Contact lens prescription rights: get your copy and shop around
Contact lenses are a recurring expense, so where you buy them matters. The FTC's Contact Lens Rule gives you the right to take your prescription anywhere and sets rules for how online and retail sellers confirm it.
- After a contact lens fitting, your prescriber must give you a copy of the prescription whether or not you ask.
- They can't require you to buy lenses from them, pay an extra fee or sign a waiver to get or verify it.
- A seller can fill an order if the prescriber confirms it, corrects it, or doesn't respond within 8 business hours of a complete verification request.
- Prescriptions generally last at least one year unless the prescriber documents a medical reason for a shorter period.
Your copy
Under 16 CFR 315.3, availability of contact lens prescriptions, when a prescriber completes a contact lens fitting, they "shall provide to the patient a copy of the contact lens prescription" whether or not you request it. On request, they must also send a copy to someone acting for you (such as an online seller) within forty business hours.
The rule bars prescribers from requiring you to buy lenses, pay "in addition to, or as part of, the fee for an eye examination, fitting, and evaluation," or sign a waiver as a condition of releasing or verifying your prescription. The prescriber also has to document that you got it, for example by asking you to sign a confirmation, and keep that record for at least three years.
How seller verification works
A seller can sell lenses only if you or the prescriber gives them the prescription, or it is verified. Under 16 CFR 315.5, prescriber verification, a prescription is verified if:
- the prescriber confirms it is accurate;
- the prescriber says it is inaccurate and provides the correct one; or
- the prescriber "fails to communicate with the seller within eight (8) business hours" after receiving the seller's request.
The seller's request must include your name and address, the lens power, manufacturer, base curve and diameter where appropriate, the quantity ordered, and contact information. A seller may not alter the prescription, including by naming a different brand than the one prescribed (with a narrow exception for private label lenses).
How long a prescription lasts
Under 16 CFR 315.6, expiration of prescriptions, a contact lens prescription generally expires no less than one year after it was issued, or later if state law says so. A prescriber can set a shorter date based on medical judgment about your eye health, but must document the reasons in your record.
Saving money
- Ask for your prescription at the end of the fitting. You're entitled to it.
- Compare the price per box across several sellers for the exact brand on your prescription.
- Check the expiration date before stocking up.
Need glasses too? See the FTC Eyeglass Rule.
General consumer information, not legal or medical advice. Follow your eye doctor's guidance on lens wear and replacement.
Published November 9, 2026. We do not use affiliate links on this page; see our Affiliate Disclosure.