MadagascarTravelling with ADHD medication: rules, permits and documents
AfricaLast checked 20 Jul 2026Medium confidenceHow we rate a record
Madagascar treats these medications differently. Of the 7 we track, 4 need approval before you arrive and 3 need only your prescription.
Serious penalties: Madagascar's own customs guide lists 'Drogues, stupéfiants' among goods flatly prohibited on entry or exit with no stated medical exception, while national health law (Code de la Santé Art. 144) implies a lawful DPLMT-authorized channel exists for medical use — and no traveller-usable application process is published for that channel, so a traveller carrying a prescribed opioid risks having it treated as a prohibited good at the border with no published route to resolve the conflict before travelling.
By medication
Brand names first, generic in brackets. Each line resolves the drug class rule below, plus anything Madagascar records specifically for that medication.
- Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine)Permit required
Madagascar's Code de la Santé requires special DPLMT authorization to import or export a substance classified as psychotropic, for medical or scientific purposes only, with no traveller exception published. Madagascar's customs guide, separately, treats medicines carried on a prescription as an ordinary duty-free personal effect in reasonable quantity. That guide's prohibited-goods list does not use the term 'substances psychotropes' — it reads 'Drogues, stupéfiants' — but 'Drogues' is generic, so a traveller should not read this class as safely outside the prohibition-versus-authorisation conflict recorded for opioids. No traveller-specific application process, quantity threshold or fee is published. Carry the original prescription and consider writing to DPLMT before travelling, since no form exists to apply through in advance.
- Ritalin, Concerta (methylphenidate)Permit required
The same rule as Vyvanse above.
- Dexamphetamine (dexamfetamine)Permit required
The same rule as Vyvanse above.
- Strattera (atomoxetine)Prescription
Atomoxetine, guanfacine and viloxazine are not internationally controlled; carry with a valid prescription in original packaging and declare if asked.
- Adderall (mixed amphetamine salts)Permit required
The same rule as Vyvanse above.
- Intuniv (guanfacine)Prescription
The same rule as Strattera above.
- Qelbree (viloxazine)Prescription
The same rule as Strattera above.
Rules by drug class
Narcotic (opioids)
Unclear- Quantity
- The customs guide allows medicines carried on a prescription in 'quantité raisonnable' (reasonable quantity) as a duty-free personal effect, but states no number. No other Malagasy source states a quantity for narcotics.
- Permit
- Not published. Madagascar's customs guide lists 'Drogues, stupéfiants' among goods flatly prohibited on entry or exit, with no medical exception stated. The same guide separately treats 'médicaments sur présentation d'une ordonnance' as an ordinary duty-free personal effect. The Code de la Santé (Art. 144) states that importation of narcotics is subject to a special, renewable DPLMT authorization limited to medical/scientific purposes, implying a lawful channel exists. No source reconciles these. The only published individual application route to that authorization requires a supplier's pro-forma invoice and a pharmacists'-body certificate that the product is unavailable in Madagascar — a route for importing medicine not sold locally, not for a traveller carrying their own already-dispensed supply — so even if a permit is in principle required, no traveller-usable form is published. A traveller should
- Documents
- prescription
Psychotropic (ADHD stimulants, benzodiazepines, sleep)
Permit required- Quantity
- The customs guide allows medicines carried on a prescription in 'quantité raisonnable' (reasonable quantity) as a duty-free personal effect, but states no number. No other Malagasy source states a quantity for psychotropics.
- Permit
- Required. Code de la Santé Art. 144 states that importation of substances classified as psychotropic is subject to special, renewable DPLMT authorization limited to medical/scientific purposes. The customs guide's prohibited-goods list does not use the term 'substances psychotropes', so there is no term-for-term competing 'prohibited' claim for this class — but that distinction is narrower than it looks and does not put this class outside the conflict: the list entry reads 'Drogues, stupéfiants', and 'Drogues' is a generic term that would ordinarily reach a scheduled psychotropic as readily as a scheduled narcotic. Treat the unresolved prohibition-versus-authorisation conflict recorded for opioids as arguably reaching ADHD stimulants too. No traveller-usable form is published: the only individual DPLMT route requires a supplier's pro-forma invoice and a pharmacists'-body certificate that the produ
- Documents
- prescription
Not internationally controlled
PrescriptionAtomoxetine, guanfacine and viloxazine are not internationally controlled; carry with a valid prescription in original packaging and declare if asked.
Leaving Madagascar
Madagascar publishes a different rule for taking these medicines out than for bringing them in. Only the differences are below. Anything not listed here is the same as the rule above.
Narcotic (opioids)
The export leg is stated by the same two sources that state the import leg, so it carries the same unresolved conflict. The customs guide's prohibited-goods heading is 'ARTICLES INTERDITS À L'ENTRÉE OU À LA SORTIE' — goods prohibited on entry or exit — and Code de la Santé Art. 144 subjects 'l'importation, l'exportation' of narcotic-classified substances to the same special DPLMT authorisation in one sentence. The customs guide's separate 'Au départ' section (phytosanitary and sanitary goods, precious woods and metals, jewellery over 250g, currency) does not mention medicines at all, so there is no distinct outbound process, quantity, form or lead time published. A traveller leaving Madagascar with a prescribed opioid is in the same position as one arriving with it.
Psychotropic (ADHD stimulants, benzodiazepines, sleep)
Code de la Santé Art. 144 subjects 'l'importation, l'exportation' of psychotropic-classified substances to the same special, renewable DPLMT authorisation in a single sentence, so the requirement is stated for the export leg as well as the import leg. The customs guide's prohibited-goods heading likewise covers exit as well as entry. No separate outbound process, quantity, form, fee or lead time is published, and the customs guide's 'Au départ' section does not mention medicines at all. Leaving Madagascar with a prescribed ADHD stimulant is on the published text subject to the same DPLMT authorisation as bringing one in.
Responsible authority
Direction Generale des Douanes (Malagasy Customs); Ministere de la Sante Publique
assistance@douane.mg; green line 360
Sources
The source behind everything above, so you can check it yourself rather than take our word for it. Always confirm the current rule with the source before you travel.
Your trip pack
Madagascar needs a permit before you fly. The pack works out your apply-by date from your travel date.
We have not found an application form or portal for travellers here, so the pack gives you Direction Generale des Douanes (Malagasy Customs); Ministere de la Sante Publiqueto contact, what to put in the request, and how long to allow. Plus a doctor's letter pre-filled with your medications and every stop, and a checklist in travel order.
Build your trip packThis page organises publicly available government information and links. It is not legal or medical advice. Rules change and enforcement varies, so always confirm with the official sources above or the Madagascar embassy or consulate before travelling.