Why Online Pharmacies Verify Your ID and Weight

Online pharmacies verify your identity and weight because GLP-1 medicines such as Mounjaro and Wegovy are prescription-only, licensed only for adults above specific BMI thresholds, and potentially harmful if prescribed to the wrong person. Since February 2025, General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) guidance has said that prescribers should not rely on an online questionnaire alone for weight-loss medicines, and should independently verify details such as weight, height or BMI. These checks can feel intrusive, but they protect you, and they are a useful sign that a service is taking its responsibilities seriously. This guide is part of our eligibility guides within our wider GLP-1 guides.

The background: why the rules tightened

When online prescribing of GLP-1 medicines took off, many services relied on a self-completed questionnaire. You entered your height and weight, answered health questions, and a prescriber reviewed the answers. For some people this worked well. But it had an obvious weakness: the prescriber had to trust what was typed.

Concerns grew about people receiving weight-loss medicines when they did not meet the criteria, including people with low BMIs and people with eating disorders, for whom appetite-suppressing medicines can be particularly dangerous. Pharmacy and medical regulators took enforcement action against some online services over weight-loss prescribing.

In February 2025, the GPhC published updated guidance for registered pharmacies providing pharmacy services at a distance, including on the internet. For higher-risk medicines, including weight-loss medicines, it set out that:

• The prescribing decision should not be based solely on an online questionnaire.
• The person's weight, height and/or BMI should be independently verified.
• Verification can be achieved through timely two-way communication (such as a video consultation), access to the person's clinical records, or contact with the person's GP, regular prescriber or another relevant provider.
• Pharmacies should have robust identity-checking processes.

The guidance is used by GPhC inspectors to judge whether a pharmacy meets the regulator's standards. You can read more about the overall regulatory picture in our guide to who regulates online weight loss services.

Why identity checks matter

Identity checks are often the first step in an online consultation. Typical methods include an electronic check against public and credit reference data, uploading a passport or driving licence, or a selfie or short video that is matched to your ID.

Confirming you are an adult

Mounjaro is licensed for weight management in adults only. Although Wegovy has a licence that extends to some adolescents, treatment for under-18s should be managed through NHS specialist services. ID checks prevent children and teenagers getting treatment through an adult online service.

Confirming the medicine is for you

Prescribing is personal. A prescriber assesses one person's health, BMI and risks. If someone else uses the medicine, none of those safety checks apply to them. Identity checks reduce the risk of a person obtaining medicine for a friend or relative who has not been assessed, or who has been refused.

Matching your medical record

If a service contacts your GP or checks your clinical record, it needs to be sure it is looking at the right person. Accurate identity data also means that a prescription appears on the correct record, which matters if you later need surgery, sedation or other medicines.

Preventing multiple accounts

Without identity checks, someone refused by a service could simply register again with different answers. Identity checks make this harder.

Why weight verification matters

BMI is the basis of the licence

The UK licences for Mounjaro and Wegovy cover adults with a BMI of 30 or more, or a BMI of 27 to under 30 with at least one weight-related condition. NICE guidance for NHS treatment (TA875 for semaglutide and TA1026 for tirzepatide) uses higher thresholds. If the weight entered is wrong, the prescriber cannot know whether the person falls within the licence.

You can check your own BMI with our BMI calculator, and our guide to BMI and treatment eligibility explains the criteria in detail.

Protecting people with eating disorders

This is perhaps the most important reason. People with restrictive eating disorders may be motivated to understate their weight or hide their history. Medicines that suppress appetite and drive weight loss can deepen restriction, cause malnutrition and dehydration, and be life-threatening. Independent weight verification is one of the main barriers that prevents these medicines reaching people who could be badly harmed.

Making dosing decisions

Weight changes over time are how a prescriber judges whether treatment is working. Mounjaro and Wegovy are started at a low dose and gradually increased. Before each increase, a prescriber needs an accurate picture of your progress and side effects. NICE guidance also expects treatment to be reviewed if weight loss is insufficient: for example, NICE TA1026 advises considering stopping tirzepatide if less than 5% of initial weight has been lost after six months on the highest tolerated dose.

Spotting when weight has fallen a lot

Accurate measurements also show when someone has lost a large amount of weight, so the prescriber can review whether the current dose remains appropriate or whether a maintenance plan is needed.

How weight is verified: the main methods

Services choose their own processes, and these continue to evolve. The table below summarises common methods.

Most services combine more than one method. The key principle in the GPhC guidance is independence: the prescriber should not be relying only on what the person reports.

Why a photo alone isn't enough

Photos can be edited, borrowed or staged. Scales can be tampered with. A single image does not allow the prescriber to ask questions. That is why GPhC guidance treats photos and phone calls as insufficient by themselves for weight-loss medicines, although they may still play a supporting role.

A walk-through of a typical verification

To make this more concrete, here is how verification might look for someone applying to an online service. The details vary between services; this is an illustration of common steps, not a description of any particular provider.

1. Questionnaire. The person enters their height, weight, health history and medicines.
2. Identity check. An electronic check confirms their name, date of birth and address. If it can't be completed, they are asked to upload photo ID and, sometimes, a selfie for comparison.
3. Weight verification. The person is offered a short video appointment, during which a clinician confirms their identity, watches them step on the scales, and asks follow-up questions. Alternatively, the service may request confirmation from their GP record.
4. GP contact. With consent, the service writes to or contacts the person's GP to share or confirm information.
5. Prescriber review. The prescriber considers everything together. If anything doesn't add up, such as a weight that seems inconsistent with other information, they ask more questions or decline.
6. Ongoing checks. At later reviews, updated weights are requested and periodically re-verified.

The aim is not to catch people out, but to make sure the prescriber can rely on what they are told.

Accessibility and verification

Not everyone finds video calls or digital ID checks easy. People with disabilities, limited internet access, older devices, or no photo ID may face barriers. If this applies to you:

• Tell the service. Ask what alternatives are available, such as phone support combined with GP record checks, or a weight measured at a local pharmacy.
• Ask for help with ID. Some services can accept alternative documents or use other identity-checking methods.
• Consider in-person options. A community pharmacy or your GP practice may be easier, and can measure your weight directly. See our guide to weight loss clinics vs online providers.

Services should make reasonable adjustments where they can, but they also need to meet regulatory expectations. If verification can't be completed, face-to-face care is usually the right alternative.

How regulators check verification

The GPhC uses its guidance on services at a distance when inspecting pharmacies and considering concerns. Inspectors may look at how a pharmacy verifies identity and weight, how it audits its prescribing, and how it identifies people for whom treatment may not be safe. Care regulators, such as the CQC in England, may look at similar issues in online clinical services. Our guide to who regulates online weight loss services explains the wider framework.

Repeat verification during treatment

Verification is not only for the first prescription. Responsible services typically:

• Ask for an updated weight before each dose increase
• Re-verify weight periodically, especially if there has been a large change or a gap in treatment
• Repeat checks if you restart after a break, or if you transfer from another provider

If you are moving from another service, you may be asked for evidence of your previous prescription and your starting weight. This allows the new prescriber to understand your history and choose a safe dose. See our guide to switching providers mid-treatment.

Your data: what happens to your ID and photos

Health information is classed as special category data under UK GDPR, which means organisations must have a lawful basis and extra safeguards to process it. The Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) oversees compliance.

Before sharing ID documents, photos or medical information, it is reasonable to check:

• Registration: Is the pharmacy on the GPhC register? Is any online doctor service registered with the relevant care regulator (for example the CQC in England)? Our guide to how to choose an online pharmacy for weight loss treatment explains how to check.
• Privacy notice: Does the website explain what data is collected, why, who it is shared with and how long it is kept?
• Security: Is the website secure, and does the service use its own platform rather than asking you to send documents by email or social media?
• Third parties: Is identity checking done by a named third-party provider, and is that explained?
• Your rights: Does the notice explain how to access or delete your data?

When verification feels uncomfortable

It's understandable to feel self-conscious about being weighed on camera or sharing full-length photos. Some points that may help:

• You can ask what is needed and why. A good service will explain.
• Ask about alternatives. If you would prefer not to do a video call, ask whether a GP record check or a pharmacy measurement is an option.
• Clinicians are used to this. Weight assessment is routine clinical practice.
• Face-to-face care is always an option. Your GP practice or a community pharmacy can measure your weight and discuss treatment in person.

If a service cannot verify your information to the standard it needs, the prescriber may decline. That is an expected outcome, not a punishment.

What verification tells you about a service

From a patient's point of view, verification is also a quality marker. A service that:

• Lets you skip straight to choosing a medicine and dose
• Never asks for ID
• Accepts any typed weight without checks
• Has no route to speak to a clinician

may not be following GPhC guidance. That raises questions about what other safeguards are missing. Our guide to getting weight loss injections online safely covers the wider checklist, and our providers page explains how we compare services on safety features rather than marketing claims.

Verification and the wider consultation

ID and weight checks are only part of an online assessment. The prescriber also needs your medical history, medicines, pregnancy plans and any reasons a GLP-1 might be unsafe. Our guide to the online weight loss consultation covers every stage, and our guide to who should not take GLP-1 medicines explains the medical cautions.

Does verification affect cost or timing?

Verification can add some time to the process, particularly if a GP needs to respond or a video appointment needs to be booked. Some services include verification within the overall cost of treatment; others structure costs differently. Prices change frequently, so we don't quote them in our guides. You can compare current service details on our prices page.

Frequently misunderstood points

"If I'm clearly overweight, why do they still need proof?"

The rules apply to everyone, because the prescriber cannot see you through a questionnaire. Applying checks consistently is fairer and safer than making exceptions based on assumptions.

"My GP doesn't know I'm doing this."

You can discuss this with the service. Many ask for consent to inform your GP, and some will not prescribe without it. Having a GLP-1 medicine on your GP record is in your interest, because it affects how other clinicians care for you, for example before surgery or sedation.

"I've already been on treatment with another provider."

You will still usually need to verify your identity and weight with the new provider, and may need to show evidence of your previous prescription.

"Can I use an old weight?"

Prescribers need your current weight. If you have lost weight on treatment, your starting weight is also relevant, and services may ask for evidence of both.

When to speak to a professional

If you have concerns about your weight, eating or body image, or if you are worried that you might not meet the criteria for treatment, speak to your GP before approaching an online service. If you have, or think you may have, an eating disorder, your GP can refer you for specialist support, and the charity Beat offers information and helplines.

If you are already taking a GLP-1 medicine:

• Call 999 or go to A&E if you have severe, persistent abdominal pain (with or without vomiting, sometimes spreading to the back), signs of a serious allergic reaction, or you collapse.
• Contact NHS 111 or your GP urgently if you have persistent vomiting or diarrhoea with signs of dehydration, or pain under the right ribs with fever or yellowing of the skin or eyes.
• Contact your prescriber if you are losing weight much faster than expected, are eating very little, feel faint or unwell, or if your mood changes. If you are having thoughts of self-harm, call 999 or Samaritans on 116 123.

The decision to prescribe, continue or stop treatment always belongs to a qualified prescriber.