Is Crack Cocaine legal in North Korea?
- Legal status
- Crack is the freebase (base) form of cocaine and has no separate legal identity in North Korea: it is controlled AS cocaine under the DPRK Criminal Code (2013 revision and later amendments), whose narcotics provisions cover cocaine and its preparations and thus reach the base/freebase form. Serious production and trafficking are capital-eligible, and this carries over to crack whether powder or base.
- Consequences if caught
- Production and trafficking of crack (as cocaine) are capital-eligible under the DPRK Criminal Code; enforcement is opaque and extrajudicial outcomes are reported.
- If prescribed or medical
- Cocaine has no recognised lawful therapeutic use; the crack/freebase base has no medicinal preparation and cannot be prescribed.
- Documentation
- No prescription documentation exists for crack/freebase cocaine.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with North Korea’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 →