Heroin

Illegal narcotic (stupéfiant). No heroin-assisted treatment available.

France has strong opioid substitution therapy programmes (buprenorphine, methadone) but does NOT offer heroin-assisted treatment. Heroin trafficking carries penalties of up to 30 years — among the heaviest in French drug law.

Illegal controlled substance. No personal-use exception.

Belgium has no decriminalization or heroin-assisted treatment for heroin. The 2003 cannabis tolerance guideline explicitly does not extend to heroin or other hard drugs. Harm reduction focuses on substitution therapy and needle exchange.

Illegal narcotic substance (Group I-N). No tolerance provisions.

Poland classifies heroin in Group I-N (most restricted narcotics). The 2011 amendment allowing prosecutors to drop charges for "insignificant" amounts (Art. 62a) rarely applies to heroin in practice.

Schedule I controlled substance. No accepted medical use under federal law.

Heroin is Schedule I with no accepted medical use in the US (unlike the UK where diamorphine is prescribed). The opioid crisis has shifted policy toward treatment, with many states expanding naloxone access and some cities exploring supervised consumption sites. Oregon briefly decriminalized personal possession (2021–2024) but reversed course.

Schedule I under CDSA. Limited injectable opioid agonist treatment (iOAT) programmes exist.

Canada has a small number of injectable opioid agonist treatment (iOAT) programmes prescribing hydromorphone and, rarely, diacetylmorphine via Special Access Program exemptions. British Columbia's decriminalization pilot (2023–2024, 2.5 g threshold) was ended early due to public safety concerns. Heroin poisoning from fentanyl contamination remains a major public health crisis.

Illegal. Personal-use threshold: 50 mg.

Mexico's 2009 Narcomenudeo reform set a personal-use threshold of 50 mg for heroin — roughly one dose. While technically decriminalized below this threshold, enforcement is inconsistent and Mexico remains a major heroin/fentanyl trafficking corridor.

Illegal. Personal users receive alternative sanctions (no imprisonment since 2006).

Heroin use in Brazil is extremely rare — the country's opioid market is dominated by diverted pharmaceuticals. The 2006 drug law provides no prison for personal users but no fixed quantity threshold exists.

Illegal. Arriola ruling offers limited protection for private personal use.

Heroin use in Argentina is very rare — the country has essentially no heroin market. The opioid landscape is dominated by pharmaceutical opioids and desomorphine in some marginalized communities.

Illegal controlled substance. Minimal personal-use threshold.

Heroin use in Peru is extremely rare. The country's drug landscape centers on cocaine and coca leaf. Opium poppy cultivation has occasionally been reported in remote areas but at negligible scale compared to Colombia.

Illegal controlled substance. Supervised injecting facility operates in Sydney.

Australia has the Sydney Medically Supervised Injecting Centre (MSIC, operational since 2001) and Melbourne's North Richmond supervised injecting room. Tasmania produces ~50% of the world's legal opium poppy crop for pharmaceutical use. However, heroin itself is not prescribed medically.

Class A controlled drug — the most severe category.

New Zealand classifies heroin as Class A alongside methamphetamine. The 2019 Misuse of Drugs Amendment encouraged police discretion for personal use, with health-based responses preferred. Drug market is dominated by methamphetamine rather than heroin.

Banned substance (Schedule 7 + Drugs Act).

Heroin use in South Africa has increased significantly, particularly in the form of "nyaope" (a mixture typically containing heroin, cannabis, and other substances). South Africa is also a transit hub for heroin from East Africa/Afghanistan.

Illegal dangerous drug. Severe penalties.

Israel classifies heroin as a dangerous drug with severe penalties. Opioid substitution therapy (methadone, buprenorphine) is available but heroin-assisted treatment is not offered.

Narcotic under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Law. Extremely severe penalties.

Japan classifies heroin as a narcotic with some of the harshest penalties in the developed world — up to life imprisonment for import/export. Heroin use in Japan is extremely rare; the stimulant (methamphetamine) market dominates. Japan's opium control dates back to the 1930s.

Class A controlled drug. Mandatory death penalty for trafficking 15+ grams.

Singapore imposes a mandatory death penalty for trafficking 15 g or more of heroin (diamorphine). Above 2 g there is a presumption of trafficking. Singapore has one of the strictest heroin enforcement regimes in the world and regularly executes drug traffickers.

BtMG Anlage I, but diamorphine-assisted treatment (DiAT) legally available since 2009.

Germany legalized diamorphine-assisted treatment in 2009 after successful clinical trials. Pharmaceutical heroin (Diaphin) is prescribed in specialized outpatient centers to treatment-resistant opioid-dependent patients. This makes Germany one of a small group of countries with legal heroin prescription.

Heroin-assisted treatment (HeGeBe) legally available since 1994. Recreational use illegal.

Switzerland pioneered heroin-assisted treatment (Heroingestützte Behandlung — HeGeBe) after a 1994 referendum. Pharmaceutical diacetylmorphine is prescribed in ~20 specialized clinics nationwide to treatment-resistant opioid addicts. This program is considered one of the most successful drug policy innovations globally, reducing overdose deaths and crime.

List I (hard drug). Heroin-assisted treatment available since 2006.

The Netherlands introduced heroin-assisted treatment after a landmark randomized trial (2001–2003) proved its effectiveness. Pharmaceutical heroin is prescribed in treatment-resistant cases. The gedoogbeleid (tolerance policy) does NOT apply to heroin.

Class A controlled drug. Diamorphine is Schedule 2 with established medical uses.

The UK is unusual in that diamorphine (pharmaceutical heroin) has always retained Schedule 2 status and is widely used medically — for severe pain, palliative care, and heart attacks. Small heroin-assisted treatment programmes also exist. Recreational heroin is Class A with the most severe penalties.

Suchtgift (narcotic). Personal use diverted to health system under "Therapie statt Strafe".

Austria applies its standard harm-reduction framework. Personal use is diverted to health authorities. Opioid substitution therapy (methadone, buprenorphine) is widely available but pharmaceutical heroin is not prescribed.

Private personal use is an administrative offense. Trafficking is severely punished.

Spain had a pioneering heroin-assisted treatment trial in Andalusia (2003–2004, Programa Experimental de Prescripción de Estupefacientes en Andalucía — PEPSA). Private personal use remains an administrative offense rather than a crime, consistent with all other substances.

Decriminalized for personal use (up to 1 g) under the 2001 reform.

Portugal's 2001 decriminalization was largely motivated by the heroin epidemic of the 1990s. The reform led to dramatic reductions in overdose deaths and HIV infections among people who use drugs. The personal-use threshold for heroin is 1 g (estimated 10-day supply).

Tabella I substance. Personal use is an administrative offense.

Italy places heroin in Tabella I but maintains its policy of administrative-only sanctions for personal use. Italy has one of Europe's largest opioid substitution programmes. Heroin trafficking penalties (8–20 years) are among the most severe in Italian drug law.

Small amounts for personal use (up to 1.5 g) are a misdemeanor.

Czech Republic defines 1.5 g as the personal-use threshold for heroin. Above this amount triggers criminal prosecution. Heroin use has been declining in Czechia, with methamphetamine being the more prevalent hard drug.

Personal dose decriminalized under constitutional right.

Colombia's Constitutional Court ruling C-221/94 protects personal use of all drugs. Colombia also produces a small amount of heroin from opium poppies grown in Nariño and Cauca departments, though this has declined significantly since the 2000s.