Maternity Exemption Certificates (Matex)

Pregnant women and those who have had a baby in the last 12 months get free:

• NHS prescriptions if you hold a valid Maternity Exemption Certificate
• NHS dental treatment for women who are pregnant when accepted for the course of treatment
• NHS dental treatment for any course of treatment for women who have borne child within twelve months before treatment

The Authority's Maternity Exemption Office is responsible for issuing Medical Exemption Certificates on behalf of the Department of Health for England to women who are pregnant or have had a baby in the last 12 months.

The Matex Application Process

If you are pregnant or have had a baby in the last 12 months, to obtain a Maternity Exemption Certificate which, entitles you to free NHS prescriptions, you must complete application form FW8. The form is available from doctors, midwives and health visitors. You are required to complete parts 1 and 2 of the form and your doctor, midwife or health visitor is asked to sign to confirm the information given by you is correct.

Practitioners send the completed application forms for maternity exemption directly to:

NHS Business Services Authority
Help with Health Costs
Maternity Exemption
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE2 1ZL

Our Maternity Exemption Office aim to process applications within 21 days of receiving the application.

We will send a Maternity Exemption Certificate to patients, where it has been confirmed they are pregnant or have had a baby in the last 12 months.

The certificate issued, an example of which is shown on the right, will be valid from one month before the date on which the application is received until:

12 months after the expected date of the baby's birth; or if the baby has already been born 12 months after the baby's date of birth

If you have any queries, you can call our enquiry line on 0845 601 8076. Alternatively, complete our query form.

A full list of the ways in which people may obtain help with health costs, including those which the Authority does not administer, is available here.

People Resident in Scotland and Wales

We can only issue Maternity Exemption Certificates to people resident in England. If you are resident outside England the action you need to take to apply for a Maternity Exemption Certificate depends upon the country you are resident in. For further information if you are resident in:

• Scotland, please click here.
• Wales, please click here.

Refunds

If you need to pay for prescriptions before you receive your exemption certificate you may be able to claim a refund, providing you obtain the official NHS receipt, form FP57 (WP57 in Wales), from you pharmacist at the time you pay. For more information, including information on refunds of dental charges, click here.

Frequently Asked Questions