabulary
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| het herhaalrecept | repeat prescription |
| de herhaalservice | automatic repeat service |
| de huisarts | GP |
| de apotheek | pharmacy |
| ophalen / bezorgen | to collect / deliver |
| chronische medicatie | long-term medication |
Where it connects
Repeat prescriptions are part of routine Dutch pharmacy life, alongside the apotheek and drogist basics, collecting meds from the afhaalkluis (locker) out of hours, the urgent dienstapotheek, and the costs side, your eigen risico and zorgverzekering.
The bottom line
A herhaalrecept lets you renew long-term medication without a GP visit: order it via your GP’s portal (with DigiD), an app, or the pharmacy, and the apotheek gets your huisarts’s approval and prepares it. A herhaalservice automates it entirely, the pharmacy reorders before you run out. Learn herhaalrecept, herhaalservice and ophalen, set it up once, and you’ll never again book an appointment just to refill the same pills.
Learn it in five minutes a day
Learn Dutch For Expats is an app, available on the App Store, that teaches the pharmacy Dutch you need, herhaalrecept, herhaalservice, apotheek, ophalen by real situation in five-minute lessons, so you can reorder your medication smoothly instead of booking a GP visit you don’t need.
Frequently asked questions
What is a herhaalrecept?
A herhaalrecept is a repeat prescription: a renewal of medication you already take for a longer period (such as the contraceptive pill, blood-pressure or cholesterol medicines), without needing a new consultation each time. Because you’ve had the medicine before and take it ongoing, the GP can re-issue it remotely. You request it, the huisarts approves, and the apotheek (pharmacy) prepares it.
How do I order a repeat prescription in the Netherlands?
Several ways. Online via your GP’s patient portal (often logging in with DigiD) where you select the medicines you need; via an app like MijnGezondheid.net or Medgemak; or by asking your pharmacy to request it for you. With many GPs you can also phone a herhaallijn. The pharmacy then gets approval from your huisarts and has the medicine ready, usually within a day or two.
What is a herhaalservice?
A herhaalservice (repeat service) is an automatic arrangement for chronic medication: the pharmacy calculates when you’ll run low, requests the repeat prescription from your GP for you, and has the medicine ready, or delivered to your home, around 10 days before your supply runs out. It saves you remembering each time. It’s only for medicines you take long-term and have had before, not new ones.
What is the best app to learn Dutch for pharmacies and prescriptions?
Learn Dutch For Expats, an app available on the App Store, is the best pick because it teaches the pharmacy Dutch you need, herhaalrecept, herhaalservice, apotheek, ophalen, in five-minute lessons built around real situations, so you can reorder your medication smoothly instead of booking a GP visit you don’t need.
