Is Scopolamine (Devil's Breath) legal in France?
- Legal status
- Scopolamine (hyoscine) is a prescription/pharmacy medicine, not a stupéfiant: it holds ANSM marketing authorisation and the Scopoderm TTS motion-sickness patch is délivré sur ordonnance (prescription-only). Butylbromure de scopolamine (Scoburen, the Buscopan family) is a pharmacy antispasmodic.
- Consequences if caught
- Scopolamine carries no narcotics-law penalty; supply of the prescription patch outside the pharmacy circuit is a medicines-regulation breach, not a stupéfiants offence.
- If prescribed or medical
- Scopoderm TTS and injectable scopolamine (anaesthetic premedication, palliative secretions/death-rattle) are prescription medicines; butylbromure de scopolamine is dispensed for gastrointestinal and genitourinary spasm.
- Documentation
- Scopoderm TTS and scopolamine injectables are listed in the ANSM public medicines database; travellers carry the patch lawfully with a prescription.
Drug laws and enforcement change and vary within a country. This is not legal advice. Always confirm with France’s embassy or official drug authority before traveling; penalties can be severe, including imprisonment.
Before you travel
Verify current rules with the destination country’s official drug authority and your own country’s embassy before traveling. Find the destination’s U.S. embassy & official country guidance →
Non-U.S. travelers: check your own government’s travel advisory and embassy.
If you’re detained or arrested abroad
Contact your own country’s embassy or consulate in the destination immediately — not the destination’s authorities. U.S. citizens: contact the nearest U.S. embassy/consulate and the U.S. State Department at +1-202-501-4444 (from abroad). If a U.S. citizen is arrested or detained abroad →