Is Clonazepam legal in Lesotho?

Also known as: klonopin

Legal status

Clonazepam is a risk drug under the Drugs of Abuse Act No. 5 of 2008. It is printed by name as 'Clonazepam' in Schedule 3, Risk Drugs of Abuse, on printed page 812, between Clobazam and Clorazepate in the block taken from Schedule IV of the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances. Under s3 a risk drug is 'a substance listed in Schedule 3', and so a drug of abuse; s4(2) assigns Schedule 3 the least strict measures.

Consequences if caught

Manufacturing, acquiring or administering clonazepam outside a licence is an offence under s9(1)(b), and s9(6) prints 'imprisonment not less than 5 years or a fine not less than M20,000 or both'. Trafficking, meaning selling, delivering, importing or exporting, carries under s43(1) 'not less than 20 years or a fine not less than M1,000,000 or both'. Under s87 a court presumes possession where the drug is found on the accused or in a place under the accused's control. On a Part III charge such as trafficking, s51(1) allows suspension for a drug abuser or first offender. The penalty clauses printed in the Act set minimums and name no maximum.

If prescribed or medical

Section 10 reads: 'any person undergoing treatment of a medical condition, who is entering, leaving or passing through Lesotho, may possess such quantities of a drug of abuse (where prescribed) as may be reasonably expected for the purposes of such treatment.' It does not say whether the prescription must be foreign or local. Section 3 defines 'prescribed' as 'prescribed by regulations' and 'prescription' as a practitioner's written direction, so the Act does not choose between two readings; no regulation under s10 was found. Section 29(5) requires the prescribed form, legibility, the practitioner's name, address, qualifications and registration number, the patient's name and address, the drug's name, quantity, form and strength, and a signature and date. Section 29(6) allows an oral prescription confirmed in writing within 24 hours, and s44(6)(b) bars supply on one issued over 3 months before presentation. Section 28(1) covers pharmacist supply and s29(1) who may prescribe.

Documentation

Drawn from s3, s4(2), s9(1)(b), s9(6), s10, s28(1), s29(1), s29(5), s29(6), s43(1), s44(6), s51(1) and s87, with Schedule 3 at printed page 812, read as printed in the gazette of 27 May 2008. No later amendment to the Schedules was found as at 2 November 2026, which does not prove none exists. Not established: what quantity a court would treat as reasonably expected under s10, whether a foreign prescription meets s29(5), or any court decision on clonazepam.

Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with Lesotho’s embassy or official drug authority before traveling; penalties can be severe, including imprisonment.