Is Barbiturates legal in Canada?
- Legal status
- Barbiturates are Schedule IV controlled substances under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) — the class (including secobarbital, pentobarbital, amobarbital, phenobarbital and barbital) is listed generically, transposing the 1971 Convention as a prescription-controlled schedule.
- Consequences if caught
- Unauthorised possession is an offence; trafficking up to 3 years on indictment.
- If prescribed or medical
- Phenobarbital is prescribed as a Schedule IV antiepileptic (a WHO Essential Medicine); the sedative-hypnotic barbiturates are now rarely used.
- Documentation
- Declare a personal supply and keep it in the original labelled container with the prescription (s.56 exemption); carry roughly a single course of treatment.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with Canada’s embassy or official drug authority before traveling; penalties can be severe, including imprisonment.
Before you travel
Verify current rules with the destination country’s official drug authority and your own country’s embassy before traveling. Find the destination’s U.S. embassy & official country guidance →
Non-U.S. travelers: check your own government’s travel advisory and embassy.
If you’re detained or arrested abroad
Contact your own country’s embassy or consulate in the destination immediately — not the destination’s authorities. U.S. citizens: contact the nearest U.S. embassy/consulate and the U.S. State Department at +1-202-501-4444 (from abroad). If a U.S. citizen is arrested or detained abroad →