Is Opium legal in Dominican Republic?

Legal status

Controlled. Opium is carried by six entries at the head of acápite I of Categoría II of article 8 of Ley 50-88, «Opio crudo» under code 9600, «Extractos de opio» under 9610, «Extractos de líquidos opiáceos» under 9620, «Opio en polvo» under 9639, «Opio granulado» under 9640 and «Tintura de Opio» under 9630, with «Concentrado del tallo de opio» at number 17 under code 9670.

Consequences if caught

Opium is the second limb article 7 names in its own words, so the trafficker classification attaches at any quantity and the article 5 and article 6 scales have nothing to say about it. Article 7 is the harshest rule in the law and it carries no quantity at all: «Cuando se trate de LSD o cualquier otra sustancia alucinógena, lo mismo que el opio y sus derivados, en la cantidad que fuera, se clasificará a la persona o las personas procesadas como traficantes.» The effect is that the article 75 role scale starts at its trafficker band for this row rather than at simple possession, so the prison band is five to twenty years. The quantity scales that decide which of those roles a case falls into are printed for cocaine in article 5 and for marihuana and hashish in article 6, and Ley 50-88 prints no quantity scale for any other substance. The fine for a trafficker is not less than the value of the drugs seized and never less than RD$50,000, and for a patrocinador not less than RD$1,000,000. Article 59 adds five to twenty years with a fine of not less than RD$250,000 for taking a controlled drug into or out of the national territory in international traffic, and thirty years with a fine of not less than RD$1,000,000 where the Dominican Republic is the final destination. Article 58 classifies illicit trafficking, the manufacture, distribution or possession of equipment for producing controlled drugs, and the acquisition or laundering of the proceeds, as delitos graves to be punished with the maximum of the penalties and the fines, and its párrafo calls illicit trafficking an international offence. Article 85 doubles the penalty for a reincident trafficker or patrocinador and caps the resulting prison term at thirty years, and article 87 withdraws provisional liberty on bail, conditional liberty and the conditional pardon of the sentence from every offence in this law. Those figures are set out here because they describe the offences that this row's placement brings into play. Ley 50-88 provides no death penalty for any drug offence, and the highest prison term it prints anywhere is thirty years.

If prescribed or medical

Not a prescribed traveller medicine in this form. If you are carrying any other controlled medicine, carry it in its original packaging with the prescription and the dispensing label, and confirm the requirement with your embassy before travel.

Documentation

Article 9(a) names «El opio en todas sus formas, todos sus derivados (alcaloides, sales, preparados o sustitutos sintéticos)» among the drugs the law calls the most dangerous. Acápite III of Categoría III and acápite I of Categoría V place dilute opium preparations in lower Categorías at not more than 500 milligrams and not more than 100 milligrams per 100 millilitres or 100 grams respectively, so the strength of a preparation can move it between Categorías. There is no medical cannabis programme in the Dominican Republic and CBD is treated the same as THC. The United States embassy warns of zero tolerance enforcement in which small quantities can lead to arrest, and it states that United States cannabis or medical marijuana cards are not recognised.

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