The Contact Lens Rule: built so you can shop around

When the fitting is done, the prescription is yours

A contact lens fitting can take more than one visit: an exam, trial lenses, a follow-up. When it is complete (or, for a renewal, when the prescriber decides no change is needed), the prescriber must give you a copy of your prescription, whether or not you ask. Automatically. (16 CFR 315.3(a)(1))

Like the glasses version, the copy can be paper or digital, but digital only works if you affirmatively consented to that specific delivery method, and it must be something you can access, download, and print. (16 CFR 315.2, definition of "provide to the patient a copy")

Prescribers who sell lenses must also ask you to sign a confirmation that you received your prescription, and keep it for three years. That signature request is not an upsell; it is the rule's receipt system working. (16 CFR 315.3(c))

What they cannot do

• No purchase requirement. Releasing or verifying your prescription cannot be conditioned on buying lenses from the prescriber or anyone else. (16 CFR 315.3(b)(1))
• No extra fee. They can charge for the exam and fitting, and they can require you to pay that bill before handing over the prescription. But they cannot charge anything on top of it for the prescription itself. (16 CFR 315.3(b)(2))
• No waivers. They cannot make you sign a waiver or release as a condition of releasing or verifying the prescription. (16 CFR 315.3(b)(3))

Good for at least a year, almost always

Your contact lens prescription must last at least one year from its issue date, or longer if your state sets a longer period. The only way it can be shorter is a medical judgment about your eye health, and the prescriber has to document the specific reasons in your record in enough detail that another professional could review them. A blanket office policy of six-month prescriptions is not a documented medical judgment. (16 CFR 315.6)

What has to be on the prescription

The rule spells it out: your name, exam date, issue and expiration dates, the prescriber's name and contact details, the lens power, the material or manufacturer or both, the base curve, the diameter when appropriate, and for store brands, the manufacturer and equivalent brand name. (16 CFR 315.2, definition of "contact lens prescription") Contacts prescriptions are brand-specific: switching brands normally needs prescriber approval, except between a name brand and its identical store-brand twin made by the same manufacturer.

The eight-business-hour clock, from the buyer's side

Online sellers can fill your order two ways. The clean way: you give the seller a copy of your actual prescription (upload, email, fax), and the sale can proceed on that. (16 CFR 315.5(a)(1))

The second way is verification. You type in your prescription details and your prescriber's contact information, and the seller sends the prescriber a verification request. Then one of three things happens: the prescriber confirms it, the prescriber corrects or rejects it (they must say why), or the prescriber ignores it. If the prescriber says nothing for eight business hours, the prescription is treated as verified and the sale proceeds. That silence-means-yes design is called passive verification, and it exists so a prescriber cannot block your order by letting the fax sit. (16 CFR 315.5(c))

"Business hours" means 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays in the prescriber's time zone, excluding federal holidays. An order placed Friday evening starts its clock Monday at 9 a.m. (16 CFR 315.2) The practical tip: order a few days before you run out, early in the week, and upload your actual prescription when you have it, because passive verification also means nobody catches a typo you made in the form. More on timing in the contacts buying guide.

The rule binds sellers too

Sellers must give you a prominent way to submit your actual prescription, not just the verification form. (16 CFR 315.5(g)) They cannot alter your prescription or quietly substitute a different brand, with the single exception of identical private label twins. (16 CFR 315.5(f)) These are not hypothetical rules: in 2022 the FTC collected $3.5 million from the company behind Hubble lenses for exactly these violations. A seller that makes it hard to submit your real prescription is a seller to avoid.

If the office does not follow the rule

The script tool gives you the words for a refusal, a fee demand, or a stall, citing the section that fits. If that does not fix it, the complaint page covers reporting to the FTC and your state board.