Legit or not? How to check an online prescription service.

01Is an online cannabis prescription legal in Germany?

Yes. Since 2018 the professional code for doctors has allowed treatment exclusively at a distance in individual cases, if it is medically justifiable, due care is taken in assessment, advice, treatment and documentation, and the patient is told what is special about remote treatment (§ 7(4) MBO-Ä). According to the German Medical Association, prescribing in remote treatment is permitted under professional law, but always requires an individual assessment.

Since 1 April 2024 medical cannabis has been regulated by the Medical Cannabis Act (MedCanG). Only doctors may prescribe it, and it may only be dispensed by a pharmacy against a prescription. A government bill that would tie the first prescription for flowers to an in-person visit and ban mail order of flowers had not been passed as of 26 October 2026. The current status is on the page about the legal situation.

02The checklist: 14 signs of a legitimate service

No single point proves that a service is legitimate. The more points you can answer with yes, and have checked yourself, the better.

• Legal notice (Impressum): name, address, legal form, register entry and an email address are easy to find (§ 5 DDG). If a doctor offers the service personally, the medical chamber, the professional title, the country that awarded it and the professional rules must be listed too. A platform that connects you with doctors should explain who provides the medical service.
• Doctor can be verified: the prescriber's first name, surname, professional title, address and a phone number must appear on every prescription (§ 2 AMVV). You can check whether someone is registered as a doctor via the doctor search of the regional medical chambers.
• Real medical review: a detailed questionnaire on symptoms, previous treatment, other conditions, medicines and substance use. Follow-up questions are possible, and a video or in-person consultation if you wish.
• Declines are possible: the service says openly that requests can be declined and what happens to your payment then.
• ID and age check: you confirm your identity with an official document, and the service states its minimum age.
• Invoice under the GOÄ: the doctor's fee is billed under the German scale of medical fees. Payment is only due once you have received an invoice with date, fee number, description, amount and multiplier (§ 12 GOÄ).
• Clear costs: doctor's fee, medicine and delivery are shown separately before you request. No subscription, no hidden follow-up costs.
• Licensed pharmacy: the prescription goes to a pharmacy. A pharmacy that ships needs a mail-order licence (§ 11a ApoG), is listed in the BfArM register and shows the EU common logo.
• Free choice of pharmacy: you can choose the pharmacy, including a local one for collection.
• No advertising of strains: prescription-only medicines may not be advertised to the public (§ 10 HWG). Discounts on certain strains or “strain of the month” offers are a bad sign.
• Data protection: health data is specially protected under Art. 9 GDPR. The privacy policy says who receives your data, how long it is kept and whether it leaves the EU (Art. 13 GDPR). Data is transmitted encrypted.
• Clear terms: terms and conditions, refund rules and information on the right of withdrawal that honestly says what it covers. The withdrawal rules for distance contracts do not apply to medical treatment contracts (§ 312(2) no. 7 BGB).
• Patient information and support: before treatment you receive understandable information on effects, risks, side effects and driving (§ 630e BGB) and can ask questions. There is an email address or another quick way to get in touch.
• Honest about health insurance: since 30 July 2026, German statutory health insurance no longer pays for cannabis flowers. Online prescriptions are usually private prescriptions.

03Red flags: when to stay away

• “Prescription guaranteed” or “100 % success”: a prescription is a doctor's decision in an individual case. Advertising that suggests success is certain is misleading under § 3 HWG.
• “No questions” or “no questionnaire”: without information on symptoms, conditions and medicines nobody can assess risks or interactions.
• “Prescription in 5 minutes, guaranteed”: a quick process is fine, a guaranteed result without time for review is not.
• Sales via Telegram, WhatsApp or Instagram: medical cannabis is only available from pharmacies against a prescription. Sellers in messenger groups or on social media are not pharmacies, even if they call their product “medical” or “pharmacy grade”.
• Cannabis without a prescription: anyone who ships flowers without a prescription is not acting as a pharmacy.
• Prepayment without an invoice: transfers to private accounts, gift cards or cryptocurrency, no invoice, no name.
• Shops abroad without a pharmacy in Germany: ordering cannabis from abroad is importing it. Private individuals are not allowed to do this (§ 2(1) no. 5 KCanG), and customs can seize such parcels.
• Fake seals: logos of authorities that aren't clickable or don't lead to an official register entry.

04How to check an online pharmacy

Every EU country keeps a register of legal online medicine sellers. In Germany it is kept by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM). Registered sellers must display the EU common logo on their website. The logo alone proves nothing; the BfArM recommends three steps:

• Click the logo: it should open the seller's entry on a BfArM page.
• Check the address: after https:// it must start with versandhandel.dimdi.de/ (note the slash after “.de”) and show the padlock.
• Buy only after opening the seller's website again via the link in the register entry.

Pharmacies that only offer collection or local courier delivery don't need an entry in the mail-order register. For them, check the legal notice or visit in person.

05How to check the doctor

The regional medical chambers (Landesärztekammern) know who practises as a doctor in Germany. The German Medical Association links to the search services of each federal state on its “Arztsuche” page; some chambers offer an online search, others answer by phone. These services are mostly in German.

You need the doctor's name for this. It must appear on the prescription, and the GOÄ invoice comes from the treating doctor. Prescriptions from other EU or EEA countries and Switzerland are treated like German ones if they contain the same details.

06What a legitimate prescription costs

There are two separate costs: the doctor's fee under the GOÄ and the medicine at the pharmacy, plus delivery if applicable. Both should be visible before you request. A legitimate service also tells you whether you get money back if your request is declined.

If a service advertises a “free prescription”, this usually only refers to the doctor's fee; you still pay for the medicine. Prices at 420doc are on the page Prices and refunds.

07How 420doc handles these points

So that you can apply the checklist to us too, here are the facts, each with the page where you can check them:

• Legal notice: the legal notice names the operator of the platform with address, register entry and email addresses. The medical review and the prescription are handled by independent doctors licensed in Germany; their name is on the prescription and the invoice.
• Review: a medical questionnaire on symptoms, previous treatment, safety and medicines. Certain answers rule out an online prescription. Follow-up questions come through your patient area, and a video or in-person consultation in Düsseldorf is possible. Details on How it works.
• Declines: requests can be declined; the prescription fee is then refunded.
• ID and age: requests from age 18. No request is approved without a confirmed identity.
• Costs: the doctor's fee is billed under the GOÄ, the invoice is in your patient area. No platform fee, no subscription. All prices on Prices and refunds.
• Pharmacy: the prescription is signed with a qualified electronic signature and sent to the pharmacy you choose, for collection or delivery.
• Data protection: encrypted connections, servers in Germany, ID photos and uploaded documents stored encrypted. Details in the privacy policy.
• Terms: the withdrawal information explains what a right of withdrawal applies to (the German version is legally binding).

08Which language is used

09Frequently asked questions about legitimate online prescriptions

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