Is Hydrocodone legal in Angola?

Legal status

Controlled. Hidrocodona is in table I-A of Lei n.º 3/99. Trafficking carries 8 to 12 years. Personal use is a crime, not an administrative matter.

Consequences if caught

The tables annexed to Lei n.º 3/99 print this substance as 'Hidrocodona' in table I-A. Trafficking is article 4.º of Lei n.º 3/99. Article 4(1) covers cultivating, producing, manufacturing, offering, selling, distributing, buying, transporting, importing, exporting or unlawfully holding a substance in tables I to III, and reads 'é punido com pena de prisão maior de 8 a 12 anos', in translation that it is punished with major imprisonment of 8 to 12 years. The Supreme Court states the same range in its own words: in Proc. n.º 4790/20 of 14 September 2023 it wrote 'O crime de estupefaciente e outras actividades ilícitas é punido com a pena abstrata de 8 (oito) a 12 (doze) anos de prisão'. Acting against an authorisation actually granted raises that to 12 to 16 years under article 4(2). Where the unlawfulness of the act is considerably diminished, article 8 gives 2 to 8 years instead. Where the sole purpose of that conduct is to obtain the substance for personal use, article 9(1) reduces the sentence to up to 2 years and a corresponding fine, but article 9(3) withdraws that relief once the quantity exceeds what is needed for five days of average individual consumption. Personal use is a separate crime and it has not been decriminalised. Article 23(1) reads 'Aquele que ilicitamente consumir ou, para o seu consumo, cultivar, adquirir ou detiver plantas, substâncias ou preparações compreendidas nas tabelas I a IV, é punido com pena de prisão até três meses', in translation that consuming, or growing, buying or holding for one's own consumption a substance in tables I to IV is punished with imprisonment of up to three months. Article 23(2) raises that to up to 1 year where the quantity exceeds what is needed for three days of average individual consumption. Angola has no administrative commission and no possession threshold that makes the conduct lawful. Angola is a Portuguese model jurisdiction that has not followed Portugal's decriminalisation. No death penalty.

If prescribed or medical

Prescription supply through the licensed channel is lawful. Lei n.º 3/99 punishes a doctor who prescribes or hands over a listed substance for a non therapeutic purpose, and a pharmacist who sells or hands one over for such a purpose, under article 10.

Documentation

Carry any prescribed medicine in its original packaging with the prescription. Angola is outside the Schengen certificate scheme, so confirm import conditions for a controlled medicine with the Angolan authorities before travel.

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