Is Cocaine legal in Bolivia?

Legal status

Cocaine controlled and illegal under Law 1008 (1988) — DISTINCT from the coca leaf; the Constitution Art 384 coca carve-out does NOT extend to processed cocaine; personal-use 'minimal quantity' to treatment, NO fixed gram threshold

Consequences if caught

Cocaine — the processed drug — is controlled and illegal under Bolivia's Law 1008 (1988). This is DISTINCT from the coca leaf: Constitution Art 384 protects coca in its natural state ('in its natural state it is not a narcotic') as cultural heritage, but that carve-out does NOT extend to cocaine. Personal-use possession of a 'minimal quantity' is directed to treatment or education rather than prison (Art 49), with NO fixed statutory gram threshold (a two-expert assessment determines the minimum). Manufacture (Art 47) draws 5–15 years; trafficking (Art 48) 10–25 years.

If prescribed or medical

Not a prescribed traveller medicine in this form.

Documentation

Constitution Art 384 protects the coca leaf in its natural state as cultural heritage and a factor of social cohesion — 'in its natural state it is not a narcotic' — with legal cultivation delimited to authorized zones (the Yungas); traditional coca chewing is legal, and Bolivia withdrew from and re-acceded to the 1961 Single Convention specifically to preserve it. Cocaine, the processed drug, is a DIFFERENT thing: it is controlled and illegal, and the coca carve-out does NOT extend to cocaine. Cannabis, heroin, methamphetamine, MDMA and LSD are controlled and illegal with no carve-out. Personal-use possession of a 'minimal quantity' is directed to treatment or education rather than prison (Law 1008 Art 49), but there is NO fixed statutory gram threshold — a two-expert assessment determines the minimum. Cultivation outside authorized coca zones (Art 46) draws about 1–2 years, manufacture (Art 47) 5–15 years, and trafficking (Art 48) 10–25 years. Bolivia has NO death penalty for drugs. Carry any controlled medicine with its prescription and confirm requirements with your embassy before travel.

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