Is this prescription form valid?

Published on: 17th July 2013 | Updated on: 11th May 2023

Only certain types of paper prescription forms can be used for dispensing within the NHS, so it is important for community pharmacy contractors to be able to identify which paper form types are valid and allowed, and which are not. Paper form types can be identified by the code on the bottom right of a prescription. The table below indicates the prescriptions forms that can be used for dispensing by NHS community pharmacy teams in England and Wales.

These forms are used by prescribers to print paper prescriptions or EPS tokens.

Forms originating in England

Colour of paper form Paper form  Who they are used by Further information
Green FP10SS
  • GP
  • Community Practitioner Nurse Prescriber
  • Nurse Independent/Supplementary Prescriber
  • Independent Prescribers
  • Supplementary Prescribers
  • Hospital Unit

Prescriptions must be annotated with the type of prescriber issuing it, for example, community practitioner nurse prescriber (formerly known as district nurse/health visitors) or nurse independent prescriber.

Forms annotated with the initials RD are repeat dispensing forms. Forms annotated with the initials RA are repeat authorisation forms.

Further information can be found on our Who can prescribe what? page.

FP10NC
  • GP
FP10HNC
  • Hospital Unit
Blue FP10MDA-SS
  • GP
  • Nurse Independent/Supplementary Prescriber
  • Independent Prescribers
  • Supplementary Prescribers
  • Hospital Unit

Prescriptions must be annotated with the type of prescriber issuing it.

Further information can be found on our pages Who can prescribe what? and Instalment Dispensing.

FP10MDA-S
  • GP
FP10MDA-SP
  • Independent Prescriber
  • Supplementary Prescribers
FP10HMDA
  • Hospital Unit
Yellow FP10D
  • Dentist

Only items listed in the Dental Formulary (Part XVIIA of the Drug Tariff) can be prescribed on this prescription form. Dentists are strongly advised to prescribe generically; however, they can prescribe by its brand equivalent name provided it is not listed in Part XVIIIA of the Drug Tariff (drugs, medicines and other substances that may not be ordered under the NHS).

Further information can be found on our Who can prescribe what? page.

Lilac FP10PN
  • Community Practitioner Nurse Prescriber
  • Nurse Independent/Supplementary Prescriber

Prescriptions must be annotated with the type of prescriber issuing it.

Unless annotated with Independent/Supplementary prescriber, only items listed in the nurse formulary can be prescribed on this prescription.

Further information can be found on our Who can prescribe what? page.

FP10P-REC are used by OOH providers to record items supplied directly to a patient and not dispensed through a community pharmacy. These forms, are submitted to Pricing Authority directly by the OOH provider through their own account.

FP10SP
  • Independent Prescriber
  • Supplementary Prescriber
FP10P-REC (Non-FP10 supply form) Out of Hours (OOH) Centre prescribers
White online FP10CDF Controlled Drug requisition form

The buff coloured FP10CDF Controlled Drug requisition form to obtain Schedule 2 and 3 Controlled Drugs for stock from a community pharmacy has been replaced with a new approved mandatory requisition form which is available from the NHSBSA website. Requisitions must be received on the new mandatory form.

Further information can be found on our Controlled Drug prescription forms and validity and Who can prescribe what? pages.

Pink FP10PCDSS Prescribers of Schedule 2 and 3 controlled drugs prescribed in the private sector where prescriptions are dispensed by community pharmacy

Prescriptions must be annotated with the type of prescriber issuing it.

Copies need to be sent to the Pricing Authority separately to NHS prescription forms at the end of the month for audit purposes. You will need a private dispensing code, which is separate to your normal OCS code, when you fill in the FP34PCD under A/C ID.

Further information can be found on our Controlled Drug prescription forms and validity and Who can prescribe what? pages.

FP10PCDNC

Click on a heading below to reveal more information.

Paper forms originating in Wales

Colour of paper form Paper form  Who can use or what they are used for Further information

Green

WP10
WP10SS
WP10SP
WP10HP
WP10HSP
  • GPs
  • Hospitals
  • Supplementary prescribers.
Forms annotated with the initials RD are repeat dispensing forms. Forms annotated with the initials RA are repeat authorisation forms.

Green

WP10D
  • Dentists in primary care
Only items listed in the dental formulary can be prescribed on this prescription.

Green

WP10CN
WP10PN
  • Nurse prescribers
Only items listed in the relevant formularies can be prescribed on this prescription.

Green

WP10MDA
WP10HP(AD)
Instalment dispensing prescription form. More information on can be found on our Instalment Dispensing page.

Paper forms originating in Scotland

Colour of paper form Paper form Who can use or what they are used for

Peach

GP10
GP10SS
  • GPs

Lilac

GP10(N)
  • Nurse prescribers

Yellow

GP14
  • Dentists

Blue

HBP
  • Issued in secondary care

Pink

HBP(A) Instalment dispensing prescription for drug addicts.

Paper forms originating in Northern Ireland

Colour of paper form Paper form  Who can use or what they are used for
Shaded Green and Pink HS21
HS21CS
  • GPs
Yellow HS21D
  • Dentists
Shaded Green and Pink HS21X HS21XCS Non-Medical Prescribers

  • Nurse Independent Supplementary Prescribers
  • Pharmacist Independent Supplementary Prescribers
  • Optometrists Independent Supplementary Prescribers
Shaded Green and Pink HS21N  HS21NCS
  • Community practitioner nurse prescribers

Please note – Instalment dispensing has no specific form type in Northern Ireland and can occur on HS21, HS21N, HS21X, SP1 & SP2 forms (SP1 & SP2 forms are used by Consultants in secondary care to provide substitute prescribing drugs in primary care, it would be unlikely for these forms to be presented to a pharmacy outside of Northern Ireland).

Paper forms originating in the Isle of Man

Colour of paper form Paper form Who can use or what they are used for

Pink

HS10
  • GPs
  • Dentists
  • Hospital prescribers

Blue

HS10MDA Instalment dispensing form.

Green (handwritten)

HS10
  • Nurse prescribers

Pink (computer-generated)

HS10
  • Nurse prescribers

Purple

HS10
  • Pharmacy prescribers

Pink

HS10SS
  • Hospital prescribers

Paper forms NOT eligible

Pharmacy contractors in England and Wales WILL NOT be reimbursed by the NHS for dispensing the following prescription forms:

Colour of paper form Paper form Reason for not dispensing

Pink

CP2/3 Generated as part of the Scottish Minor Ailment Service.

Buff

CPUS Community pharmacy urgent supply forms generated by Scottish pharmacies.

White

FMed296 Issued to service personnel (army). Should be dispensed in a barracks pharmacy.

Yellowish/ orange

FP10CDF/WP10DF Controlled Drug requisition form.

White

FP10L Drug testing scheme form.

Lilac

FP10PRec Used by out of hours centres.

Pink

GP10A Scottish GP stock order form.

Buff

GP10S Issued to Scottish service personnel.

Pink

GP10DTS Drug testing scheme in Scotland.

White

HOOF Used to order home oxygen from the NHS home oxygen service suppliers.

White

HS21S GP stock order form in Northern Ireland.

Yellow/ white

PS6 Issued by primary care prescribers in Guernsey.

Yellow/ white

H9 Issued by primary care prescribers in Jersey.

Pink

FP10PCD-SS
FP10PCD-NC
English private prescription for Controlled Drugs. Copies of these forms should be sent to the Pricing Authority each month for information purposes and not for reimbursement. More information is available in the Controlled Drug Guidance section of this site.

Pink

WP10PCD
WP10PCDSS
Welsh private prescription for Controlled Drugs. Copies of these forms should be sent to the Pricing Authority each month for information purposes and not for reimbursement. More information is available in the Controlled Drug Guidance section of this site.

Beige/ buff

PPCD(1) Scottish private prescription for Controlled Drugs. Copies of these forms should be sent to the Pricing Authority each month for information purposes and not for reimbursement. More information is available in the Controlled Drug Guidance section of this site.

Please refer to the prescription charges section of our website for guidance on whether forms originating elsewhere in the UK attract prescription charges or not.


Additional information

Click on a heading below to reveal more information.

Mixed prescriptions for HRT PPC

A regulatory package, the National Health Service (Amendments Relating to Pre-Payment Certificates, Hormone Replacement Therapy Treatments and Medicines Shortages) Regulations 2023, supports the introduction of the HRT PPC and was laid before Parliament on the 21 February 2023 coming into force on 1 April 2023. The package seeks to avoid such mixed prescriptions as follows:

  • First, mandating single item prescribing for Drug Tariff listed HRT medicines, so that one listed HRT medicine is prescribed on one prescription, and other non-HRT items are prescribed on separate prescriptions, and
  • Second, allowing contractors to refuse to dispense ‘mixed’ prescriptions – prescriptions for patients with an HRT PPC that contain both a listed HRT medicine and a non-HRT item – as well as allowing other options.

The change to the NHS (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013 allowing contractors to refuse to dispense a mixed prescription to a patient with an HRT PPC gives 3 options. Contractors may either:

  1. First, refuse to dispense a ‘mixed’ prescription presented by a patient – refuse to dispense both the listed HRT medicine and the other non-HRT item – and ask the patient to return to the GP for two separate prescriptions, or
  2. Second, either:
    – dispense the listed HRT medicine (the patient or the patient’s representative signing to claim the HRT PPC exemption), or
    – dispense the other non-HRT item(s) with the prescription charge(s) paid, or
    (This may be appropriate if the patient has an urgent clinical need for the listed HRT medicine or non-HRT item(s); the patient will need to obtain another prescription for any items not dispensed)
  3. Third, dispense both the listed HRT medicine and the non-HRT item(s) – and complete an FP57 refund form for the listed HRT medicine (there is a charge and refund for the HRT medicines, so no money changes hands – (see note below) and take a prescription charge for the non-HRT item(s).

The Department of Health and Social Care is advising pharmacies to refuse to dispense ‘mixed’ prescriptions to patients with an HRT PPC, unless the patient needs one or more of the prescription items urgently. This may be appropriate for pharmacy contractors due to the financial risks with processing ‘mixed’ prescriptions for patients with an HRT PPC.

Note: If the patient is in possession of a valid HRT PPC at the time of dispensing, then only charges for the non-HRT items should be collected and the FP57 form should be completed at the same time for the HRT medicines. This will avoid the need for the pharmacy to collect and refund charges for any HRT medicines supplied at the same dispensing episode. As the prescription is marked as ‘Paid’, the NHSBSA will deduct charges for all items (HRT and non-HRT) on the prescription and the pharmacy can re-claim the charges for the HRT medicines dispensed by declaring the number of FP57 forms submitted and total value of charges to reclaim via the end of month FP34C submission form on MYS.

For more information see our Community Pharmacy England Briefing 008/23: FAQs to support DHSC guidance on the new HRT prescription prepayment certificate (HRT PPC).

Overprint Specification for FP10SS Forms

The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations state that ‘prescription forms’ and ‘repeatable prescriptions’ must be in the format required by the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA).

These overprinting requirements specify the format required by the NHSBSA for all prescriber types printing FP10SS prescription forms.

The scope of the specification includes:

  • GP practices ‘parented’ by a Clinical Commissioning Group
  • Repeat Dispensing – a repeatable prescription form authorises a number of batch issue prescription forms which are to be produced at the same time.
  • Prescription forms dispensed by a Community Pharmacy, by an Internet Pharmacy, by an Appliance Contractor or by a Dispensing Doctor.

For the full specification click here.

Controlled Drug prescription paper forms

Prescriptions for Schedule 1, 2 and 3 Controlled Drugs have additional requirements and reduced periods of validity compared to prescriptions for other products. Please visit the Controlled Drug section of our website to find out more.

Bulk prescriptions

A separate prescription form should be issued for each individual patient; the only exception to this is ‘bulk prescriptions’.

Part VIIIA, Notes, Paragraph 9 of the Drug Tariff outlines the arrangements for bulk prescriptions:

A “Bulk” prescription is an order for two or more patients, bearing the name of a school or institution in which at least 20 persons normally reside, for the treatment of at least 10 of whom a particular doctor is responsible. Such a prescription must be an order for a drug which is prescribable under the NHS and which is not designated “Prescription Only Medicine” (POM) under Section 58(1) of the Medicines Act 1968, or for a prescribable dressing which does not contain a product which is designated POM.

No prescription charge is payable when a bulk prescription is dispensed.

Bar coded paper prescriptions

Details of dispensing electronic prescriptions can be found in this section of our website.

Prescriber cost centre codes

The Pricing Authority, when it prices prescriptions, must be able to identify the cost centre in order to recharge the costs to the appropriate area. Therefore, following the NHS re-organisation, a new requirement was introduced to ensure prescriptions contain a prescriber code.

More information on prescriber cost centre codes can be found on this webpage.

EPS prescriber type EPS codes

EPS prescriptions include prescriber type EPS codes that indicate the type of prescriber e.g. a General Practitioner (GP) or a Community practitioner nurse.

Read more at: EPS prescriber type code.


FAQs

Q. There has been an outbreak of scabies within a family. Rather than issuing one prescription per family member, the prescriber has ordered sufficient quantity of Permethrin 5% cream on one prescription to cover the whole family. Is this allowed?

No. Bulk prescription are not intended to cover situations such as these. The only exception to this rule is where the prescriber is responsible under their GMS contract for the treatment of 10 or more persons in a school or other institution in which at least 20 persons normally reside; and where the prescriber needs to prescribe for two or more of those persons for whose treatment the contractor is responsible. The prescription should bear the name of the school of institution concerned.

More information about bulk prescriptions can be found in Part VIIIA, Notes, Paragraph 9 of the Drug Tariff. A key point to note is that bulk prescriptions can only be issued for prescribable dressings and for medicines which are not classified as prescription only medicines.

Q. Is it legal for a GP to post-date prescriptions, say for 3 or 6 months, for a patient to retain and get dispensed when required?

Yes. According to The Human Medicines Regulations 2012, a prescription must be endorsed with an “appropriate date”, defined as “…the later of the date on which it was signed by the appropriate practitioner giving it or a date indicated by the appropriate practitioner as being the date before which it should not be dispensed (see Reg. 217 (7)).”

However, we suggest that the GP should give serious consideration to whether a repeatable prescription will be more appropriate, especially for those medicinal products which are suitable for repeat prescribing – repeatable prescriptions enable the pharmacist to make checks on whether the continued medication is appropriate for the patient, and are generally a preferred method than post-dating prescriptions.

Q. What key changes have been made to the Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services (PLPS) Regulations and related regulations following the introduction of the HRT PPC?

The PLPS Regulations have been amended so that dispensing contractors will be able to, but not be required to, refuse to supply items on a ‘mixed’ prescription where a charge exemption is being claimed based on the HRT PPC and a charge must be paid for the non-HRT item(s).

Regulations related to GPs have been amended to mandate that a listed HRT medicine must be prescribed on a separate NHS prescription to other items – that a prescriber must only order one prescription item on a prescription form or repeatable prescription that is used by the prescriber for ordering a listed HRT medicine.

Q. What are the issues with ‘mixed’ HRT prescriptions and why do prescribers need to issue separate prescriptions for listed HRT medicines?

NHSBSA and Patient Medical Record (PMR) systems are not designed to handle ‘mixed’ prescriptions, they are designed to handle paid (the patient pays a prescription charge) or (and this includes prescriptions subject to a PCC) exempt prescriptions. Free-of-charge items (contraceptives and STI treatment) are handled by zero-rating the medicines or prescriber endorsement and can be processed on paid prescriptions.

In some instances, a pharmacist may part-dispense or fully-dispense a ‘mixed’ prescription because a patient has an urgent need for either the HRT medicines or the non-HRT items, or both. If part-dispensed, the patient will then need to ask the prescriber to prescribe the item that was not dispensed on the ‘mixed’ prescription. If none of the items on a ‘mixed’ prescription are dispensed, the patient will need to ask the prescriber to issue separate prescriptions for HRT medicines and non-HRT items.

Risks for contractors dispensing or part dispensing ‘mixed’ prescriptions to a patient with an HRT PPC include deductions of a prescription charges from their remuneration where no charge was collected (which results in a financial loss to the pharmacy), or claiming an item as exempt where a prescription charge was collected (which results in an overpayment to the pharmacy and the additional work of dealing with NHS recovery of the overpayment, and the potential for serious allegations against the pharmacy).

Q. Am I in breach of the NHS Pharmacy Terms of Service if I refuse to dispense a ‘mixed’ prescription that contains a listed HRT medicine and other chargeable items to a patient with an HRT PPC?

No. This is one of the situations where a pharmacist may refuse to dispense a prescription, and this does not result in a breach of the NHS Pharmacy Terms of Service.


Related Resources

Human Medicines Regulations 2012

HRT Prescription Prepayment Certificates (PPCs)

The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013

Dispensing Factsheet: Is this item allowed

How long is a prescription valid for?

Controlled Drug prescription forms and validity

How to identify prescriber cost centre codes

Who can prescribe what?

What does the patient pay?

Prescription form section of the Pricing Authority’s website (external)

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