Expiry Dates On Products

Have you ever looked at the expiry date on your medical supplies and thought it was already out of date—only to realise it wasn’t? You're not alone- it's a common question we receive.

Many of the medical products we supply are labelled using an international date format: YYMMDD

This format is widely used in healthcare and manufacturing around the world to maintain consistency and avoid language or regional differences in how dates are displayed.

Expiry dates are displayed on the product next to an hour glass.

What does YYMMDD mean?

YY = Last two digits of the year

MM = Month (01 = January, 12 = December)

DD = Day of the month

Examples:

If a product shows an expiry date of 260731, that means it expires on 31st July 2026. 291124 could look like 29th November 2024, but it is actually 24th November 2029.

Why is this format used?

The YYMMDD format is part of ISO 8601 standards and is commonly used in healthcare to ensure clarity across different countries. It avoids confusion caused by different date formats such as:

DD/MM/YYYY (used in the UK and much of Europe)

MM/DD/YYYY (used in the USA)

YYYY-MM-DD (common in databases and official records)

Still not sure?

If you ever have doubts about the expiry date on a product, our team is here to help. Please contact us with a photo of the label on the product, and we’ll confirm it for you.

At Medisave UK, we’re committed to making sure you always have accurate and safe supplies—and peace of mind with every order.

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