Medicines (Increasing the Period of Supply) Amendment Regulations 2025
2025/203
Medicines (Increasing the Period of Supply) Amendment Regulations 2025
Cindy Kiro, Governor-General
Order in Council
At Wellington this 22nd day of September 2025
Present:
Her Excellency the Governor-General in Council
These regulations are made under section 105 of the Medicines Act 1981—
(a)
on the advice and with the consent of the Executive Council; and
(b)
on the advice of the Minister of Health given after complying with that section.
Contents
Regulations
1 Title
These regulations are the Medicines (Increasing the Period of Supply) Amendment Regulations 2025.
2 Commencement
These regulations come into force on 1 February 2026.
3 Principal regulations
These regulations amend the Medicines Regulations 1984.
4 Regulation 39A amended (Limit on period of supply of prescription medicines)
(1)
Replace regulation 39A(1) with:
(1)
An authorised prescriber may not on any occasion prescribe for any patient a quantity of any prescription medicine that exceeds 12 months’ supply.
(2)
In regulation 39A(2)(a) and (b), replace “the period of supply in subclause (1)(a) or (b)”
with “12 months’ supply”
.
5 Regulation 42 amended (Dispensing of prescription medicines)
Replace regulation 42(3)(c) and (d) with:
(c)
a prescription for a medicine must not be dispensed for the first time after 3 months have elapsed from the date on which the prescription was issued or, if given under regulation 40A(1), communicated orally:
(d)
a prescription for a medicine must not be dispensed on any occasion after 12 months have elapsed from the date on which the prescription was issued or, if given under regulation 40A(1), communicated orally:
(da)
a prescription for a medicine must not, unless requested in accordance with authorisation under regulation 43(1)(c), be dispensed on any occasion in a quantity that exceeds—
(i)
6 months’ supply in the case of an oral contraceptive; or
(ii)
3 months’ supply in any other case:
6 Regulation 43 amended (Director-General may waive certain requirements)
After regulation 43(1)(b), insert:
(c)
authorise—
(i)
an authorised prescriber to request dispensing for any patient, or any specified class or classes of patients, a quantity of a prescription medicine exceeding the period of supply in regulation 42(3)(da)(i) or (ii):
(ii)
a class of authorised prescribers to request dispensing for any patient, or any specified class or classes of patients, a quantity of a prescription medicine exceeding the period of supply in regulation 42(3)(da)(i) or (ii).
Rachel Hayward,
Clerk of the Executive Council.
Explanatory note
This note is not part of the regulations but is intended to indicate their general effect.
These regulations, which come into force on 1 February 2026, amend the Medicines Regulations 1984 to extend the limit on the period of supply of all prescription medicines to 12 months. This is an increase from 6 months’ supply for an oral contraceptive and 3 months’ supply for all other prescribed medicines.
Despite the increase in the prescription supply limit, these regulations do not amend the quantity that a person authorised to dispense prescription medicines may dispense on any occasion. The quantity must not exceed 6 months’ supply for an oral contraceptive and 3 months’ supply for all other prescribed medicines. However, regulation 6 inserts a new power that allows the Director-General of Health to waive this dispensing limit at their discretion.
Under new regulation 42(3)(c), a prescribed medicine can only be dispensed for the first time if a patient presents the prescription within 3 months of the date on which it was issued.
Regulatory impact statement
The Ministry of Health produced a regulatory impact statement on 21 November 2024 to help inform the decisions taken by the Government relating to the contents of this instrument.
A copy of this regulatory impact statement can be found at—
Date of notification in Gazette: 25 September 2025.
These regulations are administered by the Ministry of Health.