The Federal Court of Justice (BGH) has delivered a ruling significantly impacting regulations surrounding online pharmacies and pharmaceutical pricing within the European Union. The court’s decision, announced Thursday, clarifies that previous German regulations concerning pharmaceutical price controls do not apply to distance selling pharmacies based in other EU member states.
The case arose from a lawsuit filed by a Bavarian pharmacy association against a Dutch pharmaceutical company. The association alleged that the company illegally re-imported prescription medications into Germany between 2012 and 2013, offering incentives – or “bonuses” – to patients redeeming prescriptions. The association argued this practice violated German price controls and sought an injunction and reimbursement of warning costs.
Lower courts, the Regional Court and the Higher Regional Court of Munich, initially sided with the pharmacy association. However, the Federal Court of Justice overturned these decisions. The BGH reasoned that the previous German regulations on pharmaceutical price controls constituted a restriction on the free movement of goods within the EU and therefore could not be enforced against the Dutch distance selling pharmacy.
The court emphasized that no evidence was presented demonstrating that the absence of these price controls would necessarily compromise the safety or availability of medications and consequently, jeopardize public health. The judges in Karlsruhe (the location of the Federal Court of Justice) issued the ruling on July 17, 2025 – I ZR 74/24 – effectively opening the door to potentially different pricing strategies for online pharmacies operating across EU borders.