Vietnam: Classification of controlled drugs

According to Circular No. 20/2017/TT-BYT of the Ministry of Health of Vietnam, narcotic drugs include:

- Any drug that contains one or some narcotic active ingredients; any drug that contains both active ingredients and psychotropic active ingredients regardless of availability of drug precursors.

- Any drug that contains active ingredients (regardless of availability of psychotropic active ingredients or drug precursors) combined with active ingredients other than narcotic active ingredients, psychotropic active ingredients and drug precursors where the concentration of the narcotic active ingredient exceeds the prescribed limits.

Concurrently, Circular No. 20/2017/TT-BYT also stipulates that psychotropic drugs include:

- Any drug that contains one or some psychotropic active ingredients; any drug that contains both psychotropic active ingredients and drug precursors.

- Any drug that contains psychotropic active ingredients (regardless of availability of narcotic active ingredients or drug precursors) combined with active ingredients other than narcotic active ingredients, psychotropic active ingredients and drug precursors where the concentration of the narcotic active ingredient (if any) does not exceed the prescribed limits.

Precursor drugs include:

- Any drug that contains one or some drug precursors;

- Any drug that contains drug precursors (regardless of availability of narcotic active ingredients or psychotropic active ingredients) combined with active ingredients other than narcotic active ingredients, psychotropic active ingredients and drug precursors with where the concentration of the drug precursor exceeds the prescribed limits, the concentration of the narcotic active ingredient (if any) does not exceed the prescribed limits and the concentration of the psychotropic active ingredient (if any) does not exceed the prescribed limits.

View details at Circular No. 20/2017/TT-BYT of the Ministry of Health of Vietnam, effective from July 01, 2017.

-Thao Uyen-

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