MexicoTravelling with ADHD medication: rules, permits and documents
North AmericaLast checked 20 Jul 2026Medium confidenceHow we rate a record
Every medication we track can come into Mexico on your prescription, carried in original packaging.
Serious penalties: Several substances are prohibited outright. Visitors carrying their own narcotic or psychotropic medicine show customs the prescription (or a home-country permit); COFEPRIS's import permit is optional for carried supply and needed for courier or other imports.
By medication
Brand names first, generic in brackets. Each line resolves the drug class rule below, plus anything Mexico records specifically for that medication.
- Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine)Prescription
Lisdexamfetamine is not named in the Ley General de Salud and is not on Mexico's prohibited list. Visitors show customs the prescription, or a permit from their home country's competent authority (Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud art 55, page 20; SAT Aduanas passenger page). The COFEPRIS import permit is the importer's route and is optional for a traveller's own carried supply. Local availability of Vyvanse is not covered by any registered source.
- Ritalin, Concerta (methylphenidate)Prescription
Mexico lists methylphenidate as an estupefaciente (narcotic) under the Ley General de Salud (art 234, page 111). The traveller rule is the same for narcotics and psychotropics: show customs the prescription or a home-country permit (RIS art 55). The narcotic listing brings the barcoded special prescription requirement for personal-use import permits (RIS art 196(IV)); it does not apply to a visitor's own carried supply. Carry the prescription and original packaging.
- Dexedrine (dexamfetamine)Prescription
Dexamfetamine is a controlled group II psychotropic in Mexico (Ley General de Salud art 245 II, pages 117 to 118), not a prohibited substance (art 237). Visitors show customs the prescription, or a permit from their home country's competent authority (Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud art 55, page 20; SAT Aduanas passenger page). The COFEPRIS import permit is the importer's route and is optional for a traveller's own carried supply.
- Strattera (atomoxetine)Prescription
Atomoxetine (Strattera), guanfacine ER (Intuniv) and viloxazine (Qelbree) are not internationally scheduled under the 1971 Convention, so they fall outside the INCB controlled-substance travel rules. Carry them with a normal prescription in original packaging; no import permit is required unless a specific national exception applies.
- Adderall (mixed amphetamine salts)Prescription
Mixed amphetamine salts (Adderall): amphetamine and its salts are a controlled group II psychotropic in Mexico (Ley General de Salud art 245 II, pages 117 to 118), not a prohibited substance (art 237). Visitors show customs the prescription, or a permit from their home country's competent authority (Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud art 55, page 20; SAT Aduanas passenger page). The COFEPRIS import permit is the importer's route and is optional for a traveller's own carried supply.
- Intuniv (guanfacine)Prescription
The same rule as Strattera above.
- Qelbree (viloxazine)Prescription
The same rule as Strattera above.
Rules by drug class
Narcotic (opioids)
Permit required- Quantity
- Governed by the prescribed daily dose for the trip
- Permit
- Not published. Apply at least 14 days ahead. Sanitary import permit (trámite COFEPRIS-01-010) via VUCEM; permit valid 180 days. No traveller-facing form is published; VUCEM is the foreign-trade single window. | Unresolved between two official sources (2026-09-15): COFEPRIS frames its personal-import permit as required for narcotic and psychotropic medicines; SAT Aduanas' passenger page lists among what a passenger may bring in personal luggage 'medicamentos de uso personal (en caso de sustancias psicotrópicas debe mostrarse la receta médica)': personal-use medicines, with the prescription shown for psychotropic substances, and no permit mentioned. Both are recorded. The permit is the safe course; at minimum carry the prescription and show it at customs.
- Documents
- prescription, medical certificate, import permit
Psychotropic (ADHD stimulants, benzodiazepines, sleep)
Prescription- Quantity
- No specific day limit stated in the INCB doc; keep to a personal-use quantity matching the prescription. Larger amounts of controlled medicines require a COFEPRIS import permit.
- Permit
- Not required. Apply at least 14 days ahead. No permit is needed for a visitor's own carried supply. Under the Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud art 55 (page 20), foreigners entering Mexico prove possession by showing customs the prescription or a permit from their home country's competent authority, and SAT Aduanas' passenger page says personal-use medicines may be brought in with the prescription shown for psychotropics. The COFEPRIS sanitary import permit (RIS art 195, page 78) is the importer's route: optional for a traveller's own supply, and needed for courier or other imports. COFEPRIS decides it in up to 14 business days and it is valid 180 days. The Ley General de Salud art 289 says importing narcotics and psychotropics needs Health Ministry authorisation; RIS art 55 is the rule written for arriving foreigners.
Not internationally controlled
PrescriptionAtomoxetine (Strattera), guanfacine ER (Intuniv) and viloxazine (Qelbree) are not internationally scheduled under the 1971 Convention, so they fall outside the INCB controlled-substance travel rules. Carry them with a normal prescription in original packaging; no import permit is required unless a specific national exception applies.
Connecting through Mexico
No official source says how Mexico's rules apply to a passenger connecting through with their own medicine. Mexico's health law bans transporting narcotic and psychotropic substances across Mexico to another country, and has no written exception for a passenger's own medicine (Ley General de Salud, article 293, page 134). The rule that lets visitors bring their own medicine by showing the prescription at customs is written for people entering Mexico (Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud, article 55, page 20). Check with COFEPRIS before you book a connection, and carry your prescription.
Responsible authority
Federal Commission for Protection against Health Risks (COFEPRIS)
Tel: (55) 50805200, 01 800 033 50 50; Web/e-mail: www.cofepris.gob.mx, renava@cofepris.gob.mx, dcortes@cofepris.gob.mx
Sources
The sources 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.
- Importación de medicamentos para consumo personalGovernment, 2022-09-15
- Mercancía que puedes ingresar a México (Pasajeros): SAT AduanasGovernment
- Ley General de Salud (to 7 June 2024): import authorisation, art 289, page 133; transit ban, art 293, page 134; methylphenidate art 234, page 111; amphetamine, dexamfetamine art 245 group II, page 117; lisdexamfetamine not namedGovernment, 2024-06-07
- Reglamento de Insumos para la Salud (to 31 May 2021): foreign travellers show prescription or home-country permit at customs, art 55, page 20; personal-use import permit, arts 132 and 196, pages 42 and 79Government, 2021-05-31
- INCB Travellers table: MexicoTreaty body, 2016-10-18
Your trip pack
A doctor's letter for Mexico, filled in with your medications and your stops, ready to sign.
The rules above are free and stay free. The pack is the paperwork that goes with them: a checklist for each stop in travel order, a printable PDF, and the letter to take to your GP.
Build your trip packCommon questions
This 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 Mexico embassy or consulate before travelling.