Bringing medicine into the UAE: what Australians must check before packing

Some medicines your Australian GP prescribes without a second thought are controlled in the UAE, and a few are banned. The fix is simple and free: check the list, get a MOHAP permit, and carry the paperwork.

The short version

• Smartraveller warns that some medicines may be illegal in the UAE even if an Australian doctor prescribed them [1].
• Narcotic and psychotropic medicines need prior approval from the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP). The permit is free and applied for online [2].
• Travellers can bring no more than a three-month supply, with a prescription and a doctor's letter [1][2].
• CBD products are illegal in the UAE, and a positive drug test counts as possession, no matter where you used the drug [1][5].
• Taking PBS medicine overseas for anyone but yourself is illegal in Australia, so family can't post your supply to Dubai [6].

Why this catches Australians out

At home, your medicine cabinet is governed by the TGA's schedules, and a prescription is a prescription. The UAE runs its own lists. MOHAP regulates narcotic and psychotropic medicines, which it calls controlled medications, and keeps a published list of controlled medicines that shows which need a permit and which are prohibited [2][3][4].

The penalties for getting it wrong are not Australian penalties. The UAE has a zero-tolerance policy on drugs, and Smartraveller notes that possession can lead to long jail terms and heavy fines, that you can be convicted for 0.05g or less, and that labs can take days or weeks to test a suspicious substance while you wait in custody [1]. That applies to transit passengers too [1]. A packet of pills without the right paperwork is a bad way to start a posting.

The good news: legitimate patients aren't the target. If you check, apply and declare, the system is straightforward.

Which medicines to check

MOHAP's list of controlled medicines is the only list that counts, and it changes. Dubai's government portal points to it, together with Federal Decree-Law No. 38 of 2024 on medical products, and MOHAP's own drug control rules [4]. Gulf News reported in 2025 that the MOHAP document covers more than 200 medicines, split into Class A (narcotic and psychotropic) and Class B (semi-controlled) [3].

We haven't reproduced the list here because it can change without warning. Instead, here's how to spot the medicines most worth checking. If a medicine you take falls into one of these groups, look it up by its generic name, not the brand.

Over-the-counter products deserve a look too. GOV.UK points out that some British over-the-counter medicines are controlled in the UAE [8]. The same logic applies to anything in your Australian travel kit with codeine or a sedating antihistamine. When in doubt, check.

The MOHAP permit, step by step

The service is called "Issue of Permit to Import Medicines for Personal Use". It's free, and it's for narcotic and psychotropic medicines [2]. Residents aged 18 and over apply for themselves, and a guardian applies for children [2]. Visitors can also apply [2]. GOV.UK says the UAE authorities advise applications are processed within five working days, so apply at least two weeks before you fly [8].

What you need

• A prescription issued in the last three months, stamped by the clinic, showing your full name, the medicine and dose, the form, how long the treatment runs, the date and the doctor's name [2].
• A medical report issued in the last year, with your diagnosis and treatment plan. MOHAP lists it as optional, but it helps [2].
• ID. Residents use their Emirates ID; visitors use a passport [3].

How to apply

1. Check each medicine against MOHAP's list of controlled medicines, using the generic name [4].
2. Ask your Australian GP for a fresh prescription and a medical report that meet the requirements above. Ask for both to be on clinic letterhead and stamped.
3. Log in to the MOHAP website or app. Residents use UAE Pass. Visitors create an account and activate it from the email link [2][3].
4. Find the service "Issue of Permit to Import Medicines for Personal Use" [3].
5. Enter your trip details, including where you're travelling from and how long you'll stay [3].
6. Add each medicine with its name, strength, generic name, pack size and total quantity [3].
7. Upload your documents and submit [2][3].
8. Download and print the approval certificate when MOHAP sends it by SMS or email [3]. Keep it with your medicine and a copy on your phone.

If you didn't get approval in advance

Travellers without prior approval must declare narcotic and controlled medicines when they arrive, with the prescription and medical report [2]. Declaring is far better than not, but arriving with a permit is the smoother option. If you're only transiting and don't leave the airport, MOHAP says prior approval isn't needed, though you should carry the prescription [2]. Smartraveller still applies the three-month limit to transit [1].

Packing it

A few habits make the airport easy:

• Keep medicine in its original packaging with the pharmacy label showing your name. Services Australia asks for this for PBS medicines anyway [6].
• Carry a doctor's letter listing each medicine, its dose and that it's for your personal use [1].
• Bring no more than three months' supply [1][2]. If you're moving for good, plan to switch to a Dubai prescriber within that window.
• Pack it in your cabin bag, in case your checked luggage goes missing.
• Allow for delays so you don't run short on the trip [1].

CBD, medicinal cannabis and vapes

This is the one to get right. GOV.UK says some products containing CBD are illegal in the UAE, that some skincare and e-cigarette refills contain illegal ingredients such as CBD oil, and that airport screening detects cannabis, even residual amounts [5]. Smartraveller adds that you can be charged for traces on your body, clothes or luggage, and warns against carrying anything that could be mistaken for drugs, including cannabis-flavoured products [1].

Australia is different. Medicinal cannabis is legal on prescription, and many Australians use it for pain, sleep or anxiety. Smartraveller is clear that in the UAE a positive blood or urine test is treated as possession, wherever and whenever you took the drug [1]. Talk to your doctor well before you fly about stopping it and what to use instead. Then wash or leave behind any bag that carried it.

The Australian side: PBS, scripts and staying supplied

Once you're living in Dubai, you can't rely on home for your supply. Services Australia says it's illegal to take PBS medicine overseas for anyone other than yourself or someone you're travelling with, even family, with fines of up to $11,000 and up to two years in prison [6]. Posting PBS medicine overseas is only allowed to Commonwealth or state officers working abroad and their families [7]. So Mum can't post your repeat scripts to Jumeirah.

The practical plan for residents:

1. Bring three months' supply with a permit.
2. See a DHA-licensed doctor in Dubai within the first month, with your Australian medical report, to get a local prescription.
3. Check the price and cover with your UAE health insurance. Our health insurance guide explains how plans work.
4. Renew the permit if you bring more controlled medicine back after a trip to Australia.

If you're ever detained, ask for the Australian Consulate-General in Dubai (+971 4 508 7100) or the Embassy in Abu Dhabi (+971 2 401 7500) [1]. Consular staff can't override UAE law, so the paperwork is your real protection.

Want to know which Dubai pharmacies stock your brand? Ask in Cooee UAE, our Facebook group for Australians in the UAE.

Sources

1. United Arab Emirates travel advice – Smartraveller (DFAT)
2. Issue of permit to import medicines for personal use – Ministry of Health and Prevention
3. How to bring prescription or controlled medicines into the UAE legally – Gulf News (August 2025)
4. Controlled medicines – Dubai.ae (April 2026)
5. United Arab Emirates travel advice: safety and security – GOV.UK
6. How to manage your PBS medicine overseas – Services Australia
7. Posting PBS medicine overseas – Services Australia
8. United Arab Emirates travel advice: health – GOV.UK

Keep reading

• Health insurance in Dubai: what your employer must cover
• Moving to Dubai from Australia: the complete guide
• Medicare when you live abroad
• Consular help and Smartraveller for Australians abroad