Medicine during a trip

On medicines conveyed for individual needs through the border of the Republic of Lithuania and received by mail

The Minister of Health approved by his Order the rules for conveyance of medical preparations for individual needs through borderline from and into the Republic of Lithuania and sending/receipt of medical preparations for individual needs by mail (came into force on 1 November 2017). Following these rules, the officers of the Lithuanian Customs have a right to require persons to present a certificate issued by a doctor and confirming that medical preparations being carried or received by mail have been prescribed by a doctor and that the amount of medicines is needed for treatment.

The certificate of doctor must contain:

-      name and address of personal health care institution,

-      name(-s) and surname(-s) of a patient,

-      patient`s personal code or number and serial number (if any) of personal identification card or another valid identity document,

-      name(-s) and surname(-s) of a patient treating doctor and of a specialist having issued the certificate,

-      name of needed medical preparation(-s), its (their) pharmaceutical form, strength, number of unit doses or, if there are no possibilities to indicate the number of unit doses, size of package and number of packages, duration and frequency of usage,

-      date of issue of the doctor`s certificate,

-      date of expiry of the doctor`s certificate, which cannot be shorter than travel time and longer than 6 months from the date of its issue.

Important. Without the doctor's certificate, not more than 10 packages of medical preparations are allowed to be brought once a calendar month.

Not more than 40 packages of medical preparations per calendar month, with a maximum of 10 packages of medical preparations at a time, are allowed to be brought only if you have to travel to a third country more than once a calendar month due to your place of work or the nature of your work, your education or study place or other circumstances. In such case, you must submit to the customs authorities proofs that you have to travel to a third country more than once a calendar month due to your place of work or the nature of your work, your education or study place or other circumstances: an employment contract, a work certificate, travel documents, a document certifying the status of a student (student's certificate), etc.

On conveying narcotic and psychotropic medicines through the border of the Republic of Lithuania, residents (both those entering and those leaving the country) should observe the following rules:

• narcotic and psychotropic medicines are allowed to carry only for personal use in connection with health care;

• when going to a Shengen state, it is required to possess together with medicines carried a certificate in a prescribed form issued by a health care institution*; and when going to a non-Shengen state, the copies of the prescriptions of medicines being carried are required (the copies of these prescriptions do not need to be endorsed by the Ministry of Health);

• only the certificate or prescription (a copy of the prescription) issued in the name of the travelling person is valid;

• medicines shall not be carried in bigger amounts than indicated in the certificate or prescription (its copy);

• when going to a Shengen state, narcotic** medicines can be carried in the amounts needed for a period not longer than 30 days, and when going to a non-Shengen state - for a period not longer than 15 days;

• psychotropic*** medicines can be carried in the amounts needed for a period not longer than 30 days;

• medicines shall be kept only in original packages (in which the medicines have been bought in pharmacies).

If medicines are required for a longer treatment course, we suggest taking with you a certificate about disease and treatment prescribed, issued by a doctor in an appropriate foreign language, in order it would be possible to consult foreign doctors for prescribing the necessary medicines.

The conveyance of narcotic and psychotropic medicines is subject to control in all countries. However, no uniform international rules for control have been laid down. To avoid problems on bringing into other countries narcotic and psychotropic medicines for personal use, please apply to the embassies of the appropriate countries for information on the requirements for bringing those medicines.

• The procedure for issuing the certificate and certificate form was approved on 2 March 2007 by Order No. V-138 of the Minister of Health of the Republic of Lithuania on approval of the procedure for issue of certificate for conveyance of narcotic and (or) psychotropic substances for personal medical use.

• Narcotic medicines are the medicines containing the following substances: buprenorfin, fentanyl, methadone, morphine, petidine, tramadol. The entire list of drug substances allowed to be carried for a period not longer than 15 days (to Shengen states – 30 days) is available on the following Internet webpage: List II – Narcotic and psychotropic substances (not all medicines containing the substances from the above list are registered in the Republic of Lithuania, however, they may be registered in other countries; the residents of other countries arriving to Lithuania are allowed to bring them by observing the above listed requirements).

• Psychotropic medicines are the medicines containing the following substances: alprazolam, bromazepam, chlordiazepoksid, diazepam, estazolam, klonazepam, klorazepat, bigger dozes of codeine, phenobarbital, lorazepam, medazepam, midazolam, oksazepam, nitrazepam, pentazocin, temazepam, tetrazepam, triazolam, zolpidem. The entire list of drug substances allowed to be carried for a period not longer than 30 days is available on the following Internet webpage: List III – psychotropic substances (not all medicines containing the substances from the above list are registered in the Republic of Lithuania, however, they may be registered in other countries; the residents of other countries arriving to Lithuania are allowed to bring them by observing the above listed requirements).

If you have any questions concerning specific medicines, please call to the Lithuanian State Medicines Control Agency (SMCA) under the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Lithuania.
Phone numbers: (8 800) 73568, (+370 5) 263 92 64. Internet address: www.vvkt.lt.  

Please note that food supplements do not have therapeutic qualities and they are not medicines.

In the personal luggage of passengers, postal items, including shipping via online commerce, one person may carry or send for personal use not more than 10 primary food supplements or special food packages, the total weight of which does not exceed 20 kg. More information about food supplements is available on the website of the State Food and Veterinary Service.