Is Barbiturates legal in Iran?
- Legal status
- Barbiturates are controlled psychotropic medicines under Iran's Psychotropic Substances (Ravangardan) Law of 1975 — a prescription-controlled class transposing the 1971 Convention — and are not among the substances in the death-eligible articles of the Anti-Narcotics Law.
- Consequences if caught
- Illicit supply is handled under the psychotropics regime (imprisonment, fines, flogging). Iran's death penalty applies only to the enumerated substances of Anti-Narcotics Law Arts. 4, 5, 8 and 9 (opium/cannabis/heroin/morphine/cocaine/methamphetamine, etc.) — barbiturates are not listed and are not death-eligible.
- If prescribed or medical
- Phenobarbital is dispensed as a controlled antiepileptic (a WHO Essential Medicine) on Ministry of Health authorisation; the sedative-hypnotic barbiturates are tightly controlled.
- Documentation
- Carry a prescription and original packaging; obtain any required import authorisation.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with Iran’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 →