Before you pack

Bringing your prescription medication into China

In short

Can I bring my medication into China?

Medicine with no narcotic or psychotropic content: yes, in a reasonable quantity for personal use. Medicine that contains one: only up to the maximum on a single prescription, and only with a certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution plus your passport. Chinese prescription rules cap that at one dose for injectables, three days for most formulations and seven days for slow-release ones. Declare it at the red channel.

If you need a doctor in China

Applies to

Any visitor carrying prescription medicine, and especially anyone on ADHD medication, strong painkillers, or a sleep or anxiety prescription.

Check before you rely on it

Classification is Chinese, not your own country's. Methylphenidate is a Category I psychotropic substance here. Check your specific medicine with the Chinese embassy or consulate that issued your visa before you fly.

Review date: 2026-07-25

This is the page where a guess would do real harm, so every quantity below is printed as the customs answer prints it. Nothing here is medical or legal advice.

Back to entry Open the customs rules

How much you may carry

What counts as a reasonable quantity, by drug class

Find your class first. The ceiling for a controlled medicine is a single prescription, and Chinese prescription rules make a single prescription short.

Drug class	Published ceiling	Documents, and the source
Medicines with no narcotic or psychotropic content	A reasonable quantity for personal use, subject to customs supervision.	No document is named. Carry the prescription or packaging anyway. Chongqing Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Chongqing Customs, read 2026-07-25
Injectable narcotic drugs and injectable Category I psychotropic substances	The maximum on a single prescription. A prescription is limited to a single dose.	Certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution, plus a passport. Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, read 2026-07-25
Other formulations of narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances	The maximum on a single prescription, which may not exceed a three-day supply.	Certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution, plus a passport. Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, read 2026-07-25
Controlled-release and sustained-release preparations of narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances	The maximum on a single prescription, which may not exceed a seven-day supply.	Certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution, plus a passport. Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, read 2026-07-25
Methylphenidate prescribed for ADHD in children	Each prescription may not exceed a 15-day supply.	Certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution, plus a passport. Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, read 2026-07-25
Category II psychotropic substances	The prescribed quantity may be extended where appropriate to cover a longer period.	Prescriptions, medical records or certificates of diagnosis, declared proactively at the port. Chongqing Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Chongqing Customs, read 2026-07-25
Medical staff carrying controlled medicines for professional use	Small quantities, against a named certificate.	A certificate for carrying narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, issued by the drug regulatory department of a people's government at or above provincial level. Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, read 2026-07-25

Before the flight and at the desk

Eight steps, in this order

1.Work out which of your medicines contain a narcotic drug or a psychotropic substance under Chinese classification, not under your own country's. Concerta, which contains methylphenidate, is a Category I psychotropic substance in China — the Shanghai customs answer uses that exact example.
2.For anything on that list, get a certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution. Both customs answers name it as a required document, alongside proof of identity.
3.Keep the medicine in its original labelled packaging and carry the prescription and any medical records with it.
4.Count the days. A single prescription is the ceiling for narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances, and Chinese prescription rules cap that at one dose for injectables, three days for other formulations, and seven days for controlled-release and sustained-release preparations.
5.If that ceiling is shorter than your trip, ask your prescriber and the Chinese embassy before you fly. Do not assume you can top up locally — the UK foreign ministry warns that some medicines are unavailable in China and others may not be allowed in.
6.For medicines with no narcotic or psychotropic content, pack a reasonable quantity for personal use and keep the prescription with it.
7.At the airport, take the red channel and declare the medication proactively. Both customs answers advise this in the same words.
8.Hand over the certificate of diagnosis, your passport and the prescription when asked. Chongqing Customs states that clearance remains subject to the officer's on-site review, so the paperwork is what you can control.

The trap

My trip is longer than one prescription. What now?

This is the failure that strands people, and no opened source publishes a way around it.

For narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances the ceiling is the maximum on a single prescription: one dose for injectables, three days for most other formulations, seven days for controlled-release and sustained-release preparations. Methylphenidate prescribed for ADHD in children runs to 15 days.

Topping up locally is not a plan. The UK foreign ministry states that certain medicines may not be available in China and that you may not be allowed to bring others in. Ask your prescriber and the Chinese embassy before you book, not after you land.

Source: Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs — How can I bring psychotropic medications into China? (page dated 2025-10-28; read 2026-07-25)

Source: UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office — Foreign travel advice: China — Health (read 2026-07-25)

The published facts

Every quantity and document, with the page it came from

Two municipal customs answers agree on the rule and name the decrees behind it. Sources read 2026-07-25.

Ordinary medicine: reasonable quantity, personal use

Travellers carrying small quantities of medicine for personal use when entering or leaving China must limit them to reasonable quantities for personal use and accept customs supervision. That is the whole published rule for anything with no narcotic or psychotropic content.

What are the requirements for carrying medicines for personal use when entering or leaving China? (Chongqing Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Chongqing Customs, page dated 2026-06-29, read 2026-07-25)

Controlled medicine needs a diagnosis certificate and a passport

Under the Regulations on the Administration of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, an individual who needs such medication for treatment must present a medical diagnosis certificate issued by a medical institution and a valid identity document such as a passport. Both the Shanghai and the Chongqing answers state this.

How can I bring psychotropic medications into China? (Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, page dated 2025-10-28, read 2026-07-25)

The ceiling is one prescription, and a prescription is short

You may carry narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances up to the maximum quantity permitted on a single prescription. Chinese prescription management rules cap that at a single dose for injectables, a three-day supply for other formulations, and a seven-day supply for controlled-release and sustained-release preparations.

How can I bring psychotropic medications into China? (Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, page dated 2025-10-28, read 2026-07-25)

The children's ADHD exception is published

Where methylphenidate is used to treat ADHD in children, each prescription may not exceed a 15-day supply. That is the longest single-prescription figure the Shanghai answer publishes.

How can I bring psychotropic medications into China? (Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, page dated 2025-10-28, read 2026-07-25)

Category II gets more room

For Category II psychotropic substances the prescribed quantity may be extended where appropriate to cover a longer period. Neither opened answer says by how much, or who decides.

Declare it. Do not walk the green channel with it

Both customs answers tell travellers carrying medicine into or out of China to bring supporting documents such as prescriptions, medical records or certificates of diagnosis, and to proactively declare the medicine to customs officers at the port of entry or exit.

The officer at the desk still decides

Chongqing Customs closes its answer by stating that clearance remains subject to the customs authority's on-site review. Meeting the published quantity and carrying the documents is what you control; it is not a guarantee of release.

What is banned outright, in the customs guide's own list

Opium, morphine, heroin, marihuana and other addictive drugs and psychotropic substances are on the list of articles prohibited from importation, alongside deadly poisons and medicine coming from an epidemic-stricken area or harmful to people and livestock.

Customs Clearance Guide for International Passengers (General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China, read 2026-07-25)

The ban runs both ways, and covers the post

All items prohibited from entering China are also prohibited from leaving China, and individuals may not send such items into or out of China by post. Posting your own medication ahead of you is not a way around the carrying rules.

Classification is Chinese, not yours

Narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances mean the drugs and substances listed in China's own catalogues, with psychotropic substances split into Category I and Category II. The Shanghai page attaches both catalogues as downloadable files. A medicine sold over the counter at home can sit in Category I here.

How can I bring psychotropic medications into China? (Shanghai Municipal People's Government, answer sourced to Shanghai Customs, page dated 2025-10-28, read 2026-07-25)

Do not plan on replacing it locally

The UK foreign ministry states that the legal status and regulation of some medicines prescribed or bought at home differ in other countries, that certain medicines may not be available in China, and that you may not be allowed to bring others in. Its advice is to bring enough with you and check with your prescriber and the Chinese Embassy first.

Foreign travel advice: China — Health (UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, read 2026-07-25)

The legal basis, as the customs answer names it

Chongqing Customs cites Decree No. 442 of the State Council and Decree No. 43 of the General Administration of Customs. The Shanghai answer cites the Regulations on the Administration of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances. Those are the instruments behind every quantity on this page.

In short

Medication questions travellers actually ask

The ADHD question, the long-trip question, and what to hand the officer at the desk.

Can I bring my prescription medication into China?

Medicine with no narcotic or psychotropic content: yes, in a reasonable quantity for personal use, under customs supervision. Medicine containing a narcotic drug or a psychotropic substance: yes, but only up to the maximum on a single prescription, and only if you present a certificate of diagnosis from a medical institution together with your passport.

My trip is three weeks and my prescription only covers seven days. What then?

For narcotic drugs and Category I psychotropic substances the published ceiling really is that short — one dose for injectables, three days for most formulations, seven days for controlled-release and sustained-release preparations. No opened source publishes a route for carrying more. Speak to your prescriber and the Chinese embassy before you book, because the UK foreign ministry also warns that some medicines are unavailable in China.

Is my ADHD medication a controlled substance in China?

Methylphenidate is classified as a Category I psychotropic substance in China — the Shanghai customs answer was written for a traveller carrying Concerta. Where methylphenidate is prescribed for ADHD in children, a single prescription may run to 15 days. Carry the certificate of diagnosis and declare it.

What exactly do I need to show at the airport?

A certificate of diagnosis issued by a medical institution and proof of identity such as your passport. Both customs answers also advise carrying the prescription and medical records, and declaring the medicine proactively to the officer rather than waiting to be asked.

Which channel do I use if I am carrying controlled medication?

The red channel. Proactive declaration is what both opened customs answers ask for, and the Customs passenger guide separately tells anyone unsure of the rules to use the red channel.

Can I post my medication to my hotel instead?

Not if it is on the prohibited list. Chongqing Customs states that all items prohibited from entering China are also prohibited from leaving it, and that individuals may not send such items into or out of China by post.

Does meeting the published quantity guarantee I get through?

No. Chongqing Customs states that clearance remains subject to the customs authority's on-site review. The published quantities and documents are the conditions you can satisfy in advance; the decision is still made at the desk.

Not published

What we could not confirm

Carrying a controlled medicine across a border is a legal act. These gaps are left open on purpose.

Neither customs answer says by how much a Category II prescription may be extended, or who approves the extension.
No opened source publishes a route for carrying more than one prescription of a Category I substance for a long trip, or names any advance permit a visitor could apply for.
No opened source lists in English which specific medicines sit in Category I and which in Category II. The Shanghai page attaches the two catalogues as files rather than as readable text, so this page names no medicine except methylphenidate, which the source itself names.
No opened source states what happens to medication that is refused at the border — whether it is held, destroyed or returned with you.
Both quantity sources are municipal customs answers rather than the national regulation itself. They agree with each other and name the underlying decrees, but this page has not opened those decrees.
Nothing here is medical or legal advice. Confirm your own medicines with your prescriber and with the Chinese embassy or consulate that issued your visa before you travel.

The customs channel itself

Red or green, the declaration form, the RMB 2,000 line, the cash limits and the outright bans.

Open the customs rules

If you get ill in China

Where a foreign visitor goes for care, which hospitals answer in English, and who pays.

Open page

First-day checklist

Put the diagnosis certificate next to the passport, the data plan and the payment setup.

Open page

Bringing your prescription medication into China

Can I bring my medication into China?

What counts as a reasonable quantity, by drug class

Eight steps, in this order

My trip is longer than one prescription. What now?

Every quantity and document, with the page it came from

Ordinary medicine: reasonable quantity, personal use

Controlled medicine needs a diagnosis certificate and a passport

The ceiling is one prescription, and a prescription is short

The children's ADHD exception is published

Category II gets more room

Declare it. Do not walk the green channel with it

The officer at the desk still decides

What is banned outright, in the customs guide's own list

The ban runs both ways, and covers the post

Classification is Chinese, not yours

Do not plan on replacing it locally

The legal basis, as the customs answer names it

Medication questions travellers actually ask

Can I bring my prescription medication into China?

My trip is three weeks and my prescription only covers seven days. What then?

Is my ADHD medication a controlled substance in China?

What exactly do I need to show at the airport?

Which channel do I use if I am carrying controlled medication?

Can I post my medication to my hotel instead?

Does meeting the published quantity guarantee I get through?

What we could not confirm

The customs channel itself

If you get ill in China

First-day checklist

Leave each page knowing what to do next.

I need the next step

I know the problem

I am ready to choose