What Is Japan’s Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act?

Japan’s Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act (Act No. 14 of 1953) is the country’s primary drug control statute, and it is one of the strictest in the developed world. It sorts controlled substances into appended tables, criminalizes unauthorized possession and import of anything on those tables, and applies with full force to foreign visitors — including the medications in your suitcase.¹ A December 2024 revision also folded cannabis into the Act as a narcotic. If you are planning a trip or a move to Japan, what the law covers and how to get necessary medication through customs legally are the things to know.

What the Act Covers

Instead of numbered schedules like U.S. federal law, the Act uses Appended Tables attached to the statute. Each table is its own legal category with its own penalties.¹

Appended Table I (Narcotics) is the most tightly controlled category. It covers heroin (diacetylmorphine), morphine, cocaine, codeine, oxycodone, and, since December 2024, cannabis and THC. Heroin is singled out within the table for the harshest penalties.
Appended Table III (Psychotropics) covers substances with medical use but abuse potential, including benzodiazepines and methylphenidate (the active ingredient in Concerta and Ritalin).
Appended Table IV (Raw Materials) covers precursor chemicals used to manufacture narcotics or psychotropics.

Where a substance sits determines who can legally handle it and how long you can go to prison for possessing it without authorization. The Japanese Cabinet can add substances by order, so the lists grow over time without a full legislative amendment.¹

One carve-out matters for travelers: products containing 1% or less of codeine or dihydrocodeine, and no other Table I substance, are classified as “exempt narcotics” and fall outside the strictest controls.¹ That carve-out can apply to some cough preparations, but it is narrow.

Methamphetamine and amphetamine sit outside the Act entirely, under a separate Stimulants Control Act. Enforcement is just as aggressive, and the distinction matters because amphetamine-based medications like Adderall are stimulants, not narcotics or psychotropics.

The 2024 Cannabis Reclassification

Until December 2024, cannabis was regulated under a separate Cannabis Control Act. That law criminalized possession and cultivation but, unusually, did not criminalize use itself. The 2024 revision reclassified cannabis and THC as narcotics under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act, and use became a criminal offense carrying up to seven years in prison.¹

The change also opened a path for cannabis-derived medical products to be approved in Japan through the same licensed channels that handle other narcotics such as morphine. On the enforcement side, CBD products above a threshold THC content are now treated as narcotics. If you are carrying CBD oil, assume customs will scrutinize it and be prepared to show third-party lab analysis of THC content.

Penalties

Sentences depend on which table the substance appears in, and heroin is treated far more severely than everything else.

Importing, exporting, or manufacturing heroin carries a minimum of one year in prison with no statutory maximum on the definite term. When the offense is profit-motivated, it becomes life imprisonment or a minimum of three years, with a potential fine of up to ¥10,000,000. Even attempts are punishable.¹

For other narcotics, including cannabis since 2024, unauthorized possession carries up to seven years. Possession for profit runs one to ten years with a potential fine of up to ¥3,000,000. Import, export, or manufacturing runs one to ten years, and the profit-motivated version has a minimum of one year with no statutory cap and a potential fine of up to ¥5,000,000.¹

Under the Stimulants Control Act, possession of methamphetamine or amphetamine carries up to ten years. Profit-motivated import or export can mean life imprisonment or a minimum of three years, with fines up to ¥10,000,000.²

Giving a controlled medication to another person is treated as transfer, not sharing, and falls within the same prohibitions as sale. These rules apply to Japanese citizens and foreign nationals identically.

Bringing Prescription Medication Into Japan

You can bring up to a one-month supply of most prescription medications into Japan without any special paperwork. Beyond that, or for any quantity of medications that are classified as narcotics or stimulant raw materials, you need advance authorization.³

Standard Prescriptions Over a One-Month Supply

You need a Yunyu Kakunin-sho (formerly the Yakkan Shoumei), an import confirmation certificate issued through the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s online portal.⁴ You submit a medical certificate from your prescribing physician explaining clinical necessity, the generic drug name, dosage per unit, total quantity, a copy of your prescription, and your travel itinerary. Processing can take up to four weeks, so apply at least a month before departure. Carry the printed certificate with the medication in its original pharmacy packaging and present it at customs. If the name on the certificate does not match your passport, expect problems.

Narcotic Medications

If your medication contains a narcotic substance such as morphine, codeine, or oxycodone, the Yunyu Kakunin-sho does not apply. You need separate permission from the Narcotics Control Department regardless of quantity, filed with the Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare that covers your arrival airport.⁵

Psychotropic Medications

Psychotropics follow a more lenient path. The Narcotics Control Department publishes an official quantity table. If your supply falls within the listed amount and the medication is not injectable, no certificate or advance permission is required. Beyond the table amount, or for injectables, you need a medical certificate from your doctor listing your name, diagnosis, treatment necessity, medication details, and the doctor’s signature.³

ADHD Medications

This is where travelers most often get caught. Japan treats common ADHD medications differently based on active ingredient, and the rules range from no paperwork to an outright criminal bar.

Adderall (amphetamine) is completely banned. Amphetamine is a stimulant under the Stimulants Control Act and cannot be imported under any circumstances, even with a valid foreign prescription and a doctor’s letter. There is no waiver.³
Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine) is permitted but classified as a stimulant raw material. You must obtain an import certificate from the Narcotics Control Department at least 14 days before travel. The application requires a medical certificate issued within the preceding three months and photos of the medication packaging.³
Concerta and Ritalin (methylphenidate) are classified as psychotropics. Within the official quantity table, no certificate is needed. Above the table amount, a medical certificate from your doctor is sufficient.³

These medications must be carried personally. You cannot mail them into Japan or have someone else carry them for you. If you take Adderall and plan to visit Japan, talk to your prescribing doctor about a temporary switch to a permitted medication.

Over-the-Counter Products That Cause Problems

Japan does not care how a drug is sold in your home country. Two common ingredients catch travelers out.

Pseudoephedrine is in many cold and sinus medications, including Sudafed. Because it is a methamphetamine precursor, it is regulated under the Stimulants Control Act. Products containing more than 10% pseudoephedrine are prohibited entirely.⁶ Below that threshold, you may bring up to a one-month supply.

Codeine appears in many cough syrups and combination cold medicines. Because codeine is a Table I narcotic, importing it in any quantity technically requires advance permission from the Narcotics Control Department.⁵ The “exempt narcotic” category covers products at 1% codeine or less, but the safer approach is to leave codeine-containing products at home and buy a substitute in Japan.

Immigration Consequences for Foreign Nationals

A drug conviction in Japan does not stop at the criminal sentence. Under the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, violating Japan’s narcotics, cannabis, stimulant, or psychotropic laws is a ground for denial of landing. In practice, that means deportation after you serve your sentence, followed by an indefinite bar on re-entry. The statute allows the Minister of Justice to grant individual exemptions in exceptional circumstances, but counting on that would be a mistake.⁷

Even smaller infractions, such as arriving with undocumented psychotropic medication, can result in several days of detention and confiscation. Japanese authorities share conviction data with foreign law enforcement, so a drug conviction in Japan can also create immigration problems in other countries.

Before you travel, check every medication you plan to bring against the Narcotics Control Department’s guidance, file any required applications with at least a month of lead time, and if a medication is prohibited, ask your doctor about alternatives available in Japan rather than trying to bring it anyway.

1
Japanese Law Translation. Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act
2
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. About the Penalties for Drug Offenses in Japan
3
Narcotics Control Department, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Application Guidance
4
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. Application for Import Confirmation
5
Embassy of Japan in the UK. Bringing Medicines to Japan
6
Consulate-General of Japan in Seattle. Customs Information
7
Japanese Law Translation. Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act