Free contraception and free HRT: who qualifies and what Budget 2027 changes

What the Free Contraception Scheme covers, the move from age 35 to 37 in Budget 2027, how free HRT works for medical card and Drugs Payment Scheme holders, and how many people use them.

You do not need a medical card to get free contraception. If you are aged 17 to 35 and live in Ireland, the GP visit, the prescription and long-acting methods like the coil are all free. Budget 2027 will raise the upper age to 37.

Separately, HRT (hormone replacement therapy, used to ease menopause symptoms) has been free at participating pharmacies since 1 June 2025 for medical card and Drugs Payment Scheme holders.

Who can get free contraception

The Free Contraception Scheme is for women, girls, trans, non-binary and intersex people aged 17 to 35 who live in Ireland. In practice, that means from your 17th birthday until the day before you turn 36.

Budget 2027, announced on 6 October 2026, extends the scheme from age 35 to 37. No start date has been given yet.

What the scheme pays for

The scheme covers your GP visits about contraception, the prescription, and your choice from the list of approved contraceptives. Some products are not on the HSE list and are not free, so ask your GP.

LARCs (long-acting reversible contraception) are methods that last months or years, like the implant, injection and coil. Fitting, removal and check-ups are all free under the scheme.

How to get free contraception

1. Check that your GP or clinic takes part in the scheme. Most GPs do.
2. Book an appointment and register with your name, address, date of birth and PPS number.
3. Get a prescription, then take it to a participating pharmacy.
4. For the morning-after pill, go straight to a participating pharmacy with your PPS number.

No GP? Family planning, women's health and student health clinics also provide the service. HSE Live can help you find one on freephone 1800 700 700.

The Government allocated €48 million to the scheme in 2024. The HSE also gave out just under 1.3 million free condoms in 2025 through its separate condom service.

Pharmacists may soon re-prescribe the pill

A Bill before the Oireachtas would let pharmacists renew contraception first prescribed by a GP. It is not law yet.

• People aged 17 to 39 would see a GP again every 5 years
• People aged 40 or over would see a GP every 2 years
• High-risk patients and people using LARCs would stay with their GP
• Private patients could use it too, for a fee

Free HRT since June 2025

Since 1 June 2025, prescribed HRT has been free at participating pharmacies if you have a medical card or a Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS) card.

It covers HRT in its usual forms: tablets, skin patches, gels, sprays, and vaginal creams or pessaries. The Department of Health says pharmacy dispensing fees are covered too.

If you have neither card, you pay for prescribed HRT. Anyone ordinarily resident in Ireland can register for a DPS card: see our guide to the Drugs Payment Scheme card.

How to get free HRT

1. Talk to your GP, a registered nurse or a midwife about your symptoms.
2. If HRT suits you, get a prescription.
3. Take it to a participating pharmacy with your medical card or DPS card.

Official pages describe free HRT at the pharmacy. They do not say the GP visit itself is free, so check fees with your GP unless your card already covers GP visits.

“Free HRT is available for women from today, Sunday 1st June, at participating pharmacies all over Ireland.”— Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Minister for Health, 1 June 2025

Specialist menopause clinics

For menopause symptoms, the first step is to talk to your GP or practice nurse. There are also six public Specialist Menopause Clinics for women who need more specialist care. The Women's Health Action Plan 2026-2027 says their opening hours have been expanded.

About 1,150 women attended these clinics in 2023, the Department of Health said. The plan commits to widening the range of services they offer.

If you have a medical card

A medical card already covers contraceptive drugs and devices, GP advice and emergency contraception. You may pay the usual prescription charge on pharmacy items, but HRT is now completely free at participating pharmacies.