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Europe · all countries · model C — Product-, indication- or hospital-gated

Medical cannabis in Portugal

Authorised products, any doctor, last-line

In Portugal any doctor may prescribe a cannabis preparation that holds an Infarmed marketing authorisation (ACM), but only after conventional treatments have failed or caused serious side effects and only for the seven indications on Infarmed's list; pharmacies dispense it under narcotics rules.

The hardest fact about Portugal. Access is real but small: Infarmed counted 5,413 prescriptions in the first half of 2026 across 16 authorised preparations from four companies, against 66,305 kg exported — Portugal grows cannabis for Europe far more than it treats its own patients with it.

Every answer below was read in the law, the register or the official statistic itself. This country is part of the Europe layer: an English page of verified facts, no directory. Where an answer is marked as not published, no official source states it — we did not fill the gap with a guess.

The questions, answered for Portugal

How access works here

The one-line answer: can a new patient start today, and through what.

Model C — access through Infarmed-authorised preparations, a fixed list of indications and a last-line rule; no private clinic or telemedicine market.

Lei n.Âș 33/2018 (18 July 2018) created the framework; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019 (15 January 2019) regulates it. Infarmed: prescription is limited « Ă s preparaçÔes e substĂąncias que tenham autorização de colocação no mercado (ACM) », « aos casos em que os tratamentos convencionais nĂŁo produziram os efeitos esperados » and « Ă s indicaçÔes terapĂȘuticas listadas na Deliberação n.Âș 11/CD/2019 ».

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

What may be prescribed

What the law allows a doctor to write on a prescription here.

Cannabis preparations and substances with an Infarmed ACM — 16 authorisations held by four companies (Tilray Portugal, Somaí, Portocanna, Ferraz Lynce) as of mid-2026, listed in the Infomed database — plus authorised medicines (Sativex, Epidyolex).

Infarmed's H1-2026 activity report counts 16 ACM authorisations and names the four holders; the individual products (dried flower, oils) are listed in Infomed. Preparations are « medicamentos, preparaçÔes e substùncias à base da planta da canåbis » under Lei 33/2018.

Source: Infarmed — CanĂĄbis Medicinal: Evolução da Atividade, 1.Âș semestre 2026 · read 27 September 2026

Who may prescribe

Whether you need a specialist, and whether anyone has to approve it first.

Any doctor (« qualquer médico pode prescrever »), but only when conventional treatments failed or caused relevant adverse effects, and only for the seven indications in Deliberação 11/CD/2019.

Indications (verbatim): espasticidade na esclerose mĂșltipla ou lesĂ”es da espinal medula; nĂĄuseas e vĂłmitos (quimioterapia, radioterapia, terapia HIV/hepatite C); estimulação do apetite em cuidados paliativos (oncologia, SIDA); dor crĂłnica (oncolĂłgica ou neuropĂĄtica); sĂ­ndrome de Gilles de la Tourette; epilepsia e transtornos convulsivos graves na infĂąncia (Dravet, Lennox-Gastaut); glaucoma resistente Ă  terapĂȘutica.

Source: Deliberação n.Âș 11/CD/2019 — lista das indicaçÔes terapĂȘuticas aprovadas (Infarmed, 31.01.2019) · read 27 September 2026

Type of prescription

The form itself: which prescription, how long it is valid, how much it covers.

A medical prescription; dispensing « segue as regras aplicĂĄveis aos medicamentos psicotrĂłpicos e estupefacientes » — the narcotics prescription regime.

Infarmed: « A dispensa destes produtos apenas pode ser realizada na farmĂĄcia mediante apresentação de receita mĂ©dica » and follows the psychotropic/narcotic rules (Decreto-Lei n.Âș 15/93, Decreto-Regulamentar n.Âș 61/94). Validity and quantity limits are those of the narcotics regime; not restated on the page.

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

Telemedicine

Whether a prescription can lawfully begin in a video call.

Not published

Not published. No official Portuguese rule specific to remote cannabis prescribing was found; general telemedicine and special-prescription rules apply.

Not published: neither INFARMED's rendered pages nor the (unreadable) law texts could be checked for a consultation-mode rule.

Source: INFARMED — CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais · read 27 September 2026

Reimbursement

Whether anyone other than you pays for it.

Not published

Not stated on Infarmed's pages; the price regime (Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) is a notified free price with Infarmed's right to object, which indicates self-pay rather than SNS reimbursement.

Infarmed: ACM holders notify the price via SiATS; Infarmed may object within 15 working days. No comparticipação rule is mentioned on the page; treat reimbursement as not published.

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

What it costs

What you pay, as far as anyone publishes it.

Not published

Prices are set by the ACM holders under Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019 and notified to Infarmed; no official public price list was found on the pages opened.

Price regime: « regime de preços das preparaçÔes e substĂąncias Ă  base da planta da canĂĄbis » — notification through SiATS, Infarmed may oppose. Actual pharmacy prices are not published by Infarmed.

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

Driving

The question with the worst consequences and the least reliable information online.

Portugal bans driving 'under the influence of psychotropic substances'; you are deemed under the influence if, after a roadside test and confirmatory analysis, a medical or expert report says so — there is no numeric THC limit and the Highway Code gives no exemption for prescribed medicines. Fine €500–€2,500 plus driving ban.

CĂłdigo da Estrada (Highway Code), art. 81.Âș: n.Âș 1 'É proibido conduzir sob influĂȘncia de ĂĄlcool ou de substĂąncias psicotrĂłpicas'; n.Âș 5: a driver is under the influence of psychotropic substances when, after examination under the Code and complementary legislation, they are 'como tal considerado em relatĂłrio mĂ©dico ou pericial'; n.Âș 6: fine €500 to €2,500 for psychotropic substances (same band as alcohol ≄0.8 g/l), a very serious offence carrying a driving ban. The testing procedure is set by Lei n.Âș 18/2007 (regulation of roadside testing), not opened in this session. The republished Code (ANSR, July 2026) contains no exemption for prescribed medicines.

Source: ANSR — Republicação do CĂłdigo da Estrada (Highway Code, consolidated, July 2026), art. 81.Âș · read 27 September 2026

Travel

Taking it across a border, which is where most published advice is simply wrong.

Not published

Portugal is in Schengen: a resident of another Schengen state may bring their own prescribed cannabis medicine with a Schengen Art. 75 certificate (max 30 days). The INFARMED page on travelling with narcotic medicines and the rule for non-Schengen travellers could not be opened in this session.

Not published here: no INFARMED or customs page on personal import of narcotic medicines was readable. Quantity/days for non-EU travellers therefore not stated.

Source: INFARMED — CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais (content not rendered) · read 27 September 2026

As a visitor or new resident

Four things nobody publishes together: getting a prescription as a non-resident, using a prescription from another EU country, bringing your own medicine in, and whether a foreign video consultation counts.

No Portuguese rule bars a non-resident from being prescribed an authorised preparation by a Portuguese doctor if the last-line and indication criteria are met; a cannabis prescription issued abroad falls under the narcotics regime and is not fillable in a Portuguese pharmacy; bringing your own medicine in follows Schengen Article 75 (30 days).

(1) Non-residents: not published — Lei 33/2018 / DL 8/2019 could not be opened; no residency condition is known. (2) Foreign EU prescriptions: Directive 2011/24/EU Art. 11(6) excludes medicinal products subject to special medical prescription; Portugal's transposition (Lei n.Âș 52/2014) could not be opened, so the Portuguese wording is not quoted — not published here. (3) Bringing medicine in: Schengen Art. 75 certificate (30 days) for Schengen residents; national rule for non-Schengen/non-EU travellers not published here. (4) Foreign telemedicine prescription: not dispensable, following from (2); no explicit official statement found.

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

What is changing

What is pending in parliament or at the regulator, with dates — or the statement that nothing is.

No pending change announced by Infarmed; the framework of 2018–2019 stands and the authorised product list grows by ACM decisions.

Infarmed's thematic page (legislation list unchanged: Lei 33/2018, DL 8/2019, Portaria 44-A/2019, Portaria 83/2021) and the H1-2026 report show activity growth, not regulatory change.

Source: Infarmed — « CanĂĄbis para fins medicinais » (Lei n.Âș 33/2018; Decreto-Lei n.Âș 8/2019; Portaria n.Âș 44-A/2019) · read 27 September 2026

Number of patients

How many people this actually concerns — where anyone counts.

Infarmed counted 5,413 prescriptions in the first half of 2026; it publishes no patient count. The same report lists 27 licensed cultivation and 24 manufacturing entities and 66,305 kg exported.

Infarmed, « CanĂĄbis Medicinal — Evolução da Atividade — 2026, 1.Âș semestre »: receitas 5.413; ACM 16; exportaçÔes 66.305 kg; entidades licenciadas cultivo 27, fabrico 24; inspeçÔes 32.

Source: Infarmed — CanĂĄbis Medicinal: Evolução da Atividade, 1.Âș semestre 2026 · read 27 September 2026

What we can publish for Portugal, and what we cannot

Four directories, four honest answers. Where an official register exists we republish it and link every entry back to the source. Where none exists, that is what the page says — a list built out of self-declarations would be worse than no list, and saying so is more useful to you than pretending.

Doctors

No list — by design

Any doctor may prescribe; no register of prescribers exists.

Pharmacies

No list — by design

Any community pharmacy may dispense against a prescription; no register marks which stock cannabis preparations.

Products and preparations

Register exists — not yet published

Infarmed's Infomed database lists every preparation with an ACM (16 authorisations, four holders); a product directory can be built from it.

Register: Infomed — base de dados de medicamentos (Infarmed) · read 27 September 2026

An official register covers this, so a verified list is possible here — we have not built it yet, and this page will say so until we have.

Telemedicine platforms

No list — by design

No telemedicine cannabis market; the pathway is last-line prescribing by the treating doctor.

Where this country's law lives

Everything above comes from these texts rather than from another portal's summary. They are listed so you can check us.

Crossing a border with this

Two European rules decide most of what a traveller asks. Directive 2011/24/EU obliges pharmacies to honour prescriptions from another Member State — but only for medicines authorised in the dispensing country, and its Article 11(6) says the rule “shall not apply to medicinal products subject to special medical prescription”, which is where narcotic prescriptions sit. A magistral cannabis preparation is neither authorised nor outside that exclusion, so a cannabis prescription from another country is, as a rule, not dispensable anywhere in Europe. For carrying your own medicine, Article 75 of the Schengen Convention lets a resident of a Schengen state travel with a certified supply for up to 30 days; outside Schengen, national import rules apply. The country-specific answer is above under “As a visitor or new resident”.

Directive 2011/24/EU, Article 11(1) and 11(6) — read on EUR-Lex on 27 September 2026: CELEX 32011L0024.

Other countries with the same model (product-, indication- or hospital-gated)

The answers change at every border, and a prescription does not travel with you. Compare before you assume.