Is Cocaine legal in Tonga?

Also known as: coke, blow

Legal status

Named. Schedule 1 (section 2) of the Illicit Drugs Control Act, Act 7 of 2003, Cap. 4.06, 2020 Revised Edition, lists «Cocaine» under Class A, in the subgroup headed «(FROM SCHEDULE I OF THE CONVENTION ON NARCOTIC DRUGS, 1961)»; the same subgroup separately lists «Coca (leaf)» as its own entry. The schedule's preamble states that the drugs listed, designated by their international non-proprietary names, their isomers, esters and ethers, their salts, including the salts of any such isomer, ester or ether, and any preparations including any such substances, «are illicit drugs unless exempted by law». Section 2 defines an illicit drug as «any drug of Class A or Class B listed in Schedule I or anything prescribed by regulation to be an illicit drug». Two later amendment Acts, the Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) (No.1) Act 2024 and the Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) (No.2) Act 2024, could not be retrieved this session, both the direct PDF link and the containing legislation index returned HTTP 404, so whether either amended this Schedule 1 entry is not verified, not ruled out.

Consequences if caught

Class A penalty, amended. Section 3's Class A paragraph (c) was deleted and replaced by the Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Act 2020, Act 15 of 2020, its own section 3, with «(c) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of less than 1 gram, to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or both; (d) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of 1 gram or more, to a fine not exceeding $1,000,000 or to imprisonment for any period not exceeding life or both; or (e) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of 28 grams or more, to life imprisonment», the last tier the maximum available with no fine alternative at that quantity, though the court retains ordinary sentencing discretion. Section 4's Class A paragraph (iii) was replaced the same way, «(iii) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of less than 1 gram, to a fine not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years or both; or (iv) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of 1 gram or more, to a fine not exceeding $1,000,000 or to imprisonment for any period not exceeding life or both», and the Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Act 2021, Act 19 of 2021, its own section 3(c), inserted a further «(v) in respect of a Class A drug in the quantity of 5 kilograms or more, to life imprisonment». Section 4 carries no 28 gram tier at all; that threshold belongs to section 3's import and export offence only. Act 15 of 2020 also inserted a new section 4(2): possession of «a Class A drug in the quantity of 0.25 grams or more... shall be deemed to be supplying» it, so cocaine quantities well under a gram already expose a person to the supply characterisation rather than simple possession.

If prescribed or medical

Cocaine has a narrow, historic medical use as a topical local anaesthetic, chiefly in ear, nose and throat surgery; no such prescribing regime is recorded in any instrument this session located for Tonga. Section 6 (international traveller's exemption) and section 7 (occupational and Ministry of Health exemption) of the Illicit Drugs Control Act are the only express lawful use routes under this Act, and a hospital's clinical supply for that narrow surgical use would fall under section 7's occupational exemption rather than any dedicated prescribing regime. A search of the Drugs and Poisons Act, Act 11 of 1930 et seq. Cap. 79, 1988 Revised Edition (Schedule A and Part III), the Therapeutic Goods Act 2001, No. 3 of 2001, and the Therapeutic Goods Regulations 2011, 2020 Revised Edition, for a cocaine specific entry recorded none in any of the three, conducted earlier in this country's research; that search was not repeated here.

Documentation

Instrument read: Illicit Drugs Control Act, Act 7 of 2003, Cap. 4.06, 2020 Revised Edition, Schedule 1, pages 21 to 23 of the official Attorney General of Tonga PDF, 26 pages, read 2026-10-07, sha256 20f27664a1f9fe17aac59a72dec336857a3a89c0d782b8a4ad46cd0b53488b23; «Cocaine» and «Coca (leaf)» both found under the Schedule I Narcotic Drugs 1961 subgroup of Class A. Amendment Acts read in full this session, both fetched fresh and hash verified: Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Act 2020, Act 15 of 2020, its own sections 3 and 4, 17 pages, sha256 55d9944a5d6d2189b6edf6dc6302b2b18c96061989449ef5ffda741a3ad5e0da; Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Act 2021, Act 19 of 2021, its own section 3(c), 6 pages, sha256 b8f37cc6a698940395e6172e27f3622d1bc24f5dca10ad73805701af3615bad6. The two 2024 amendment Acts, Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) (No.1) Act 2024 and Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) (No.2) Act 2024, returned HTTP 404 from both the direct PDF link and the containing legislation index this session, so any change they made to this entry or these penalty bands is not verified.

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