Prohibited Imports and Exports (Drugs and Precursor Chemicals)

This section of the site provides information on the imported and exported drugs and precursor chemicals which are prohibited.

Import and Export of Controlled Substances
Links to information and guidance for importers and exporters

About this list

The Office of Chemical Safety and Environmental Health (OCSEH) is responsible for granting permits and licenses that authorise the import and export of certain narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, precursor chemicals, antibiotics and androgenic/anabolic substances controlled under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956 and Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations 1958.

Not all substances that are controlled are subject to both import and export restrictions and the authorisations required also differ between classes of substances.

The OCSEH has prepared this list of substances to assist in determining whether a licence and/or permit is required under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956 and Customs(Prohibited Exports) Regulations 1958.

The list presented here reflects substances subject to control under the following regulations:

Regulation name	Regulations	Schedules
Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956	5, 5A, 5G, 5H	4, 7A, 8
Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations 1958	10, 10AB	8, 9

While care has been taken to make this list as complete as possible, it is not necessarily exhaustive. Some entries in the list refer to a class of substances rather than individual substances. Substances that are salts, esters or isomers of a controlled substance, are also likely to be controlled and you should contact the OCSEH for confirmation.

This document is issued as guidance and it does not have formal regulatory status. It does not replace any legislation or any relevant considerations that must be made in accordance with any legislation. If you are intending to import or export a drug substance you should satisfy yourself that you are complying with all relevant legislation.

The list of substances may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in regulations or determinations that additional substances are considered to be controlled by application of the existing regulations.

Important points to note

Precursor chemicals

The export of some precursor chemicals is subject to a pre-export notification process rather than a permit process. Substances subject to the pre-export notification process without the need for a permit are denoted with “*” in the Export Licence and Permit Required column of the list. Precursor chemicals without the asterisk are subject to full import/export licensing and permit controls and pre-export notifications may also be required.

Import authorisations issued by TGA for some substances

Applications for import permits for some substances and classes of substances included in this list are considered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration rather than the Office of Chemical Safety and Environmental Health. For example, the Therapeutic Goods Administration is the competent authority for granting import authorisations for substances that are growth hormones. If a substance in this list has “TGA” listed as the Alternate Contact, you should contact the TGA for more information on the regulatory requirements for importing the substance.

Therapeutics Goods Administration (TGA)
PO Box 100
Woden ACT 2606

Phone: 1800 020 653
Fax: 02 6232 8605
Email: info@tga.gov.au

Antibiotics

Antibiotics substances are subject to a prohibition on importation under regulation 5A of the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956. A permit is required to import antibiotics. The list does not currently contain a listing of individual antibiotic substances.

Travellers and personal importation

There are special conditions that apply to incoming/outgoing travellers and to personal importation of medicines. Please refer to specific information on the OCSEH and TGA websites.