Is Ketamine legal in Sri Lanka?

Legal status

Controlled dangerous drug under the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (1929, as amended by Act No. 13 of 1984); the exact schedule placement is left to confirmation against the current Ordinance.

Consequences if caught

Unlawful possession or supply is punishable by imprisonment and/or a fine. The death penalty under Sec 54A targets the manufacture of heroin, cocaine, morphine or opium and the trafficking of specified Column-II dangerous drugs above threshold quantities; ketamine is not among those named capital drugs (and Sri Lanka has observed an execution moratorium since 1976), so it does not fall within the Sec 54A capital category.

If prescribed or medical

Ketamine sits OUTSIDE the 1961 and 1971 Convention schedules, so no INCB estimate or assessment establishes its licit national supply — ketamine-specific prescription availability in Sri Lanka is NOT CONFIRMED here; the control status above is what is established. Sri Lanka’s INCB traveller sheet (2014) exists but is a scanned image with no text layer, so we could not read its terms — carry the prescription and original packaging and confirm with the NMRA.

Documentation

Sri Lanka retains the death penalty for serious drug offences (Sec 54A), but it is NON-MANDATORY (treated as discretionary) and the country is under a long-standing EXECUTION MORATORIUM — death sentences are passed and people held on death row, but no executions have been carried out for decades. Cannabis is NOT a capital offence. Possession of under 1 g where the person agrees to rehabilitation can be diverted to treatment (2007 Act). 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 Sri Lanka’s embassy or official drug authority before traveling; penalties can be severe, including imprisonment.