Getting a Copy of Your Medical Records When Changing Doctor

When you change practice or provider, your new doctor usually asks to see your medical records. In England your record moves with you when you register with a new GP. In the US you can ask for a copy of your files. You can hold your own copies too, in a folder at home or in the Health Vault in Sam. There the letters and lab results you receive sit as documents you can open, instead of a loose pile of paper. This text is general information, not legal advice.

Here we explain the rights you have, how to ask, what a copy can cost and who advises you. It does not replace advisers or a lawyer for your own case.

What are your rights to your records?

In the UK, UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 give you the right to ask a health or care organisation for a copy of the personal information it holds on you. NHS England calls this a subject access request. You do not need to give a reason, and in most cases it is free.

In the US, the HIPAA Privacy Rule gives you the right to see and get copies of your health information held by most health care providers and health plans. This right stays with you whether you switch doctor, insurance plan or state.

Neither right disappears when you change providers. You decide whether to ask for your old files at all.

Does your GP record move with you in England?

When you register with a new GP practice in England, your previous record is transferred automatically, usually through a service called GP2GP that links practices in England. In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, ask your new practice how records are transferred. You do not need to tell your old GP; the transfer starts once you register with the new practice.

Your GP record is your life-long record with the surgery and usually includes letters about hospital and specialist care. Hospitals and other services keep their own records, so for those contact the hospital's records department or PALS. To see your full GP record, ask your surgery for a printout or digital copy.

Separately, most people in England have a Summary Care Record. It is a short summary of your GP record, holding your medicines, your allergies and any bad reactions you have had. It exists so staff away from your GP can support your care. You have one unless you chose not to, and you can ask your GP to see it. It is a summary, not your full record.

What is the HIPAA right of access in the US?

Under HIPAA, a provider must act on your request within 30 calendar days of receiving it. If it cannot, it may take up to 30 more days, as long as it tells you the reason and the date in writing within the first 30 days. State law can set shorter limits, and HHS has proposed changes to the federal deadline, so check the current rule.

You can ask for your information in the form and format you want, if the provider can produce it that way. That includes an electronic copy. You can also direct a copy to another person, such as your new doctor or a personal health record you keep.

HHS, the department that enforces HIPAA, says a provider cannot deny you a copy because you have not paid for your care.

How do you ask for a copy?

Put your request in writing and note the date you send it. Identify yourself, which the practice may ask you to verify. Then say what you want: the whole record or one piece, and whether you want paper or an electronic copy.

In the UK you can ask in person, by phone or in writing, including by email. Sending an email or online form is a good way to keep a record.

In the US, a provider may require requests in writing, but it must tell you that it does. The 30 day clock starts on the day the provider receives your request.

If you only need one thing, like a test result, ask for that. It is often faster than a full record.

What does a copy cost?

In the UK, in most cases a copy is free of charge. A reasonable fee for admin costs is allowed only if a request is manifestly unfounded or excessive, or for further copies. You normally receive your records within one calendar month, or up to three months if the request is complex.

In the US, a provider may charge a reasonable, cost-based fee for the copy and for mailing. HHS says the fee cannot be a per page fee when your record is stored electronically, and the provider cannot charge you for searching or retrieving your records. It also cannot refuse you a copy because of an unpaid bill.

What if a practice delays or refuses?

A refusal has to rest on limited legal grounds, and it must be explained. In the US, a denial must be in writing, and certain denials can be reviewed by a licensed health care professional who was not part of the first decision.

If a practice is slow or refuses, ask for the reason in writing. Then you can complain.

• In the UK, complain to the practice first, then to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which oversees data protection. Citizens Advice can guide you through the process.
• In the US, complain to the provider first, then to the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the US Department of Health and Human Services. You file a HIPAA complaint within 180 days of the event.

What your records do not show

Your records describe what a provider recorded. They may not show how you felt between visits, the weeks when symptoms were bad, or what you tried at home. That part you gather yourself.

A written record of your days helps at the new practice. On paper or in Sam: the symptom diary holds your days, one tap each. If you keep a Sam program (a separate diary with its own doctor report) for an illness your doctor has diagnosed, the doctor report turns your program entries into a PDF for the length you choose, to print or show. A checklist of what to bring is in our doctor visit checklist for a chronic condition.

Your own notes are not the patient file. The provider keeps that. Your notes are your record of how your life between visits went.

Store the records you receive in Sam and bring your own record to the new practice

You go to the new doctor with your own copy of your journey, not a memory of it, while the practice keeps the old file.

• Documents you receive, like referral letters, test results or a discharge summary, sit in the Health Vault as scans and PDFs you can open, instead of in a paper folder or the camera roll.
• Day to day symptoms and sick days go in the symptom diary, one tap a day, so the weeks between visits are not lost.
• If you keep a program for a condition your doctor has diagnosed, the doctor report gives you a PDF for the period you choose to bring along.

Sam cannot request documents from a practice for you, and it is not a replacement for the file the provider keeps. Your medical decisions stay with your doctor.

Try Sam Health

Sam is a wellness companion, not a medical device. The app does not diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any condition or health state. Always consult qualified professionals for medical decisions.

General information, not legal advice. Laws, deadlines and agency practice change, and your case may differ. Before applications, deadlines and conversations with providers, insurers or agencies, get advice from an adviser or lawyer.

Related reading

• CGRP migraine medication and insurance: how access works
• Allergy immunotherapy cost and coverage for hay fever
• Doctor visit checklist for a chronic condition

Sources

Updated: October 2026

• NHS: Register with a GP surgery (your old surgery is told automatically)
• NHS England Digital: GP2GP and Subject access requests: guidance for patients and service users
• NHS England Digital: Summary Care Records: information for patients
• ICO: Right of access
• HHS: Individuals' right under HIPAA to access their health information (45 CFR 164.524) and Your Medical Records
• HHS OCR: How to file a health information privacy or security complaint
• Healthwatch: How are NHS patient records managed?