Is Buprenorphine legal in Brazil?
- Legal status
- Buprenorphine is a controlled narcotic in Lista A of Portaria SVS/MS 344/1998 (dispensed on the yellow Notificação de Receita A), in a lighter access tier than methadone; availability is limited.
- Consequences if caught
- Outside the special-control regime it is an ANVISA infraction; trafficking falls under Lei 11.343/2006.
- If prescribed or medical
- OST is not broadly institutionalised in Brazil (the system favours psychosocial CAPS-AD care); take-home is limited.
- Documentation
- Non-residents may import a personal supply with a prescription/medical report and INCB certificate; declare it to ANVISA.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with Brazil’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 →