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Legality · Cocaine

Is Cocaine legal in United States?

Also known as: coke, blow

Confirmed against a primary sourceVerified September 15, 2026
Legal status
Controlled. Schedule II under the Controlled Substances Act, at 21 CFR 1308.12(b)(4). Named inside a parent entry rather than as an entry of its own. This cell states federal law only. Every state has its own controlled substances act and several differ from the federal schedules, so check the law of the state you are in.
Consequences if caught
It is not a numbered entry of its own. It is named inside a parent entry at 21 CFR 1308.12(b)(4), which is a different thing from being unlisted and reaches it just as firmly. Cocaine is in the weight tables through the coca leaves clause: 5 kilograms or more reaches section 841(b)(1)(A) at not less than 10 years and up to life, and 500 grams or more reaches section 841(b)(1)(B) at not less than 5 years and up to 40 years. Supply is 21 USC 841. Unless the substance appears in the weight tables of section 841(b)(1)(A) or (B), it falls to section 841(b)(1)(C) at up to 20 years, rising to not less than twenty years and up to life if death or serious bodily injury results. Simple possession is 21 USC 844(a), up to 1 year and a fine of at least 1,000 dollars on a first offence, with higher figures after a prior conviction. The section excepts a substance 'obtained directly, or pursuant to a valid prescription or order, from a practitioner, while acting in the course of his professional practice'.
If prescribed or medical
Prescription supply through the licensed channel is lawful. 21 USC 844(a) excepts a substance obtained on a valid prescription from a practitioner acting in the course of professional practice, and handling outside that channel is an offence under 21 USC 841 and the registration provisions at 21 USC 822 and 823.
Documentation
Carry any prescribed medicine in its original labelled container with the prescription. Federal law and the law of the state you are entering can differ, so confirm both before travel.
Primary sources
  • Controlled Substances Act, 21 USC 802, 812, 813, 841 and 844 (Office of the Law Revision Counsel)
  • 21 CFR 1308.11 to 1308.15 (Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, current as of 11 September 2026)
  • 91 FR 22714, 28 April 2026, for marijuana in an approved product or under a state medical licence
  • uscode.house.gov
  • ecfr.gov
  • federalregister.gov

What sentences have courts imposed for Cocaine in United States?

Prosecutions recorded in United States, each checked against the official document cited below it. Individuals are never named, and these are examples of what has happened, not a prediction of what will. How we verify a court case.

Across 2 verified cases, sentences ranged from 18 months to 126 months.

  • Investigators searched a 37-year-old man's home in Iowa in April 2025 and found around 101.56 grams of a mixture containing cocaine, together with about 6.14 pounds of marijuana, in a basement bathroom. He pleaded guilty to possessing a controlled substance with intent to distribute it. He was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment, fined 5,500 dollars, and ordered to serve three years of supervised release afterwards.

    2025a man, 37

    convicted on a guilty plea, 18 months' imprisonment, a $5,500 fine and three years of supervised release

    Substances recorded cocaine

    Source United States Department of Justice

  • A 36-year-old man drove towards a Border Patrol checkpoint in Texas in October 2024 with 28.6 kilograms of cocaine hidden in the speaker boxes in his boot. A detection dog alerted and officers found the bundles. He admitted that a former colleague had recruited him to transport the cocaine to Houston for six thousand dollars. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 126 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release.

    2024a man, 36

    convicted on a guilty plea, 126 months' imprisonment and five years of supervised release

    Substances recorded cocaine

    Source United States Department of Justice

Cocaine in related jurisdictions

Jurisdictions related to United States by shared drug statute, shared regulator or constitutional link. Each has its own separately verified status; a relationship is not a shared answer.

Other substances confirmed in United States

Same substance, other countries

Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with United States’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 →

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