E-prescription or private prescription in Germany: the difference, redeeming and video

Two terms, two levels: channel and billing

The terms e-prescription (E-Rezept) and private prescription (Privatrezept) are often set against each other, but they describe different things. The e-prescription is a transmission channel: the prescription is not printed on paper but electronically signed by the practice and stored on a server of the telematics infrastructure, from where the pharmacy retrieves it. Since 1 January 2024 this channel has been mandatory for prescriptions charged to statutory health insurers (section 360 SGB V).

The private prescription is a billing type: the medicine is not paid for by the statutory insurer but by you, and you submit the receipt to your private insurer or Beihilfe if applicable. Private prescriptions are given to privately insured people, self-payers and statutorily insured people treated privately. A private prescription can be on paper, by fax or as an electronically signed PDF.

The two levels can overlap: for privately insured people an e-prescription via the telematics infrastructure is technically possible if the practice and insurer take part. It is not mandatory for them, and many private practices still use paper or PDF. A PDF private prescription is therefore not an e-prescription in the gematik sense, even though it is electronic. This difference matters when you redeem the prescription.

Redeeming: how it works at the pharmacy and by mail order

	E-prescription (statutory)	Private prescription (paper or PDF)
Presenting at the pharmacy	insert health card, gematik app or printout with code	show PDF on smartphone or print it, present paper
Mail-order pharmacy	transmit via app or card	upload PDF, send original for paper
Who pays	health insurer, you pay the co-payment	you pay the retail price, reimbursement depending on tariff
Validity	28 days at the insurer’s expense	customarily three months
Authenticity check	automatic via the telematics infrastructure	mandatory details, signature, verification code

With the e-prescription the pharmacy fetches the prescription from the server as soon as you insert your card or show the code. With the PDF private prescription the pharmacy checks the mandatory details under section 2 of the Medicinal Products Prescription Ordinance (AMVV): name, address and professional title of the prescriber, date of issue, your name and date of birth, the medicine with active ingredient, strength, dosage form and quantity, dosage instruction and a handwritten signature or a qualified electronic signature. The PDF from OpenClinic24 additionally carries a verification code with which the pharmacy can check authenticity.

Validity and deadlines

A statutory e-prescription can be redeemed at the insurer’s expense for 28 days from issue. After that the insurer no longer pays; some pharmacies still dispense within three months against private payment. There is no statutory deadline for private prescriptions; pharmacy practice uses three months from the date of issue. Narcotics prescriptions, statutory or private, may only be dispensed within seven days of issue under section 12 of the Narcotics Prescription Ordinance (BtMVV).

Practical advice: redeem every prescription as soon as possible. If you have a private prescription as a PDF you can open it again at any time; if you lose a paper prescription you need a new one. And a prescription is valid once for the quantity prescribed. Repeated redemption is only possible if the prescription expressly provides for it.

What OpenClinic24 issues and what it does not

OpenClinic24 works as a private practice. After the video consultation the doctor issues, if the prescription is medically justifiable, a private prescription as an electronically signed PDF. It sits in your patient account and can be redeemed at any pharmacy in Germany, in person or by mail order. It is not an e-prescription via the telematics infrastructure, and it is not transmitted to a health insurer.

What can be prescribed by video is decided by the doctor case by case under section 7(4) of the professional code. Typical are repeat prescriptions of known regular medication and prescriptions for acute complaints that can be assessed in conversation. Not possible are narcotics, which require a separate narcotics prescription, first prescriptions requiring an examination and medicines whose safe use requires current laboratory values that are not available. There is no entitlement to a prescription; the doctor can refuse it and then recommends the appropriate route.

The costs: €10.72 is reserved for the consultation under GOÄ no. 1 (factor 2.3). You see the invoice with all items in your account and nothing is charged until after the consultation. You pay for the medicine at the pharmacy. Statutory health insurers generally do not reimburse private medical services or privately prescribed medicines; privately insured people and civil servants with Beihilfe submit according to their tariff.

Privately insured: e-prescription, paper or PDF?

Privately insured people were never part of the e-prescription obligation. Whether your practice issues you an e-prescription via the telematics infrastructure, a paper prescription or a PDF depends on the practice and on whether your insurer supports the e-prescription. For reimbursement the channel is irrelevant; what matters are complete mandatory details and the pharmacy receipt.

The same applies to civil servants with Beihilfe. Before your first submission check the requirements of your Beihilfe office; some require a copy of the prescription with a visible signature. A PDF private prescription meets that because the signature is embedded in the document.

Security and protection against forgery

The e-prescription is protected against forgery by the practice’s signature and the telematics infrastructure. With the private prescription the signature is decisive: a qualified electronic signature is equivalent to a handwritten signature under section 2 AMVV. The PDF from OpenClinic24 is signed in this way and can additionally be verified via a verification code. Pharmacies may reject a prescription if mandatory details are missing or there are doubts about authenticity; a complete, signed private prescription meets the requirements.

Two things you should never do: alter a prescription, for example the quantity, and pass a prescription on. Both are criminal offences and endanger your health because the pharmacy then dispenses medicines without medical review.

When to go to a practice, when to call emergency services

A practice is the place for prescriptions that require an examination, narcotics, medicines with laboratory monitoring and changes of therapy with new symptoms. Outside surgery hours the on-call service on 116 117 helps; for emergencies on medication call 112.

As of October 2026. Deadlines and procedures may change; we will update this article when gematik or the legislator adopts new rules.