Wegovy Tablets Win EU Approval: When Will Ireland Get Them?

The Wegovy pill has cleared its final European hurdle. On 15 July 2026 the European Commission approved Wegovy tablets, a once-daily oral form of semaglutide, for weight management across the EU, following a positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency's medicines committee in May. It is the first oral GLP-1 medicine authorised for weight management in Europe, and the approval applies to Ireland automatically.

That headline has already produced a wave of "Wegovy tablets Ireland" searches, and, predictably, a wave of websites offering to ship them here. So here is what was actually approved, when Irish patients can realistically expect it, and what to be careful of in the meantime.

What is the Wegovy pill (oral semaglutide)?

It is the same active ingredient as the weekly Wegovy injection (semaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist), formulated as a once-daily tablet. The European Medicines Agency put it plainly: the tablets "offer an alternative to weekly subcutaneous injections that may be more convenient for some patients."

The licence covers adults with obesity (a BMI of 30 or above), or overweight (BMI 27 or above) with at least one weight-related condition such as type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cardiovascular disease or obstructive sleep apnoea, alongside a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. That is the same population as the injectable version.

It is not the same product as Rybelsus, the existing oral semaglutide tablet used in type 2 diabetes. Wegovy tablets go up to a much higher 25 mg daily dose and are licensed specifically for weight management.

When will Wegovy tablets be available in Ireland?

The EU approval means the product is authorised for Ireland, but authorisation and availability are different things. Before you can be dispensed it here, Novo Nordisk has to launch it on the Irish market: manufacturing supply has to be allocated, Irish-labelled packs produced, and wholesalers stocked.

Novo Nordisk has said it is "committed to launching Wegovy pill in more countries in the second half of 2026". The tablet is already on sale in the US and launched in the UK after its separate UK approval on 11 June 2026, where it is available privately, with NHS access still under review. No Irish launch date has been announced.

A realistic expectation for Ireland is late 2026 into 2027, and, as with the injections, private prescription first, with any State reimbursement decided separately. We will update this article as soon as an Irish date is confirmed.

How well do the tablets work compared with the injection?

The approval rests on OASIS 4, a 64-week phase 3 trial of 307 adults with obesity or overweight plus a weight-related condition. On the EMA's summary of the data, people taking the 25 mg tablet lost an average of 13.6% of their body weight, against 2.2% with placebo, and 76% of them lost at least 5%, compared with 31% on placebo.

That is in the same territory as the weekly injection: in the STEP 1 trial, adults on 2.4 mg injectable semaglutide lost an average of about 15% over 68 weeks. Cross-trial comparisons are imperfect (different participants, different durations), but the honest summary is that the tablet delivers weight loss of a broadly similar order, not a stronger effect.

How do you take Wegovy tablets?

The tablet has a stricter routine than most medicines, because semaglutide is poorly absorbed from the gut. It must be taken once daily on an empty stomach, after fasting for at least 8 hours, with a sip of water, and you then need to wait at least 30 minutes before eating, drinking or taking other oral medicines. Skipping that routine lowers absorption and can blunt the effect.

As with the injection, the dose is stepped up gradually: treatment starts at 1.5 mg daily and increases through 4 mg and 9 mg to the full 25 mg dose, spending at least a month at each step to let your body adjust. The most common side effects are the familiar GLP-1 ones: nausea, diarrhoea, constipation and abdominal discomfort, mainly during dose increases.

Can I buy Wegovy tablets from the UK or Northern Ireland in the meantime?

No. Some UK and Northern Ireland websites are already offering to ship Wegovy tablets to Irish addresses, but there is currently no legal route for that supply:

• UK packs cannot cross the border. Since 1 January 2025, under the Windsor Framework, medicines for the UK market are labelled "UK Only", and, in the HPRA's words, "medicinal products intended to be placed on the market in NI cannot be moved into IE or any other EU Member State".
• UK packs sit outside the EU safety net. "UK Only" packs no longer carry the EU's anti-falsification serialisation feature, so they cannot be verified through the system that protects every pack dispensed by an Irish pharmacy.
• Prescription medicines cannot be sold online in Ireland. Under Irish rules, only non-prescription medicines may be sold over the internet, by retailers registered with the PSI. The lawful route to a prescription medicine is a prescription, dispensed by a registered pharmacy. That is exactly how online-doctor services work here: the doctor sends your prescription by Healthmail to the pharmacy you choose, and the pharmacy dispenses it.

What can I do right now?

The injectable GLP-1 medicines are authorised, available and routinely prescribed in Ireland. If you're considering treatment:

• Read our guide to how to get weight-loss injections in Ireland, or the step-by-step ordering process.
• See our treatment pages on Mounjaro, Wegovy and Saxenda.
• Whichever medicine you use, the fundamentals do the heavy lifting: protein and fibre at each meal, activity you can sustain, and sleep. Medicines work best on top of those, not instead of them.

FAQs

Are Wegovy tablets available in Ireland right now?

No. They were approved for the EU on 15 July 2026, but Novo Nordisk has not yet launched them on the Irish market. Late 2026 into 2027 is a realistic window.

Will I need a prescription?

Yes. Wegovy tablets are prescription-only, with the same eligibility criteria as the injection: BMI 30+, or 27+ with a weight-related condition.

How much will Wegovy tablets cost in Ireland?

Irish pricing hasn't been announced. For how weight-loss medicines interact with the Drug Payment Scheme, see our guide to DPS coverage of weight-loss medications.

Can I switch from the injection to the tablets when they arrive?

Under the UK licence, people established on the 2.4 mg weekly injection can move directly to the 25 mg daily tablet, but switching is a decision for your prescriber, not something to arrange yourself. Never stop or change a prescribed medicine without speaking to them first.

Is oral Wegovy the same as Rybelsus?

Both contain oral semaglutide, but Rybelsus is licensed for type 2 diabetes at lower doses. Wegovy tablets are licensed for weight management and go up to 25 mg daily.