Is Lorazepam legal in Nigeria?

Also known as: ativan

Legal status

Controlled. The Nigeria dossier places lorazepam under sections 11, 20 and 52 of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Act, Cap N30 (the NDLEA Act), on the incorporated schedule entry «Lorazepam.», and states that section 52 defines the controlled class by the 1961 or 1971 Convention schedules. The dossier does not say which of the two Conventions or which of their schedules prints the entry, and it does not name the edition of the schedules it read; it records the entry as checked on 20 September 2026 against the INCB list cited in source_url. The previous cell for this substance placed lorazepam in 1971 Schedule IV under sections 19 and 20 of the Act; that placement is not printed in the quotation the dossier row carries.

Consequences if caught

Capital exposure: none. The ceiling the dossier records for lorazepam is imprisonment for life: it states that sections 11(a) to (c) and 20(2)(a) of the Act prescribe life imprisonment for the specified production, trafficking or dealing conduct, that no quantity threshold is stated, and that the words «shall» and «be imprisonment for life» make the life term mandatory on the section's face. The previous cell for this substance recorded that psychotropic possession or dealing draws fixed terms of about fifteen to 25 years and that section 11 trafficking carries up to life, that the old capital drug provision was abolished in 1986 and expunged in 1989, and that a 2024 reintroduction bill for it was not enacted.

If prescribed or medical

The dossier row this cell rests on does not state a prescription or medical route for lorazepam.

Documentation

The dossier row this cell rests on does not state a traveller documentation rule for lorazepam.

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