Bringing medication into Japan: ADHD meds, Sudafed and the Yunyu Kakunin-sho

Some medicines a GP in Brisbane prescribes without blinking are illegal in Japan. Work out which group yours falls into before you book the flight.

The short version

• Amphetamine-based ADHD medicines, including dexamphetamine and Adderall, can't be brought into Japan even with a prescription [1].
• Codeine, oxycodone and morphine are narcotics. You need advance permission from Japan's Narcotics Control Department, whatever the amount [1][2].
• Cold and flu tablets containing pseudoephedrine, such as some Sudafed products, are on Japan's prohibited list [3].
• Ordinary prescription medicines are fine up to a one-month supply. More than that needs an import certificate, the Yunyu Kakunin-sho, before you fly [4][5].
• Once you live in Japan, plan to switch to a Japanese doctor and prescription. You can't get PBS refills sent over from home [6][7].

Why Japan is so strict

Japan's drug laws are among the toughest in the developed world, and they apply to medicines as well as recreational drugs. The Stimulants Control Law bans amphetamine and methamphetamine outright [3]. Smartraveller warns that some medication is banned, that authorities could detain you if you're found with it, and that narcotic medicines like codeine can be confiscated if you arrive without the right certificate [8].

What surprises Australians is that legality at home means nothing at Narita or Haneda. Your script, your pharmacist's label and your doctor's letter won't help if the active ingredient is prohibited in Japan. The rules follow the ingredient, not the brand name, so read the small print on the box.

Which group is your medicine in?

Japan sorts medicines into a few groups, each with its own rules. Here's how common Australian medicines fall, based on the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) and its Narcotics Control Department [1][4].

A note on tramadol: the Narcotics Control Department says tramadol is not a narcotic in Japan [1]. That doesn't mean unlimited quantities, so the one-month rule still applies.

ADHD medication: the big one

This is the question we see most from Australians moving to Tokyo. The answer depends entirely on the ingredient. Even Japan's consulate in Melbourne doesn't advise on individual medicines; it sends people with ADHD medication straight to the Narcotics Control Department's application guidance [9].

• Dexamphetamine or Adderall: you can't bring it in. Talk to your Australian psychiatrist months before you leave about switching to something that's legal in Japan, and allow time to settle on the new dose.
• Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine): possible, but only with advance permission from the Narcotics Control Department [1][4].
• Ritalin or Concerta (methylphenidate): classed as a psychotropic, so it can come in without permission within the quantity limit. Bigger amounts need a doctor's certificate [1].
• Non-stimulants such as atomoxetine or guanfacine aren't listed as controlled by the department [1]. Treat them as ordinary prescription medicines with the one-month limit.

Once you're living here, ADHD medicines are prescribed in Japan, but stimulant-type prescribing is tightly controlled and not every clinic can do it. Ask an English-speaking psychiatric clinic early, before your Australian supply runs out.

The Yunyu Kakunin-sho: bringing more than a month's supply

Moving countries often means carrying three or six months of tablets while you find a doctor. For anything over the limits above, you need a Yunyu Kakunin-sho (import confirmation certificate) issued before you leave home [5].

1. Check the ingredient isn't banned or controlled. If it's a narcotic or stimulant raw material, apply to the Narcotics Control Department instead (see below).
2. Apply online through the MHLW's Application for Import Confirmation site, which has an English version [4]. Email applications as PDFs are also accepted [5].
3. Include the documents: the application form, a product list, a copy of your prescription showing your doctor's name, and proof of your arrival date and airport, such as your e-ticket [5].
4. Send it to the right office. For Narita and Haneda, that's the Kanto-Shin'etsu Regional Bureau of Health and Welfare. Kansai and Chubu go to the Kinki bureau [2][5].
5. Allow time. Processing usually takes a few business days, not counting weekends and Japanese holidays [5]. Apply weeks ahead, not the night before.
6. Carry the certificate with your medicine and show it to customs if asked. A copy is fine, but the contents of your luggage must match what's listed [5].

Insulin users can relax a little: self-injection kits and pre-filled syringes within a one-month supply don't need a certificate. Syringes on their own do, even one [5].

Narcotics and Vyvanse: the Narcotics Control Department route

For codeine, oxycodone, morphine, lisdexamfetamine and other narcotics or stimulant raw materials, the application goes to the Narcotics Control Department [1]. You'll need:

• the import application form (and the export form if you'll take some back out)
• a medical certificate signed by your doctor, issued within the last three months, with your name, address, a specific medical reason and the dose and strength of each medicine. "For travel" isn't accepted as a reason
• photos of the packaging showing the medicine's name and strength [1]

Apply at least two weeks before you fly. The department says Tokyo won't accept last-minute applications, and it publishes earlier deadlines over New Year. For arrivals from 21 December 2026 to 4 January 2027, applications are due by 7 December [1]. You must carry the medicine yourself. You can't post it or have someone else bring it [1].

Sudafed, Nurofen Plus and the bathroom cabinet

The trouble often isn't the prescription. It's the packet of cold and flu tablets someone throws in a toiletry bag.

• Pseudoephedrine: Japan's embassies list products containing it, naming Sudafed, Actifed and Vicks inhalers, among prohibited items [3]. In Australia, pseudoephedrine Sudafed is sold from behind the pharmacy counter, while phenylephrine versions sit on the shelf. Check the active ingredient.
• Codeine: codeine products such as Nurofen Plus or Panadeine have been prescription-only in Australia since 2018, and Japan treats codeine as a narcotic needing a certificate [1][8]. Leave them at home.
• Melatonin, sleep aids and supplements: check the ingredient list. Japan restricts some products sold abroad with claims about mental or cognitive effects [4].

If in doubt, email the regional bureau for your arrival airport with the product name, active ingredients, form and amount [5].

Posting medicine from Australia

Plenty of Australians assume Mum can post a few months of tablets. Mostly, she can't.

Services Australia says PBS-subsidised medicine can only be posted overseas for yourself or someone you're travelling with, with a doctor's letter, original packaging and a customs declaration [6]. If you run out while living overseas, you can't get a further PBS supply, and someone in Australia can't send or take it to you [7]. On the Japanese side, psychotropics can't be sent by post at all, and posted medicines may be held by customs until you show a Yunyu Kakunin-sho [5].

The realistic plan: bring what's allowed in your hand luggage, then move your prescriptions to a Japanese doctor. Once you're enrolled in Japanese health insurance, you'll usually pay 30% of the cost at a pharmacy. Our guide to health insurance in Tokyo explains how it works.

Finding a doctor and Japanese equivalents

Bring your original packaging and a doctor's letter listing each medicine by its generic (active ingredient) name, dose and strength. Brand names differ between countries, and Services Australia makes the same point about showing a foreign doctor the original packaging [7].

• Tokyo has English-speaking clinics in Minato, Shibuya and Chiyoda. Your ward's foreign resident consultation desk can point you to one.
• Japanese pharmacies (yakkyoku) fill prescriptions. Drugstores (doraggusutoa) sell over-the-counter medicines, with a pharmacist on duty for some categories.
• Some medicines common in Australia aren't approved in Japan, or come in lower doses. Your new doctor may suggest an alternative.
• Remember there's no reciprocal health care agreement between Australia and Japan, so Medicare won't cover anything here [8].

Want names of English-speaking doctors and clinics other Australians actually use? Ask in Cooee Japan, our Facebook group for Australians in Japan.

Sources

1. Bringing medicines containing narcotics, psychotropics or stimulant raw materials – Narcotics Control Department, MHLW
2. Bringing medicines to Japan – Embassy of Japan in the UK
3. Bringing medication to Japan – Consulate-General of Japan in Miami
4. Personal import of medicines – Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
5. Q&A on importing medicines for personal use – Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare
6. Posting PBS medicine overseas – Services Australia
7. Running out of PBS medicines when overseas – Services Australia
8. Japan travel advice – Smartraveller
9. Importing medicine for personal use – Consulate-General of Japan in Melbourne

Keep reading

• Health insurance in Tokyo: shakai hoken, NHI and the 30% you pay
• Moving to Tokyo from Australia: the complete guide
• Earthquakes in Tokyo: the disaster kit and alerts Australians never needed
• Medicare when you live abroad