QatarTravelling with ADHD medication: rules, permits and documents

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Last checked 24 Jul 2026High confidenceHow we rate a record

Qatar treats these medications differently. Of the 7 we track, 3 need approval before you arrive, 1 has no published rule we could find and 3 need only your prescription.

Serious penalties: Medicines in Schedule 1, sub-schedules A and B, of Qatar's Law No. 9 of 1987 are never released, with or without a permit. For permitted medicines the Ministry of Public Health can still release only part of what you carry, or refuse it. The allowance is at most 10 days' supply for medicines on the narcotic list and 60 days for those on the psychotropic list. Tapentadol and lisdexamfetamine are not named on either allowed list.

ActionDepartment of Pharmacy and Drug Control, Ministry of Public Health approval, applied for at least 3 days before you arrive

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By medication

Brand names first, generic in brackets. Each line resolves the drug class rule below, plus anything Qatar records specifically for that medication.

Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine)Not named: Unclear
Lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse) is not named in Qatar's law (Law No. 9 of 1987 Schedules 1 to 5 as amended to 2026, pages 1 to 10; Law No. 19 of 1993 Schedules 1 to 3 and its supplementary Schedule 2), so no rule for it is published. Ask the authority listed here before you travel.
Ritalin, Concerta (methylphenidate)Permit requiredmax 60 days' supply
Methylphenidate is named on Qatar's Allowed Psychotropic List (item 79). A permit is needed and the allowance is at most 60 days' supply.
Dexedrine (dexamfetamine)Permit requiredmax 10 days' supplyreclassified here as narcotic
Dexamfetamine is on Qatar's Allowed Narcotic List, so the allowance is at most 10 days' supply, not the 60 days given to medicines on the Allowed Psychotropic List.
Strattera (atomoxetine)Prescription
Atomoxetine, guanfacine and viloxazine are not on Qatar's controlled medicine lists, so the permit system does not apply to them. We suggest carrying your prescription and keeping the medicine in its original packaging. Some other common medicines, including pregabalin, gabapentin and tramadol, are controlled in Qatar and do need a permit.
Adderall (mixed amphetamine salts)Permit requiredmax 10 days' supplyreclassified here as narcotic
Its active ingredient, amfetamine, is on Qatar's Allowed Narcotic List, so the allowance is at most 10 days' supply, not the 60 days given to medicines on the Allowed Psychotropic List.
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: 10 days. MoPH's Controlled Medicines System (live from 2026-08-05) allows a maximum quantity sufficient for 10 days of prescribed narcotic medication. This supersedes a 2022 PDF's 30-day figure. Whether a larger allowance applies to patients departing Qatar (the 2022 PDF gave 3 months) is not restated by the new system and is recorded as an unresolved gap.
Permit: Required. Apply at least 3 days ahead.
Documents: prescription, medical certificate, medication photos
In force: Since 31 March 2026.

Psychotropic (ADHD stimulants, benzodiazepines, sleep)

Permit required

Quantity: 60 days. At most enough for 60 days at your prescribed dose. If your supply runs out, Qatar says to see a licensed doctor in Qatar.
Permit: Required. Apply at least 3 days ahead. Apply for a permit on Qatar's Controlled Medicines System (fli.moph.gov.qa) before you travel. Register with your passport number and choose 'arriving to Qatar' as the travel destination. Upload a prescription and a medical report, a copy of your passport, photos of the medicine, and a signed undertaking that the medicine is for your own use. The prescription and the medical report must each be in English or Arabic, issued within the last 6 months, signed and stamped by your doctor, stamped or recognised by the clinic or hospital, and show the doctor's or clinic's phone number. The prescription must show your full name, the medicine, its dose and form, the length of treatment and the issue date. The medical report must show your full name, diagnosis and treatment plan. Qatar's guideline also says the medical report should have a Ministry of Foreign Affairs attestation. It does not say which country's ministry. Applications are decided within 3 working days once everything required has been submitted, and Qatar advises applying at least 5 working days before travel. The permit is valid for 90 days. Print it and carry it with the original prescription and medical report. If you arrive without a permit you must declare the medicine and show the prescription and medical report. The Ministry of Public Health can release, partly release or refuse the medicine.
Documents: Medical certificate
Issued within the last 6 months, in English or Arabic, signed and stamped by your doctor, stamped or recognised by the clinic or hospital, and showing the doctor's or clinic's phone number. Qatar's guideline also says the medical report should have a Ministry of Foreign Affairs attestation. It does not say which country's ministry. Qatar also asks for a signed undertaking that the medicine is for your own use, and a copy of your passport.
Must state: your diagnosis, the generic (INN) name of each medicine, not just the brand, the strength of each medicine, the total quantity you are carrying, how long the treatment lasts, that the medication is for your own use.
Certificate from the destination's authority: Controlled Medicines System permit (fli.moph.gov.qa)
Apply on the Ministry's Controlled Medicines System, live since 5 August 2026, at least five working days before travel; decisions come within three working days, the permit is valid for 90 days, and you print it and carry it with the original prescription and report. Without it, declare the medicine on arrival with the originals; the Ministry can still refuse it.
Must be issued or approved by the destination's health authority before you travel.
In force: Since 31 March 2026.

Not internationally controlled

Prescription

Atomoxetine, guanfacine and viloxazine are not on Qatar's controlled medicine lists, so the permit system does not apply to them. We suggest carrying your prescription and keeping the medicine in its original packaging. Some other common medicines, including pregabalin, gabapentin and tramadol, are controlled in Qatar and do need a permit.

Leaving Qatar

Qatar 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 application branches on direction. The 'arriving to Qatar' branch is the one a visiting traveller can complete with their own home-country prescription. The 'departing from Qatar' branch requires additional details of a prescribing doctor from Hamad Medical Corporation or a Qatar-licensed private health facility: the doctor's name if HMC, otherwise the practitioner's Qatari licence number, so it is built for patients treated in Qatar and a visitor leaving with a foreign-prescribed supply cannot complete it. Separately, the departing quantity allowance is unresolved: the 2022 guideline gave departing patients 3 months, the 2026 system does not restate any separate departing figure. See Gaps.

Psychotropic (ADHD stimulants, benzodiazepines, sleep)

Same as the narcotic class: the application branches on direction, an arriving traveller uses the 'arriving to Qatar' branch, and the 'departing from Qatar' branch requires an HMC doctor's name or a Qatari practitioner licence number and so is not available to a visiting foreigner. Departing quantity allowance unresolved: see Gaps.

Connecting through Qatar

Qatar publishes nothing about transit passengers carrying controlled medicines through Doha. Its traveller guidance is written for people arriving in or leaving the country and does not mention connections. That is a real difference from the UAE, which does publish an airside exemption, so do not assume Doha works the same way.

If you clear immigration: If you clear immigration you are an arriving patient under Qatar's rules: clearance from the Pharmacy and Drug Control Department, a stamped medical report or prescription no more than six months old, a personal-use undertaking and a passport copy.

Staying airside, never clearing immigration:: no official guidance found, so assume the full entry rules apply. Qatar publishes nothing about connecting through Doha with controlled medicines. That is a real difference from the UAE, which publishes an explicit exemption, so do not assume Doha works the same way.
Clearing immigration for a layover:: the full entry rules apply. Clearing immigration makes you an arriving patient under Qatar's rules.
Overnight layover, leaving the airport:: the full entry rules apply. Leaving the airport means entering Qatar.
Changing airports:: no official guidance found, so assume the full entry rules apply. Does not arise in practice: Doha International no longer takes scheduled passenger flights.
Checked bag travelling without you:: no official guidance found, so assume the full entry rules apply. Not addressed. Qatar does allow a relative or an authorised person to carry your medicine, with their ID and your written authorisation, which suggests it expects a named human custodian.

Responsible authority

Department of Pharmacy and Drug Control, Ministry of Public Health

Ministry of Public Health, PO Box 42, Doha; Tel +974 4407 0000; GHCC@MOPH.GOV.QA

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.

Application forms and portals

1 form for Qatar, found and organised with your apply-by date in the trip pack.

A$59

Plus a doctor's letter pre-filled with your medications and every stop, the deadline counted back from the day you fly, and a checklist in travel order.

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Common 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 Qatar embassy or consulate before travelling.