Bring medication to Germany from the US: what applies

You are moving to Germany and your US prescription will run out sooner than your new life settles. This text covers what German law says about foreign prescriptions, what customs says about quantity and how to find a German doctor. Keep the details on one sheet. Log your intake history in Sam's medication list, which also reminds you of scheduled daily doses. Bring both to your first appointment.

This is general information on German rules, not legal or medical advice. Your prescriber and a German pharmacy decide what applies to your medicines. The 116117 appointment service described below is for people with statutory health insurance. If you have private or travel insurance, access works differently, and this text does not cover it.

Does a US prescription work at a German pharmacy?

Not automatically. German law handles prescriptions from other EU and EEA states and Switzerland like German ones, and a US prescription is not on that list. Plan to get a German prescription, and ask the pharmacy you plan to use what it can do with yours.

Prescription-only medicines may be dispensed only with a prescription from a doctor, dentist or vet. That is section 1 of the German prescription ordinance (AMVV). Section 2(1a) equates prescriptions issued in other EU states, EEA states and Switzerland with German ones. They must contain the details that section 2(1) requires. The provision names no other country.

A pharmacist applies that rule. Ask your doctor in the US what they can write for a new prescriber.

Since 1 January 2024, prescription-only medicines are prescribed electronically for people with statutory insurance. The German Ministry of Health says you can redeem an e-prescription with the electronic health card, an app or a paper printout.

How much of your medication can you bring into Germany?

German law allows medicines on entry in an amount that matches usual personal need. Zoll, the German customs service, spells out what that means for travellers. It counts a need of up to three months per medicine as usual, taking the dosage recommendation into account. It says it does not matter whether the medicine is authorised in Germany.

That is customs wording for travellers. It is not advice on how much you should bring. Your prescriber knows your schedule and can say what makes sense for your move.

One limit applies to everyone: counterfeit medicines and certain doping substances may not be brought in, even for personal use.

Zoll and the BfArM pages show no date, so check the current versions before you travel.

What changes for controlled medicines?

In German law, the strictest rules apply to narcotics (Betäubungsmittel). Whether a medicine controlled in the US counts as one depends on the substance. Zoll says its travel rules cover narcotics bought on a medical prescription for your own use, in an amount that fits the trip. The prescription serves as proof that no permit is needed.

For entry from outside the Schengen area, Zoll says patients should ask the prescriber for a multilingual certificate. It lists single and daily doses, the active ingredient and the length of the trip. No form is prescribed, and outside the Schengen area there are no uniform rules.

BfArM, the federal agency for these medicines, says the same about certificates. It adds that the international travellers' guide it refers to provides for narcotics for a trip of at most 30 days. It also says narcotics may be carried only for your own use, never by another person.

These pages are written for trips. They do not say how a permanent move from the US is handled, so that stays open. Ask your prescriber whether any of your medicines fall under these rules. Then ask the BfArM Bundesopiumstelle and the German consulate before you travel.

How do you find the German name of your medication?

Brand names often differ between countries. The active ingredient and strength are what a German doctor or pharmacist works with.

A German prescription can name the finished medicine or the active ingredient, including strength. It also states the quantity and a validity period. If no validity is stated, it is valid for three months. When a doctor prescribes an active ingredient or a brand, the pharmacy must hand out a cheaper medicine with the same active ingredient, unless the doctor excludes substitution with the aut idem box. The Ministry of Health defines "the same" as the same active ingredient, strength, pack size and indication.

You can search the public medicine database PharmNet.Bund yourself. It is free, and BfArM says all publishable data have been free of charge since 13 February 2025. The database is in German. You can search by medicine name or by substance name, called Stoffname, and use * as a wildcard.

Use the result as a lead for the appointment. The German product may differ from yours in name, strength or pack. Your doctor or a pharmacist decides what fits.

Can you buy sumatriptan without a prescription in Germany?

Only in one narrow case, described below. It is a legal rule, not a recommendation.

Annex 1 of the AMVV lists sumatriptan as prescription-only, with one exception. The exception covers the acute headache phase of migraine attacks, with or without aura, after a doctor has first diagnosed migraine. It applies to solid oral forms with 50 mg per unit and 100 mg per pack in total. The regulation was last amended on 19 May 2026. According to the trade paper Pharmazeutische Zeitung, the change took effect on 1 October 2020.

A pharmacist checks whether you meet the conditions. Pharmacies also tell you which medicines can be bought without a prescription and when to see a doctor. Whether this medicine suits you is a question for your doctor. For the first steps after a migraine diagnosis, see our post on what to do after a migraine diagnosis.

How do you get a German prescription and a specialist appointment?

Start with a family doctor (Hausarzt). With statutory insurance you can choose freely among the doctors licensed for statutory care. The law expects you to change your treating doctor within a calendar quarter only for an important reason.

To book a specialist through the 116117 appointment service, you need a referral (Überweisung). The service helps when you cannot find a slot. These are the rules from the Ministry of Health, the physicians' association KBV and the Social Code:

• The service is reachable around the clock under 116117 and is free from a German phone line. From abroad you can call it with +49.
• It must arrange an appointment within one week.
• For specialists you need a referral with a Vermittlungscode. The doctor who refers you issues the code and can mark an appointment as urgent.
• Family doctors, eye doctors, gynaecologists, paediatricians and one psychotherapy consultation need no referral.
• The waiting time for a specialist must not exceed four weeks. If the service cannot arrange it, it must offer outpatient care in an authorised hospital.
• It cannot book a specific practice.

Book on the 116117 app or on 116117-termine.de. If a specialty is not offered online, call 116117. The number is not for emergencies. In a life-threatening emergency call 112.

The 116117.de website has an English version. That says nothing about whether a doctor speaks English, so ask the practice when you book.

What should you bring to the first appointment?

A new prescriber cannot see what you took in the past. One sheet with one row per medicine closes that gap. Fill it from the pharmacy label. It tells the doctor what you take, and it says nothing about what you should take.

For each medicine, write down:

1. Active ingredient (the name on the label under the brand), strength and form, such as tablet, injection or inhaler.
2. The US brand name as printed, and a line "German product name found: ___". Fill that from the database or the pharmacist, and do not assume the products are identical.
3. The reason you take it, in your own words, and the start date.
4. Prescriber, date of the last prescription, date of the last fill and days of supply left.
5. Dose and schedule exactly as written on the label. This is the prescriber's text, not your own plan.
6. Changes in the last 12 months with dates: stopped, started or changed.
7. For controlled medicines: the prescriber's certificate fields from the Zoll and BfArM pages above.
8. The quantity you carried on entry per medicine.

Add a short timeline with your own dates: arrival, family doctor appointment booked, referral and Vermittlungscode requested, 116117 booking made, specialist appointment.

If a partner helps with your medication, Friends & Family sharing in Sam lets you share chosen areas read-only, person by person, and you can revoke access. Your partner needs Sam too. Our page for family and caregivers covers the partner side. For the rest of the visit, use our checklist for a doctor appointment with a chronic condition.

Keep your medication history in Sam and bring it as a report

A dated record of what you took helps when a new doctor starts from zero.

• Instead of memory at the appointment: in Sam's medication log you note each intake and can set reminders for daily medicines, so the history has dates.
• Instead of a loose list: a medical program, which is its own diary with a doctor report, summarises 1, 3, 6 or 12 months, or your whole record, as a PDF.

Programs start after you confirm that a doctor has diagnosed the condition. Sam does not check interactions and does not replace the handover sheet above.

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 on German rules, not legal or medical advice. Rules, deadlines and agency practice change, and your case may differ. Before you act on insurance, residence or prescription questions, check with your health insurer, the responsible authority or a lawyer.

Related reading

• Doctor appointment checklist for a chronic condition
• How to share Apple Health data with your doctor
• Migraine diagnosis: what now? Your first weeks
• FMLA intermittent leave for migraine or epilepsy: the log

Sources

Updated: October 2026

• Zoll: Arzneimittel und Betäubungsmittel (in German; no date shown)
• Arzneimittelgesetz: Section 73, Verbringungsverbot (in German)
• Arzneimittelverschreibungsverordnung: Section 1, Section 2 and Annex 1, Sumatriptan (in German; last amended 19 May 2026)
• Pharmazeutische Zeitung: Sumatriptan ab 1. Oktober als OTC (21 September 2020, in German)
• Bundesministerium für Gesundheit: Zugang zu Arzneimitteln (8 September 2026, in German)
• Bundesministerium für Gesundheit: E-Rezept (27 October 2025, in German)
• Bundesministerium für Gesundheit: Apotheken (3 September 2026, in German)
• Bundesministerium für Gesundheit: Stärkung der Patientenrechte (3 September 2026, in German)
• BfArM Bundesopiumstelle: Reisen mit Betäubungsmitteln (in German; no date shown)
• BfArM Bundesopiumstelle: Einfuhr und Ausfuhr (in German; no date shown)
• PharmNet.Bund: Arzneimittel-Informationssystem (in German)
• BfArM: Datenbankinformationen AMIce Arzneimittel (Stand 01/2025, in German)
• Sozialgesetzbuch V: Section 76, Freie Arztwahl and Section 75, Terminservicestellen (in German)
• KBV: 116117 Terminservice leaflet (11 March 2026, in German)
• 116117.de: Fragen und Antworten and start page (in German, with a language selector)
• Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch: Section 630g, Einsichtnahme in die Patientenakte (in German)