Malta advises travellers to carry a prescription or medical certificate, keep medicine in its original packaging and bring an amount for the stay. Its public guidance does not set out a complete approval process for every controlled medicine or incoming visitor.
| Situation | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| You are bringing a personal-use medicine into Malta | Malta advises carrying a prescription or medical certificate from a registered practitioner covering your stay, keeping the medicine in its original packaging, and bringing an amount equivalent to the duration of your stay. This general advice does not confirm that a particular controlled medicine is permitted. |
| Your medicine may contain a narcotic drug or psychotropic substance | Check the exact active ingredient and product with Malta’s Pharmaceutical Unit before travelling. Malta says a Schengen medical certificate would be appropriate when the departure or destination country is in Schengen; its express requirement is for Malta residents travelling to another Schengen state. |
| You may need a replacement medicine in Malta | Malta publishes a rule allowing pharmacists to dispense prescriptions from other EU Member States if they can verify the prescriber’s licence. Its separate rules for narcotic and psychotropic prescriptions include one-time dispensing and a Drug Control Unit control card. The published EU rule does not establish an equivalent rule for prescriptions issued outside the EU. |
Check the active ingredient before you pack
A medicine being prescription-only does not, by itself, establish whether Malta treats its ingredient as a controlled substance. Malta’s Pharmaceutical Unit handles regulatory issues involving the importation, exportation and use of narcotic and psychotropic drugs. Ask the Unit to check your exact product before departure.
Malta’s Dangerous Drugs Ordinance subjects importation of a drug in its legal “dangerous drug” category to authorisation rules. A prescription or phone enquiry is not, by itself, an import authorisation. Not every prescription medicine falls in this category, and the public traveller guidance does not explain every personal-baggage case. Ask the Pharmaceutical Unit to classify your exact product and confirm the documents required for your route before you travel.
As a practical step, provide the active ingredient, strength, dosage form, quantity, travel dates, and departure, destination and transit countries. The Unit lists +356 2343 9176 as the telephone number for its officer in charge. Ask whether your product needs advance approval or additional documents, and keep any reply with your travel papers.
Carry documents and only what you need for the trip
Malta’s general traveller guidance says people entering or leaving the country with medicines for personal use should carry a prescription or medical certificate from a registered practitioner covering their stay. It advises keeping medicines in their original packaging and bringing an amount equivalent to the duration of the stay. This is not stated as a universal maximum quantity for controlled medicines or confirmation that a particular product is allowed.
For narcotic or psychotropic medicines, Malta says a Schengen medical certificate would be appropriate if either the departure country or destination is in the Schengen area. The page specifically says Malta residents travelling to another Schengen state with such medicine require a valid certificate, which can cover up to 30 days. It does not clearly set out what every visitor arriving in Malta must obtain, so confirm your situation with the Maltese authority.
Check the rules of any transit country as well as Malta’s. Malta’s Medicines Authority advises travellers to research the legal requirements of the countries they will visit when travelling with medicines. The Malta traveller guidance does not provide a complete incoming-traveller approval procedure for every controlled medicine or itinerary.
Take extra care with cannabinoid medicines
Malta has separate local guidance on prescribing certain licensed or GMP-manufactured medicinal cannabinoid preparations, including a condition that there be no viable alternative. That guidance concerns prescribing in Malta; it is not permission for a visitor to import a particular medicine. Do not assume that a prescription for a cannabis-containing medicine, CBD product or other cannabinoid product settles the entry requirements. Ask the Pharmaceutical Unit about your exact product before travelling.
If you may run short in Malta
Malta’s Medicines Authority says a pharmacist may dispense a medicinal product on a prescription from a practitioner in another EU Member State if the pharmacist can verify that practitioner’s licence. Its page separately says prescriptions for narcotic and psychotropic substances cannot be repeated, are dispensed only once, and are accompanied by a Drug Control Unit control card. Because these special controls may affect a replacement, contact a Malta pharmacy or the Drug Control Unit before relying on an EU prescription.
The published EU-prescription rule does not establish an equivalent dispensing rule for prescriptions issued outside the EU. If your prescription was issued outside the EU, ask a Malta pharmacy or the relevant authority about your specific medicine before you travel; do not assume a replacement will be available.
Questions people ask
Does the Schengen certificate depend on where I live or where I travel from?
Malta’s guidance says a certificate would be appropriate for a narcotic or psychotropic medicine if either your departure country or destination is in Schengen. It specifically requires a valid certificate for Malta residents travelling to another Schengen state with such medicine. The guidance does not clearly explain every incoming visitor’s situation, so confirm your route and residence circumstances with Malta.
Is there a fixed maximum amount I can bring?
Malta advises bringing an amount equivalent to the duration of your stay, but its general traveller guidance does not state a universal maximum for controlled medicines. Confirm the permitted amount for your specific product with Malta’s Pharmaceutical Unit.
Can I use a prescription from another EU country to get a replacement in Malta?
Malta says pharmacists may dispense prescriptions from other EU Member States if they can verify the prescriber’s licence. Narcotic and psychotropic prescriptions have additional controls, including one-time dispensing and a Drug Control Unit control card. Contact a Malta pharmacy or the Drug Control Unit about your specific medicine before relying on a replacement.
Can I use a prescription issued outside the EU to get a replacement?
The Medicines Authority’s published dispensing rule addresses prescriptions from other EU Member States and does not establish an equivalent rule for prescriptions issued outside the EU. Ask a Malta pharmacy or the relevant authority about your medicine before travel.
Does a medical cannabis prescription automatically let me bring the product into Malta?
No such permission is established by Malta’s local guidance on prescribing medicinal cannabinoids. Ask the Pharmaceutical Unit for advice about your exact product and travel plans before bringing it.
Need a pharmacy today? Find one in Malta or Gozo. Confirm opening hours and product availability before travelling.
Sources
- Superintendence of Public Health, Guidelines for Travellers
- Superintendence of Public Health, Controlled Substances
- Superintendence of Public Health, Introduction to the Pharmaceutical Unit
- Malta Medicines Authority, Travelling and medicines
- Malta Medicines Authority, Non-prescription and prescription only medicines
- Superintendence of Public Health, Medical Cannabinoids Information
- Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, articles 14 and 15A
General information, not individual medical advice. Confirm medicine classification and suitability with a pharmacist or healthcare professional.