What is a CPR number, and when do I get one?
The CPR number is the Danish personal registration number that every resident receives when registering with the municipality, and it is the key to the health card, your GP, tax and most public services.
You apply for the CPR number at the municipal citizen service (Borgerservice) or an International Citizen Service once you have a residence address in Denmark and, for citizens from outside the Nordic countries, the required registration certificate or residence permit. With the CPR number you are assigned a GP and receive the yellow health card. The rules are described on lifeindenmark.borger.dk.
For medicine the CPR number is central. When a Danish doctor issues an electronic prescription, it is stored on your CPR number in the shared prescription system, and it also appears in your Shared Medication Record (Det Fælles Medicinkort, FMK). The pharmacist looks the prescription up on your CPR number, so you never carry a paper prescription.
What is MitID, and do I need it for a doctor?
MitID is the Danish digital ID used to log in to public websites, banks and many private services; you need it to read your own health records online, but not to consult a doctor.
MitID requires a CPR number, and you get it at the citizen service or through the MitID app with a passport. Once you have it, you can log in to sundhed.dk and the Medicinkortet app to see your prescriptions, book your GP online and read test results.
Recepta does not use MitID for booking. You fill in your full name, e-mail and mobile number, the doctor confirms your identity during the phone or video consultation, and your CPR number is not typed into the form. Booking and payment are in English on the English front page.
Can I see a doctor in Denmark before I have a CPR number?
Yes: emergency care is open to everyone, private clinics and online doctors can consult you without a CPR number, and visitors from the EU can use the European Health Insurance Card for necessary public treatment.
Until you are registered you are not assigned a GP, so routine care runs through private options. An online consultation is possible without a CPR number, and at Recepta it is free, so you can get advice on whether treatment is suitable. The limitation comes at the pharmacy: a Danish e-prescription is issued on a CPR number, so before you have one, write to kontakt@recepta.dk, describe your situation, and the doctor will tell you what is possible.
In an emergency call 112. For other acute illness contact the out-of-hours doctor service (lægevagten); in the Capital Region the number is 1813, and other regions have their own numbers.
How do I collect a prescription in Denmark with my CPR number?
Show the pharmacist your health card or state your CPR number, and the pharmacy finds the electronic prescription and dispenses the medicine against payment.
You do not need to choose a pharmacy in advance, because the prescription is stored centrally. Any Danish pharmacy can dispense it, usually the same day or the next, depending on stock, and registered Danish online pharmacies can send it to you. Prescription medicine costs the same at every pharmacy in Denmark, and the price is set every 14 days.
There is no public subsidy for weight loss, erectile dysfunction or hair loss medicine, so you pay the full pharmacy price. For medicine that does qualify for public reimbursement, the reimbursement is calculated automatically at the pharmacy on your CPR number. See how Danish e-prescriptions work.
What does Recepta need from me, and what does it not?
Recepta needs your name, e-mail, mobile number and a payment card to book, your CPR number when the doctor issues the e-prescription, and nothing from MitID.
- To book: full name, e-mail address and mobile number. The doctor confirms your identity in the call.
- To pay: a payment card. The consultation is free, the first 4 weeks cost DKK 0, and you only pay once the doctor has approved treatment.
- For the prescription: your CPR number, so the pharmacy can find the e-prescription.
- Not needed: MitID, a referral from your GP, or a visit to a clinic.
Prices after the first 4 weeks: weight loss DKK 138 per 4 weeks with a 1-year membership (DKK 1,799 per year) or DKK 199 without binding; erectile dysfunction DKK 69 (DKK 897 per year) or DKK 149; hair loss DKK 119 (DKK 1,549 per year) or DKK 169. Medicine is paid separately at the pharmacy, and there is no start-up fee.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get a prescription in Denmark without a CPR number?
Can I book a doctor without MitID?
Is my European Health Insurance Card enough at a Danish pharmacy?
I have a tax number from the Danish Tax Agency. Is that a CPR number?
Where do I see my prescriptions?
Does Recepta store my CPR number?
Sources
- lifeindenmark.borger.dk: Registering in Denmark, the CPR number, the health insurance card and choosing a general practitioner.
- borger.dk: MitID, the Danish digital ID: who can get it and how it is issued.
- Danish Health Data Authority (Sundhedsdatastyrelsen): The Shared Medication Record (FMK) and the prescription server. Electronic prescriptions can be collected at any Danish pharmacy.
- Danish Tax Agency (Skattestyrelsen): Tax personal number for people who work in Denmark without being registered as residents.
- Danish Patient Safety Authority (Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed): The register of treatment sites and the authorisation register.
This page is health information and does not replace a medical assessment. Recepta does not sell medicine; prescription medicine is only dispensed after an individual assessment by a doctor and is bought at the pharmacy.