Portugal Prices the Pharmacy Flu and Covid Shot at 3.15 Euros, With a 7.6 Million Euro Ceiling on What It Will Pay

Portugal has set the price of this winter's flu and Covid-19 shot at the pharmacy counter, and it is 3.15 euros. Not for you: for the pharmacy. Portaria n.º 376/2026/1, published in the Diário da República (Official Gazette) on Tuesday, fixes what the state pays a community pharmacy for each dose it administers in the autumn and winter campaign of 2026 to 2027. The vaccines themselves are supplied by the Ministry of Health, and for the eligible public they remain free.

How the payment works

The 3.15 euros is exempt from VAT and is earned only when the administration is logged on the Plataforma Nacional de Registo e Gestão da Vacinação, the national vaccination register known as VACINAS, with the batch number of the dose given.

Pharmacies total their own figures monthly. SPMS, the health ministry's shared services company, checks them through the Centro de Controlo e Monitorização do SNS (National Health Service Control and Monitoring Centre). The money sits in the budget of the Administração Central do Sistema de Saúde (Central Health System Administration), which transfers it to the local health units, and they pay the pharmacies on the same terms as ordinary medicine reimbursements. It was signed by finance minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento and health minister Ana Paula Martins, and takes effect immediately.

The arithmetic of the ceiling

A separate diploma in July set the model for this campaign and capped the pharmacy channel's budget impact at 7.6 million euros, the same envelope as last year.

At 3.15 euros a dose, 7.6 million buys roughly 2.4 million administrations. Last winter, pharmacies gave more than 1.1 million flu vaccines and about 631,000 against Covid-19, so around 1.73 million in total. The ceiling therefore carries close to 40 percent of headroom above what the channel actually delivered, which suggests the government expects pharmacy vaccination to keep growing rather than plateau.

It already carries a remarkable share. Nationally, more than 2.5 million people were vaccinated against flu last season and more than 1.3 million against Covid-19. Pharmacies accounted for roughly 44 percent of the flu doses and 48 percent of the Covid-19 doses, from 2,585 participating premises alongside about 1,000 primary care units. The campaign ran from 23 September 2025 to 30 April 2026 across some 3,500 vaccination points.

What this means if you live here

• You will not be charged 3.15 euros. This is a state-to-pharmacy fee, not a user charge. For those in the eligible groups the shot is free at the counter.
• Eligibility at the pharmacy is narrower than eligibility overall. Last season the pharmacy route was open free to everyone aged 60 to 84 without a record of serious adverse reaction, plus pharmacy staff. The Direção-Geral da Saúde (Directorate-General of Health) has yet to publish this season's criteria, so do not assume the same band.
• Outside that band, use a health centre. Younger people with chronic conditions, pregnant women and health workers are usually vaccinated through the Serviço Nacional de Saúde (National Health Service) rather than at a pharmacy.
• Check the list before you walk in. Not every pharmacy joins. Participating premises are published on the health service, Directorate-General of Health and Infarmed websites, and joining pharmacies may run extended hours.
• Bring your número de utente. The pharmacy has to register the dose and its batch number to be paid, so your health service user number makes the visit faster.

Campaign dates have not been announced. Last year's opened on 23 September, and the diplomas needed to run this one are now in place. Our guide to getting vaccinated in Portugal covers the national programme and what new residents need to catch up on, and our guide to Portuguese pharmacies explains how the counter works if you are new to it.

Feature image: Farmácia Duarte Ferreira in Rossio ao Sul do Tejo, Abrantes. Photo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.