Legality
Methylphenidate legal status by country
Also known as: ritalin
Countries where the legal status of Methylphenidate has been confirmed against a primary source. Legal information, not legal advice; drug laws change, so confirm with the destination’s embassy or drug authority before you travel.
Confirmed legal status
Each row links to the full detail for Methylphenidate in that country, including consequences and the primary source.
- Aceh (Indonesia)Psikotropika Golongan II under Indonesia's national Psychotropics Law No. 5/1997 (the Aceh qanun does not...
- AlbaniaMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Albania. The operative list is the set of narcotic, psychotropic...
- American Samoa (US)Methylphenidate is controlled federally and locally. Federal Schedule II under the Controlled Substances Act,...
- AngolaControlled. Metilfenidato is in table II-B of Lei n.º 3/99. Trafficking carries 8 to 12 years. Personal use...
- Antigua and BarbudaControlled. It is a Class B drug. It is printed in Part II of the First Schedule to the Misuse of Drugs Act,...
- ArgentinaControlled. Named individually in Anexo I, Fila 621 of Decreto 560/2019 as substituted by Decreto 122/2026,...
- ArmeniaControlled in Armenia. The annex to Government Decision N 1129-Ն of 21 August 2003, at controlled lists 1 to...
- AustraliaControlled medicine. Methylphenidate is named in Schedule 8 of F2026L01327 as «METHYLPHENIDATE.». Criminal...
- AustriaA Suchtgift in Austrian law, listed rather than inferred. In the Suchtgiftverordnung, Annex IV.1 carries...
- BahamasControlled. The 1994 Application Order prints «METHYLPHENIDATE» with the chemical name «Methyl...
- BahrainControlled. Methylphenidate is placed in Group II Schedule 2 of the annex, in Bahrain's Law 15 of 2007 on...
- BangladeshMethylphenidate is named in Class 'kha' at serial 4 of the First Schedule, spelled «Methylphenedate» in the...
- BarbadosPlaced in Part II of the First Schedule, the «list OF psychotropic substances under control». That placement...
- BelarusMethylphenidate is controlled in Belarus. The annexes to Постановление Министерства здравоохранения № 19 от...
- BelgiumMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Belgium because it is listed. The Royal Decree of 6 September...
- BelizeMethylphenidate is printed in Belize's Misuse of Drugs Regulations at Schedule II paragraph 6, in the Misuse...
- Bermuda (UK)Controlled under Bermuda's own Misuse of Drugs Act 1972. Methylphenidate is named in Schedule 2 Part I, the...
- BoliviaControlled. The Anexo to Ley 913 of 16 March 2017 carries the entry METILFENIDATO in Lista II under the...
- Bosnia and HerzegovinaControlled. The list attached to the 2006 Law, as consolidated through Official Gazette 56/26 with the...
- BrazilControlled in Brazil. The entry read is item 12 of lista A3, psychotropic substances, and it reads in full:...
- British Virgin Islands (UK)Controlled as a Class B drug under the Drugs (Prevention of Misuse) Act, Cap. 178. Part II of Schedule 2...
- BruneiClass B controlled drug. It sits in the First Schedule to the Misuse of Drugs Act, Chapter 27 of the Laws of...
- BulgariaControlled. Methylphenidate is a named entry of Списък II of the Наредба за реда за класифициране на...
- CambodiaControlled psychotropic (UN-Convention schedule) under the Law on Drug Control (2012); import only for...
- CanadaSchedule III substance under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA), 'Methylphenidate and any salt...
- Cayman Islands (UK)Controlled under the Cayman Islands' own Misuse of Drugs Act (2026 Revision). Methylphenidate is named in...
- ChileControlled. Decreto 867 artículo 1, the lista of substances capable of grave toxic effects or considerable...
- ChinaCategory I psychotropic substance under the Regulation on the Administration of Narcotic and Psychotropic...
- ColombiaControlled. Anexo Técnico 1 of Resolución 116 de 2026, the Ministry of Health resolution of 27 January 2026...
- Costa RicaControlled. Article 1 of Ley 7786, as integrally reformed by Ley 8204, fixes the scope by reference to the...
- Côte d'IvoireControlled under Loi n° 2022-407 du 13 juin 2022, which adopts the UN Convention tables by article 45:...
- CroatiaMethylphenidate is a psihotropna tvar, a psychotropic substance, in Croatia. The Popis droga, psihotropnih...
- CyprusControlled under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law of 1977 (Law No. 29/1977, as amended;...
- CzechiaMethylphenidate is a psychotropní látka, a psychotropic substance, in Czechia. Nařízení vlády č. 463/2013 Sb....
- DenmarkControlled under the Danish euphoriants legislation. Named on liste B of bekendtgoerelse nr. 405 af 26. marts...
- DominicaMethylphenidate is a Class B controlled drug under the Drugs (Prevention of Misuse) Act, Chapter 40:07. Part...
- Dominican RepublicControlled. Methylphenidate is the entry «Metilfenidato» at number 4 of acápite II of Categoría II of article...
- EgyptControlled as a narcotic substance in the second section of Egypt's Table 1. «الجدول رقم (١) - الجواهر...
- El SalvadorControlled under the Ley Reguladora de las Actividades Relativas a las Drogas, Decreto Legislativo 153 of 2...
- EstoniaMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Estonia. The national schedule is Annex 1 to Minister of Social...
- Falkland Islands (UK)Class B controlled drug in the Falkland Islands, or Class A in a preparation designed for injection. Part 2...
- Faroe Islands (Denmark)Controlled in the Faroe Islands. Methylphenidate is named on liste B nr. 327 of bekendtgørelse nr. 495 af 26....
- FinlandControlled. Methylphenidate is a narcotic in Finland by name. Section 1 of valtioneuvoston asetus...
- FranceMethylphenidate is classified as a narcotic in France. The consolidated order of 22 February 1990 fixing the...
- GeorgiaMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Georgia. The dossier places it on the annexes to Law No. 624,...
- GermanyMethylphenidate is a named narcotic in the prescribable tier of the German schedules. The dossier records the...
- GhanaControlled under the Narcotics Control Commission Act 2020 (Act 1019): Seventh Schedule Part 2 item 1 names...
- Gibraltar (UK)Class B controlled drug under Gibraltar's Crimes Act 2011. Methylphenidate is named in Schedule 5, the list...
- GreeceControlled narcotic under Law 4139/2013. Methylphenidate is entry 53 of ΠΙΝΑΚΑΣ Γ, the third table, an entry...
- GrenadaControlled. It is listed at Part II of the First Schedule, the List of Psychotropic Substances Under Control,...
- GuatemalaIllegal under the Ley contra la Narcoactividad (Decreto 48-92), articles 38 and 39.
- GuyanaControlled. The term the dossier records for this row against the First and Second Schedules to the Narcotic...
- HondurasControlled. Methylphenidate is named in Lista II del Convenio de 1971, and Article 321 of the Código Penal...
- Hong KongA dangerous drug in Hong Kong. Part I of the First Schedule to the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Cap. 134), in...
- HungaryControlled. Methylphenidate is a named entry of the P2 jegyzék carried in the 2. melléklet to 78/2022. (XII....
- IcelandControlled in Iceland. It is printed in Fylgiskjal I as "Methylphenidate", with "Phenidylate" in the Annað...
- IndiaControlled in India. The matched entry reads «21 METHYLPHENIDATE 2-Phenyl-2(2-piperidyl) acetic acid, methyl...
- IndonesiaPsikotropika Golongan II under Indonesia's Undang-Undang Nomor 5 Tahun 1997 tentang Psikotropika:...
- IranMethylphenidate is placed at entry 13 of Schedule 2 of the four psychotropic schedules adopted 1384/09/13,...
- IraqControlled psychotropic. Schedule Six carries METHYLPHENIDATE at serial 7, described as «methyl...
- IrelandMethylphenidate is a controlled drug in Ireland. The placement recorded for this row is: Schedule 2; S.I....
- IsraelControlled. Named in the First Schedule of the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance [New Version], 5733-1973 at חלק ב'...
- ItalyControlled. The Ministry of Health compilation of the DPR 309/1990 tables carries «metilfenidato» as an...
- JapanMethylphenidate is a 向精神薬, a psychotropic, named in the Act's own 別表第三 in Japan. The entry is...
- JordanMethylphenidate is a psychotropic substance under Law No. 23 of 2016, the Jordanian narcotic drugs and...
- KazakhstanMethylphenidate is named in Kazakhstan's controlled list. The first of the three documents Government...
- KenyaControlled under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Control) Act, Cap. 245, by name in the...
- KuwaitControlled substance under Decree Law 159 of 2025. Methylphenidate is listed at Group 2, table 2, serial P2-6.
- KyrgyzstanControlled in Kyrgyzstan. Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 152 of 26 March 2025 names methylphenidate in...
- LatviaMethylphenidate is controlled in Latvia. The controlling instrument is Annex 2 to the law on the entry into...
- LebanonControlled. Methylphenidate is placed in Table 2 of the annex to Law 673 of 16 March 1998, in the 1971...
- LithuaniaMethylphenidate is controlled in Lithuania. Order No. 5 names methylphenidate. The entry relied on reads...
- MacauControlled in Macau. Law 17/2009 Table II-B, item 14, prints «哌醋甲酯 / Metilfenidato». Ritalin is a brand of...
- MalaysiaMethylphenidate is a psychotropic substance under the Poisons Act 1952, named in the Third Schedule and in...
- MaltaMethylphenidate is governed by the Medical and Kindred Professions Ordinance, Chapter 31, and not by the...
- MexicoMethylphenidate is named in Mexican law as an estupefaciente. Article 234 of the Ley General de Salud opens...
- MoldovaControlled in Moldova. Methylphenidate is in Table II, «Tabelul național II. Substanțe, plante și medicamente...
- MontenegroControlled in Montenegro. The operative list is the Pravilnik o utvrđivanju spiska droga, psihotropnih...
- MyanmarIllegal in Myanmar. Methylphenidate is listed at Notification 25/2025, List 2, and that listing is the whole...
- NetherlandsControlled as a hard drug. Methylphenidate is named in lijst I of the Opiumwet, the hard drug list, and the...
- New ZealandControlled, and named rather than inferred. Schedule 2 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 names or describes...
- NicaraguaControlled in Nicaragua. The entry relied on is «Metilfenidato», printed among the lists and tables annexed...
- NigeriaControlled. The Nigeria dossier places methylphenidate under sections 11, 20 and 52 of the National Drug Law...
- North MacedoniaControlled in North Macedonia. The classification list made under the control Act prints a row for...
- NorwayControlled in Norway. Methylphenidate is named in the narkotikaliste, the list made under section 4 of the...
- OmanControlled, and outside the death penalty article. Methylphenidate is named in Group II, Table 2, serial 53...
- PakistanMethylphenidate is a psychotropic substance under the Control of Narcotic Substances Act, 1997. Section 2(za)...
- PanamaControlled. Methylphenidate is reached by the Panamanian criminal definition of a drug, not by a national...
- ParaguayControlled. Named in Lista II of the psicotropicos sheet of the schedule made under article 1 of Ley...
- PeruThis substance is carried by Peru's controlling schedule. Anexo N. 2 of the Reglamento approved by Decreto...
- PhilippinesA dangerous drug under RA 9165. Methylphenidate is printed as "METHYLPHENIDATE" on page 18 of the Dangerous...
- PolandControlled. Poland names this substance in its own national list. «METYLOFENIDAT» is entry lp. 32 in group...
- PortugalControlled psychotropic, Tabela II-B under Decreto-Lei 15/93; therapeutically available/prescribable for ADHD.
- QatarControlled in Qatar at Table 2-B item 6 of Law No. 9 of 1987. The annex prints the entry as «6 -...
- RomaniaMethylphenidate is controlled in Romania. The entry relied on reads «Methylphenidate =...
- RussiaControlled in Russia. Decree 681 lists methylphenidate at the entry «Метилфенидат (риталин) и его...
- Saint LuciaControlled. Class B drug under section 4(1)(b), specified in Part II of Schedule 2. The entry as printed is...
- SamoaMethylphenidate is named as item 16 of the Second Schedule to the Narcotics Act 1967, 'METHYLPHENIDATE...
- Saudi ArabiaMethylphenidate is a controlled psychotropic substance in Saudi Arabia, placed at Schedule II Category B of...
- SerbiaMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Serbia. The dossier behind this cell places it on the Spisak...
- SingaporeClass B controlled drug. Misuse of Drugs Act 1973 (Singapore), First Schedule, Part 2 (Class B Drugs),...
- SlovakiaMethylphenidate is controlled in Slovakia. Annex 1 to Act No. 139/1998 names methylphenidate. The entry...
- SloveniaControlled in Slovenia. The annex to the Uredba o razvrstitvi prepovedanih drog names metilfenidat at Group...
- Solomon IslandsControlled. Methylphenidate is named in the schedule to the proclamation of 21 September 1987 (LN 101 of...
- South AfricaControlled as a dangerous dependence-producing substance under Schedule 2 Part II of the Drugs and Drug...
- South KoreaControlled psychotropic under the Narcotics Control Act; legally prescribable domestically and import permits...
- SpainControlled in Spain as a sustancia psicotrópica under Real Decreto 2829/1977. Methylphenidate is entry 16 of...
- Sri LankaDangerous drug under Sri Lanka's Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (Chapter 218): Group B Section...
- SudanScheduled psychotropic under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropics Control Act 1994; a controlled medicine.
- SurinameIllegal, and the entry carries a printing error worth quoting exactly. Lijst I onderdeel D prints it as...
- SwedenControlled. Metylfenidat is named in Förteckning II of the Swedish narkotikaförteckningar, which are...
- SwitzerlandControlled. The federal schedule ordinance BetmVV-EDI carries methylphenidate in list a, where the entry...
- SyriaScheduled psychotropic under Narcotics Law No. 2 of 1993; a controlled medicine.
- TaiwanCategory 3 narcotic (第三級毒品) under Taiwan's Narcotics Hazard Prevention Act (毒品危害防制條例), named at...
- TajikistanControlled in Tajikistan. The National List approved by Government Resolution No. 121 of 27 February 2020...
- TanzaniaControlled by name. The First Schedule of the Drug Control and Enforcement Act Cap 95 R.E. 2023 carries the...
- ThailandMethylphenidate is not named in Thailand's criminal drug schedules. A substance specific sweep, run in Thai...
- Timor-LesteNamed. Tabela II-B, item 13, of Anexo II to Lei n.º 2/2017, de 25 de Janeiro, reads: "Metilfenidato - éster...
- TongaNamed directly. Schedule 1 of the Illicit Drugs Control Act, page 22, lists 'Methylphenidate' under the...
- TurkeyMethylphenidate is a controlled substance in Turkey and the dossier carries it under the schedule name...
- U.S. Virgin Islands (US)Methylphenidate is controlled federally. Federal Schedule II under the Controlled Substances Act, 21 CFR...
- UkraineControlled in Ukraine by name, and it is a first line prescription medicine at the same time. Постанова №...
- United Arab EmiratesMethylphenidate is a Schedule 6 psychotropic under Decision No. 158 of 2025, at the printed entry «ميثيل...
- United KingdomControlled as a Class B drug. Part II of Schedule 2 to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 names it at paragraph...
- United StatesControlled. Schedule II under the Controlled Substances Act, at 21 CFR 1308.12(d)(4). Listed by name. This...
- UruguayControlled. The national list is the Anexo I enacted by article 6 of Decreto 198/025 of 25 September 2025,...
- UzbekistanControlled in Uzbekistan. Methylphenidate is named in its own row of the quantity annexes to Cabinet of...
- VenezuelaControlled. Ley Orgánica de Drogas article 3 identifies estupefacientes as the substances figuring in lista I...
- VietnamControlled. Methylphenidate is printed in List IIB of the danh mục annexed to Nghị định 28/2026/NĐ-CP, in...
- YemenScheduled psychotropic under the Law on Control of Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances (Law No. 3 of 1993);...
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Not individually verified
For these 95 countries the governing national drug law is known and cited, but we have not verified that Methylphenidate specifically is scheduled under it. These are not legal answers and are deliberately not published as their own pages. Confirm with the country’s drug authority or your embassy.
- Afghanistan
- Algeria
- Andorra
- Anguilla (UK)
- Aruba (Netherlands)
- Azerbaijan
- Benin
- Bhutan
- Botswana
- Burkina Faso
- Burundi
- Cabo Verde
- Cameroon
- Caribbean Netherlands (BES)
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Comoros
- Congo
- Cook Islands
- Cuba
- Curaçao (Netherlands)
- Djibouti
- DR Congo
- Ecuador
- Equatorial Guinea
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Fiji
- French Polynesia (France)
- Gabon
- Gambia
- Guam (US)
- Guernsey (UK Crown Dependency)
- Guinea
- Guinea-Bissau
- Haiti
- Holy See
- Isle of Man (UK Crown Dependency)
- Jamaica
- Jersey (UK Crown Dependency)
- Kiribati
- Kosovo
- Laos
- Lesotho
- Liberia
- Libya
- Liechtenstein
- Luxembourg
- Madagascar
- Malawi
- Maldives
- Mali
- Marshall Islands
- Mauritania
- Mauritius
- Micronesia
- Monaco
- Mongolia
- Montserrat (UK)
- Morocco
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- Nauru
- Nepal
- New Caledonia (France)
- Niger
- North Korea
- Northern Mariana Islands (US)
- Palau
- Papua New Guinea
- Puerto Rico (US)
- Rwanda
- Saint Helena (UK)
- Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
- San Marino
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Senegal
- Seychelles
- Sierra Leone
- Sint Maarten (Netherlands)
- Somalia
- South Sudan
- State of Palestine
- Togo
- Trinidad and Tobago
- Tunisia
- Turkmenistan
- Turks and Caicos Islands (UK)
- Tuvalu
- Uganda
- Vanuatu
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
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