So you wear contact lenses and want to renew your supply without getting a new prescription?
You are not alone. Many people ask that very question: where can you buy contacts without a current prescription?
The first thing to point out might be obvious. You can get just about anything you want on the internet and that includes contact lenses. A better question to ask might be how can you do this legally? Sites operating legitimately are not so easy to find and there is a good reason for this. In many parts of the world it is illegal to buy or sell lenses if an up to date eye prescription is not involved. We’ll have a look at where Canada stands on this issue shortly.
Why are the laws so strict? Although you might think that you should be allowed to do what you like with your eyes, many governments think they know best. Like it or not, that’s the way it is. Even if you don’t like being told how to run your life, looking after your eyes is not a bad thing to do. In fact, it’s very sensible. You only have one pair of eyes and they can easily be damaged by substandard or unsuitable lenses so it pays to take the trouble to get checked out properly and to get an up to date prescription for your contacts.
If you’re determined to get contact lenses without a prescription, let’s look at your options and in particular, why Canada always seems to feature in such discussions.
It turns out that as far as prescription contacts go, that is, lenses designed to correct vision, Canada is no different from much of the rest of the world. Lenses are considered to be medical devices and a current prescription is needed. Not only to buy lenses but also for Canadian outlets to sell to people outside Canada.
There is just one exception to this, and that is cosmetic lenses. Lenses which do not correct vision. This will usually mean colored lenses of one sort or another. These are not medical devices, currently, and they may be bought without the need of a prescription.
That said, although you can buy contacts from Canada without a prescription, it is always recommended that the advice of an optician is obtained first of all, to make sure that your eyes are suited to wearing contacts and ideally, to get a prescription and proper advice about what lenses to get.
Armed with that information, by all means go ahead and get your contacts from Canada.
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