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Cards & Healthcare Schemes

Medical card or GP visit card: what each one covers

Both cards give free GP visits, including out-of-hours services. The medical card goes further: prescribed medicines for a small charge, public hospital in-patient and out-patient services, and dental, eye and ear checks. The GP visit card covers nothing beyond the GP, but its income limits are more than double the medical card’s.[1][2][5][7]

Sources checked 24 September 2026. Next editorial check planned for 24 March 2027. Republic of Ireland only; Northern Ireland has different schemes. General information, not medical, legal or financial advice.

Lifford Health Centre, Co. Donegal: single-storey HSE health centre exterior with one parked car
Photo: Kenneth Allen, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Who this is for

  • Anyone deciding which card to apply for, or wondering why they were given a GP visit card after applying for a medical card.[10]
  • Card holders checking what their GP, pharmacy, hospital or dentist should charge.[1][8]

What each card covers

Medical card

GP visits and GP out-of-hours services
Free.
Diabetes Cycle of Care
Covered.
Routine blood tests
Should be free; a GP may charge if they consider a test not routine or not needed for your condition.
Prescribed medicines
Covered, with a prescription charge of €1.50 per item (max €15 a month) under 70, or €1 per item (max €10) at 70 or over. HRT is free with no charge.
Public hospital in-patient and out-patient services, medical appliances
Covered.
Emergency department without a GP referral
No charge.
Injury unit
No charge.
Dental checks, eye tests and ear tests
Covered.
Reduced USC
Yes, for full medical card holders earning €60,000 or less a year, extended to 31 December 2027.

GP visit card

GP visits and GP out-of-hours services
Free.
Diabetes Cycle of Care
Covered.
Routine blood tests
Not listed as covered.
Prescribed medicines
Not covered; you pay, subject to the €80 monthly cap if you hold a DPS card.
Public hospital in-patient and out-patient services, medical appliances
Not covered.
Emergency department without a GP referral
€100; the card is not on the exemption list.
Injury unit
€75 unless you have a GP referral letter.
Dental checks, eye tests and ear tests
Not covered (PRSI Treatment Benefit is a separate route).
Reduced USC
No.

What the GP must and need not provide

With either card your doctor must treat you the same way as private patients.[8] A GP with medical card patients must provide or arrange emergency cover for them, and many practices run a rota with other doctors for out-of-hours cover for both card types.[8] Three things a GP does not have to provide free even with a card: eye tests for a driving licence, reports for life assurance, and medical certificates for absence from work.[8]

Income limits compared

Under 70 both cards are assessed on household income after tax, PRSI and USC, with certain expenses deducted.[6] The weekly basic rates the HSE publishes are €184 (medical card, single living alone under 66) against €418 for the GP visit card; €164 against €373 for a single person living with family; and €266.50 against €607 for a couple or single parent. Child additions are €38 against €57 for each of the first two children under 16, and €78 against €117 for a dependant in full-time third-level education without a grant.[5][7][9] If your income is above the medical card limit the HSE automatically assesses you for the GP visit card.[9][1]

At 70 or over the medical card test is on gross income: €550 a week single, €1,050 for a couple, assessed on the age of the older person. A couple with one person 70 or older and combined gross income above €1,050 but not more than €1,400 both get a GP visit card.[4][11] Above the limits, the HSE can still grant a discretionary medical card or GP visit card if medical bills would cause financial hardship.[7]

Income the HSE does not count under 70 includes Child Benefit, Working Family Payment, Carer’s Allowance, Domiciliary Care Allowance, Guardian’s Payments, Supplementary Welfare Allowance supplements, Fuel, Island, Living Alone and Over 80 Allowances, third-level maintenance grants and Foster Care Allowance.[9] If your only income is from social welfare or HSE payments you get a medical card even above the limits.[9]

Who gets a card without a means test

Children under 8, everyone over 70, and people on Carer’s Allowance or Carer’s Benefit get a GP visit card with no means test, but still face the means test for a medical card.[10] A medical card without a means test goes to people with EU entitlement, children under 18 diagnosed with cancer in the last five years, international protection applicants getting the Daily Expenses Allowance, people affected by Thalidomide, children in foster or residential care, women who had a symphysiotomy, women resident in certain institutions, and children whose parents get Domiciliary Care Allowance. Everyone in these groups still has to apply or register.[1][11]

One application covers both

There is no separate GP visit card form for people under 70. The HSE’s online service at mymedicalcard.ie and paper form MC1 are titled for both cards, and the HSE assesses you for a medical card first, then automatically for a GP visit card if you do not qualify.[13][1] Under-8s, over-70s and carers register for their GP visit card through separate HSE routes: see how to apply for a GP visit card. If you have a medical card, you do not need a GP visit card.[2]

Hospital charges: public in-patient and day service fees were abolished on 17 April 2023 for everyone. The emergency department charge of €100 applies only without a GP referral, and medical card holders are exempt.[12]

Common questions

I applied for a medical card and got a GP visit card. Why?
Your income was above the medical card limit but within the GP visit card limit, which is higher. The HSE assesses every application for the medical card first and then for the GP visit card.
Are medicines free with a medical card?
Most prescribed medicines are covered, but a prescription charge applies: €1.50 per item up to €15 a month under 70, €1 per item up to €10 a month at 70 or over. The HSE refunds amounts paid over the monthly limit, in refunds of €30 or more. HRT, Long Term Illness Scheme items and children in HSE care are exempt.
Does the GP visit card help with medicine costs?
No. You pay for medicines, but a Drugs Payment Scheme card caps what a family pays at €80 in a calendar month.
Does either card cover dental treatment?
The medical card covers dental checks, eye tests and ear tests. The GP visit card does not. People with PRSI contributions can use Treatment Benefit for a yearly dental examination regardless of which card they hold.

Official application

Apply for either card on mymedicalcard.ie

One application on the HSE’s own service assesses you for the medical card and then the GP visit card. FairCare does not collect any details.

Find services on FairCare

A listing here does not mean the provider takes part in any scheme described in this guide. Check with the provider.

Sources

  1. [1] HSE: What the medical card covers (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  2. [2] HSE: GP visit cards (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  3. [3] HSE: Prescription charges (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  4. [4] HSE: Medical card for people over 70 (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  5. [5] HSE: GP visit card for people aged 8 to 69 (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  6. [6] HSE: Medical card assessment (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  7. [7] HSE: How much you can earn (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
  8. [8] Citizens Information: GP services to medical card and GP visit card holders, page dated 2025-10-09
  9. [9] Citizens Information: Medical card means test for people under 70, page dated 2024-10-04
  10. [10] Citizens Information: GP visit cards, page dated 2026-07-16
  11. [11] Citizens Information: Medical cards, page dated 2026-07-16
  12. [12] Citizens Information: Hospital charges, page dated 2026
  13. [13] HSE: Apply for a medical card (undated page, read 24 September 2026)
Figures in this guide that change
  • Prescription charge with a medical card: €1.50 per item up to €15 a month under 70; €1 per item up to €10 a month at 70 or over (source [3])
  • Medical card, single living alone under 66: €184 a week net (source [7])
  • GP visit card, single living alone under 70: €418 a week net (source [5])
  • Medical card at 70 or over: €550 a week gross single; €1,050 couple (source [4])
  • Emergency department without a GP referral: €100, waived for medical card holders (not GP visit card holders) (source [12])