Is Barbiturates legal in Vietnam?
- Legal status
- Barbiturates are List III psychotropics scheduled by compound under Decree 57/2022/NĐ-CP (carried into later drug-list decrees) — the barbiturate class transposing the 1971 Convention as prescription-controlled psychotropics.
- Consequences if caught
- Unlawful possession or trafficking is punished by quantity under Penal Code Articles 249–252. Vietnam abolished the death penalty for all drug offences on 1 July 2025 (replaced with life imprisonment) — barbiturates are not death-eligible.
- If prescribed or medical
- Phenobarbital is dispensed as a List III antiepileptic (a WHO Essential Medicine) on a special-control prescription; the sedative-hypnotic barbiturates are tightly controlled.
- Documentation
- Carry a prescription and original packaging; declare controlled medicines.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with Vietnam’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 →