Contraception
Organic Law 2/2010 and its 2023 reform make contraception a service of the National Health System: the common basket includes hormonal methods on prescription (funded with a user co-payment), the IUD and the implant (fitted free in the public system), tubal ligation and vasectomy. The emergency pill has been sold without prescription since 2009 and the 2023 law obliges health and sexual-health centres to dispense it free. The Patient Autonomy Law sets the age of medical decision at 16. The condom is the most used method in Spain, followed by the pill; the IUD is growing.
British residents registered with the Spanish health service get contraception much as at home: free consultation at the health centre, prescription pill with a small co-payment (free for pensioners on low income), IUD and implant fitted free, emergency pill without prescription. Spanish pharmacies also sell many contraceptive pills without insisting on a prescription in practice, though one is legally required, and pharmacists will identify the local brand equivalent of a UK product from its active ingredients.
Visitors and residents without a health card pay: a private gynaecologist (60 to 120 euros) or a private clinic, and the pill at full price (10 to 20 euros a month). The UK GHIC covers necessary treatment during a temporary stay, which includes emergency contraception at a public centre but not routine prescriptions.
Key points
| Prescription | Required for hormonal methods; emergency pill and condoms without prescription |
|---|---|
| Coverage | Pills, patches and rings partly funded (co-payment of 40 % or less, free for low incomes); IUD and implant free in the public system |
| Emergency pill | Without prescription in pharmacies (15-25 euros); free at public centres since 2023 |
| Minors | From 16 they decide alone; before, the doctor's assessment of maturity |
| Sterilisation | Tubal ligation and vasectomy covered, no legal minimum age beyond majority; waits of over a year in the public system |
| Condoms | Free at many sexual-health centres and regional campaigns; freely sold |
| Use | The condom is the most used method in Spain, followed by the pill; the IUD is growing |
In practice
- Book at the health centre or a sexual and reproductive health centre: consultation and prescription are free; the first prescription is usually preceded by a blood-pressure check and a medical history.
- The electronic prescription lets you collect the contraceptive for a year at any pharmacy in Spain.
- IUD and implant are fitted at the health centre or hospital, with waiting times that vary by region.
- The emergency pill is requested directly from the pharmacist, without justification; A&E departments also provide it.
- A UK prescription is not valid in Spain, but pharmacists match products by active ingredient (levonorgestrel, desogestrel, drospirenone…) and often supply the pill without a prescription; bring the box or the patient leaflet.
Cost and coverage
Funded pill: 2 to 10 euros a month depending on the product and the co-payment; non-funded ones, 10 to 20 euros. IUD and implant free in the public system; privately, 150 to 400 euros. Emergency pill: free at public centres, 15-25 euros in pharmacies. Private gynaecologist 60 to 120 euros.
Recent changes
The 2023 law introduced free emergency contraception at public centres and free menstrual products in social centres and prisons; several regions already fund 100 % of contraception for women under 25.
Where to go
- Health centres and sexual and reproductive health centres (former family-planning centres) of each region.
- State Federation of Family Planning: information and addresses.
- Pharmacies: emergency pill without prescription.
- Spanish Contraception Society (sec.es): guide to methods for the public.
Worth knowing
Funding depends on the product: two almost identical pills may be one funded and the other not. Ask the doctor for a funded contraceptive if price matters; the electronic prescription shows it. And note the age of decision: 16 in Spain, as in the UK — with the emergency pill available to anyone at any age without prescription.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get my usual UK pill in Spain?
Almost always, under a different brand name: Spanish pharmacies stock the same molecules and the pharmacist will match it from the active ingredients on your box or leaflet. Legally a Spanish prescription is needed, obtained free at the health centre if you are registered, or from a private doctor; in practice many pharmacies supply a familiar pill without one.
Is the morning-after pill available to visitors?
Yes, without prescription at any pharmacy for 15 to 25 euros, or free at public health centres and A&E — the GHIC covers it as necessary care during a stay. Levonorgestrel within 72 hours, ulipristal within 120 hours; the sooner the better.
Are sterilisations done in the public system?
Yes, tubal ligation and vasectomy are in the public basket for adults, with informed consent and no legal reflection period, but waiting lists often exceed a year; private clinics do a vasectomy for 400 to 800 euros. British residents registered with the Spanish system are entitled to it.
Sources
- Sexual and reproductive health (Ministry of Health) — Women's Health Observatory
- Organic Law 1/2023 (reform of Organic Law 2/2010) — BOE
- Spanish Contraception Society — guides and methods
The general article: Contraception · Compare with another country
Abortion
Abortion on request up to 14 weeks, free in the public health system, without parental consent from 16 and without a reflection period since 2023; up to 22 weeks for serious risk to health or fetal anomalies; available to any woman in Spain, including tourists and undocumented residents; three quarters are performed in accredited private clinics.
| Time limit | Up to week 14 of gestation, on request, without justification |
|---|---|
| Up to week 22 | Serious risk to the woman's life or health, or serious fetal anomalies, with a medical opinion |
| No limit | Fetal anomalies incompatible with life or extremely serious incurable disease, with a clinical committee's opinion |
Full detail: Abortion
Drugs and controlled substances
Consumption and possession in private are not offences, but consumption or possession in a public place is a serious administrative infraction with a fine of 601 to 30,000 euros (Citizen Security Law); trafficking carries 3 to 6 years; private home-growing and cannabis social clubs live in a grey area; alcohol is sold from 18 and the drink-driving limit is 0.5 g/l (0.3 for new and professional drivers), a criminal offence from 1.2 g/l — stricter than the UK's 0.8.
The Penal Code punishes trafficking and cultivation for trafficking (article 368: 3 to 6 years for drugs causing serious harm to health, 1 to 3 for the others such as cannabis, with a reduction for minor cases and aggravations up to 9 years), not consumption or possession for personal use. Organic Law 4/2015 on Citizen Security (article 36.16) makes consumption or possession of drugs in public places, and abandoning paraphernalia, a serious infraction with a fine of 601 to 30,000 euros (usually 601), suspended for minors who follow treatment; cultivation visible from the public highway as well. Private home-growing for personal use is not an offence according to Supreme Court case law, and cannabis social clubs, tolerated in Catalonia and the Basque Country, were held to be trafficking by the Supreme Court when they go beyond shared consumption by a closed group (2015 and 2017 judgments). Medical cannabis was authorised in 2025 (Royal Decree on standardised preparations dispensed in hospital pharmacies). Alcohol may not be sold to under-18s; the drink-driving limit is 0.5 g/l in blood (0.25 mg/l in breath), 0.3 g/l for new and professional drivers (infraction with 500 to 1,000 euros and 4 to 6 points), and an offence from 1.2 g/l in blood (0.60 mg/l in breath) or with signs of impairment (article 379: 3 to 6 months' imprisonment or a fine, and disqualification of 1 to 4 years); driving under the influence of drugs is an infraction with 1,000 euros and 6 points, an offence when impaired.
For British visitors and residents the differences with UK law are practical rather than moral. Personal use is decriminalised in private — there is no equivalent of the UK's possession offence for a joint at home — but the street, the beach, the car and the club terrace are 'public places' where the 601-euro fine is systematic, and the police confiscate. Cannabis social clubs in Barcelona are not legal shops: membership schemes sold to tourists have led to prosecutions of the clubs, not usually of the visitors, but the club product can be seized.
Drink-driving is where Britons most often fall foul of Spanish law: the limit is 0.5 g/l (roughly 0.25 mg per litre of breath) against 0.8 g/l in England and Wales — two glasses of wine can be enough — and 0.3 for drivers with under two years' licence. Random checks are common, fines start at 500 euros with points, and from 1.2 g/l it is a criminal offence tried in a fast-track court, with a driving ban that Spain now notifies to the DVLA under the 2023 UK-Spain licence agreement. A British driver resident in Spain must exchange his licence for a Spanish one; the exchange agreement has been in force since March 2023.
Key points
| Private consumption and possession | Not an offence nor an infraction |
|---|---|
| Consumption or possession in public | Serious infraction: 601 to 30,000 euros (Organic Law 4/2015, article 36.16); suspended for minors in treatment |
| Trafficking | 1 to 3 years (cannabis), 3 to 6 (cocaine, heroin, MDMA…), up to 9 with aggravating factors (article 368) |
| Home-growing and clubs | Private growing for own use not an offence; clubs tolerated if closed shared consumption, trafficking otherwise (Supreme Court) |
| Medical cannabis | Standardised preparations in hospital pharmacies since 2025 |
| Alcohol | No sale to under-18s; drink-driving 0.5 g/l (0.3 for new and professional drivers); offence from 1.2 g/l or when impaired |
| Figures | 10 % of adults used cannabis in the last year; 1,200 deaths a year from acute reactions; alcohol causes 15,000 deaths (Spanish Observatory on Drugs) |
In practice
- Smoking in the street, in a park or in a car exposes you to the 601-euro fine and confiscation; at home or on private premises there is no penalty, but cultivation visible from outside is punished. Fines are notified by post, including to UK addresses, and unpaid fines block dealings with the Spanish administration.
- At a roadside check with a blood alcohol level between 0.5 and 1.2 g/l the penalty is administrative (fine and points); from 1.2 or with obvious symptoms it is an offence with a fast-track trial and disqualification; a UK licence holder is disqualified from driving in Spain and the ban is reported to the DVLA.
- Energy Control (energycontrol.org) tests substances anonymously by post and at festivals; supervised consumption rooms exist in Barcelona and Bilbao.
- If drug-facilitated assault is suspected (sudden dizziness, amnesia), go to A&E within 12 hours for toxicology tests; 016 and the crisis centres help — Magaluf, Benidorm and Ibiza see cases every summer.
- Addiction treatment is free in the public network (regional addiction centres) for residents; 900 161 515 gives information; a British national arrested for trafficking should contact the consulate, which provides lists of lawyers and prison visits but cannot intervene in the proceedings.
Cost and coverage
Minimum fine of 601 euros for public consumption; treatment free in the public network; substance testing free or by donation; drink-driving fines 500 to 1,000 euros plus points, and criminal penalties from 1.2 g/l.
Recent changes
Medical cannabis was regulated in 2025 after years of debate; the 2021-2024 Action Plan on Addictions is under evaluation; overdose deaths are stable; cannabis social clubs still have no law despite proposals, and Catalonia's and Navarre's association laws were partly annulled by the Constitutional Court. The UK-Spain driving licence exchange agreement has applied since March 2023.
Where to go
- Addiction care centres of each autonomous community (free).
- 900 161 515: drug information (Fundación de Ayuda contra la Drogadicción); Talk to Frank in the UK.
- Energy Control: substance testing and harm reduction.
- National Plan on Drugs (pnsd.sanidad.gob.es): official information; British consulates for arrested nationals.
Worth knowing
Spain is not a country of free cannabis: the street is the limit. The 601-euro fine for a joint in a park is systematic, and a social club can be trafficking if it sells to whoever walks in. And the 0.5 g/l drink-driving limit — 0.3 with under two years' licence — is reached with two drinks: a British driver used to 0.8 is over the Spanish limit long before he feels it.
Frequently asked questions
Can I legally buy cannabis in a Barcelona 'club'?
No. Cannabis social clubs are tolerated only as closed associations of established residents sharing their own cultivation; the Supreme Court treats clubs that recruit members on the street or sell to tourists as trafficking. As a visitor you risk confiscation and, if caught with the product outside, the 601-euro fine; the club's organisers risk prison. There are no legal cannabis shops in Spain.
What is the drink-driving limit for British drivers in Spain?
0.5 grams per litre of blood (0.25 mg per litre of breath) for everyone, 0.3 g/l for drivers with less than two years' licence and for professionals — about two-thirds of the UK limit of 0.8. Between 0.5 and 1.2 it is an administrative offence (500 to 1,000 euros, 4 to 6 points, and the car is immobilised until a sober driver takes it); from 1.2 or when impaired it is a crime with a possible prison sentence and a ban of one to four years, notified to the DVLA.
What happens to a British tourist caught with a small amount of cocaine?
In a public place: an administrative fine of at least 601 euros and confiscation, no criminal record, provided the quantity is compatible with personal use (Spanish police use guideline thresholds — a few grams). Larger quantities, packaging in doses or scales point to trafficking, a crime of 3 to 6 years for cocaine, with pre-trial detention likely for a non-resident. The consulate can provide a list of lawyers and inform the family, not obtain release.
Sources
- Organic Law 4/2015 on citizen security — article 36.16 — BOE
- Penal Code — articles 368-378 (drug trafficking) and 379 (driving under the influence) — consolidated text
- GOV.UK — Spain travel advice: laws and drink-driving limits — Foreign Office
The general article: Drugs and controlled substances · Compare with another country
General sources
- Administración General del Estado — administracion.gob.es — official portal of Spanish public services, with pages in English
- Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE) — Spanish legislation, official and consolidated texts
- British Consulates in Spain — gov.uk — living in Spain guide, consular help, lists of English-speaking lawyers