For suppliers: register your retailer
Anyone wishing to legally offer and trade in veterinary medicinal products via a website, must be registered in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products. It does not matter whether such trade concerns veterinary medicinal products that are freely available without a veterinary prescription (VRIJ category) or products subject to a veterinary prescription (URA category). URA stands for ‘Only available from a veterinarian or with a veterinary prescription from a veterinarian from a pharmacy or a licenced supplier’. Offering veterinary medicinal products subject to a veterinary prescription of the URA category is only permitted in the Netherlands and requires a DR licence. Other veterinary medicinal products subject to a veterinary prescription may not be offered via the internet.
Inclusion in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products
You may sell veterinary medicinal products via the internet if you are a retailer of veterinary medicinal products and if you are registered in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products. You are not permitted to sell veterinary medicinal products online if you are not registered in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products.
If you are a retailer of veterinary medicinal products and wish to register for inclusion in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products, then please register here.
Retailers of veterinary medicinal products
You are a retailer of veterinary medicinal products if:
You hold a so-called D or DR licence
If you hold a D licence you may offer non-prescription veterinary medicinal products of the VRIJ category intended for food-producing animals.
If you hold a DR licence you may offer veterinary medicinal products subject to a prescription from a veterinarian of the URA category. These URA veterinary medicinal products may only be offered in the Netherlands and exclusively subject to a veterinary prescription.
If you are a veterinarian or pharmacist
Under certain conditions, veterinarians and pharmacists automatically hold a DR licence by operation of law in accordance with Article 4.3 of the Veterinary Medicines Decree 2022. You can read more about these conditions in the Q&A about internet trade in veterinary medicinal products.
If you are a retailer who only trades in non-prescription veterinary medicinal products intended for non-food-producing animals
Under Section 4.2(5) of the Veterinary Medicinal Products Decree 2022, retailers of non-prescription veterinary medicinal products of the VRIJ category intended for non-food-producing animals do not require a retail licence. You must, however, register for inclusion in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products.
Laws and regulations
The following laws and regulations apply to the online sale of veterinary medicinal products. These laws and regulations have additionally been translated into the Terms of Use for Internet trade in veterinary medicinal products.
Terms of Use for Internet trade in veterinary medicinal products
The online sale of veterinary medicinal products is subject to various requirements. The key conditions are outlined in the Terms of Use for Internet trade in veterinary medicinal products however, there are a number of additional requirements.
The Terms of Use for Internet trade in veterinary medicinal products are based on Article 104(1) of the Veterinary medicinal Products Regulation. The Terms of Use state that you must comply with both the Veterinary Medicinal Products Regulation and national laws and regulations in order to be able to sell veterinary medicinal products online. The Terms of Use for Internet trade in veterinary medicinal products are a summary of the most important rules that apply to the sale of veterinary medicinal products.
You will only be included in the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products if you are a retailer of veterinary medicinal products. After registration in the register, you will be expected to observe the relevant requirements and act accordingly. The Veterinary Medicinal Products Unit and the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) may carry out compliance checks.
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The Terms of Use for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products have been extended by 1 point as of 13 February 2023. This concerns point 26. This states that the online sale of veterinary medicines in the UDA and UDD category is not permitted. The ban on the online sale of these veterinary medicines already existed, but this has been emphasized even more by adjusting the user conditions. |
The logo
After you have registered for the Register for internet trade in veterinary medicinal products, you must display the common logo shown below (hereinafter: the logo) on every page of the website that relates to the offer for sale of veterinary medicinal products. You will be able to choose one of two options.
This will allow consumers to check whether your website is trading in veterinary medicinal products legally. Please find more information about the correct use of the logo here.
Additional information
If you have any questions about online trade in veterinary medicinal products in The Netherlands, please contact the Veterinary Medicinal Products Unit via the contact form for veterinary medicines online.
Please find more information on the website of the EMA on internet trade: Buying veterinary medicines online.