jphripjah

I've tried to find the answer to this before but haven't been able to.

Is it a crime to have very small amounts of prescription medicine in your luggage w/o a prescription when returning to the USA?

Sometimes when I travel I don't want to carry 3-4 different prescription medication bottles so I just combine them into one.

I also have a small bottle with 8-10 Vicodin pills prescribed to me many years ago after surgery, but the label is totally faded and unreadable.

Also, I've been known to buy packages of antibiotics for personal use in countries that don't require a prescription.

So let's say I had a total of 20-30 pills - Cipro, Vicodin, Lipitor, Amoxicillin, etc. in various bottles/packages, none indicating a prescription.

Is there anything CBP could do if they really wanted to punish me or give me a hard time for that?

weibelt

If it is a controlled substance yes it is (Vicodin). If it is not a controlled substance it is not.

The Vicodin they could charge you with assorted drug charges

Brighton Line

Correct if the drug is on the Controlled Substance Schedule from the Controlled Substances Act of 1970.
Vicodin is a schedule III substance where as Zocor, generic Simvastatin as statin while needed a prescription is not a controlled substance as defined by the act.

If you were a lawyer or played one on TV you would technically define, it as being illegal to possess any one of the drugs listed in the schedules. However, if you are properly prescribed and have lawfully purchased one of the substances, you have not violated the law and you are exempt from prosecution.

Even codeine in cough syrup or with Tylenol is a controlled substance.

jphripjah

Yeah, it's four Vicodin pills, and I have to go through Malaysia, China, Thailand, and Japan before reaching the USA. Not worth it with the prescription being unreadable. I'll take the antibiotics. Need them for a trekking trip in Nepal in a few months. Could use the Vicodin for that too, but again, not worth it, especially since I sometimes end up in petty battles with CBP over not answering questions.

der_saeufer

I'd be worried more about customs in Asia than USCBP--bringing opioids into Malaysia or Japan without a prescription is guaranteed to be a bad time if you get caught.

CBP used to have a policy of letting up to 50 pills go for controlled substances even if you didn't have the prescription--since some US controlled substances are OTC in other places--but I have no idea if that's still the case.

Often1

Always check the drug importation laws of each country which you will enter (or transit). Just because you hold a valid US-issued prescription for a given drug does not mean that you may possess that drug elsewhere.

I also would never travel overseas without having each drug, including non-prescription medicines, in their own containers. While a PDR will straighten things out, arguing with the local border folks in some countries is not a fruitful experience.

For what it is worth, I believe that Vicodin (hydrocodone) was reclassified from Sked III to II in 2014. Therefore, you should keep it in its labeled bottle or at least have a prescription with you to the extent that your prescriber still uses paper prescriptions.

Loren Pechtel

You would have to be crazy to carry Vicodin across any border without the proper labeling. I would be leery about the long-expired bottle, also.

TObject

What is the go on Schedule IV and V substances? Is there any personal allowance on those?

Edit: I think I found it. Schedules II, III, IV, or V (except narcotics):
http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/21...01/1301_26.htm

Box10

Some have posted being given trouble even though no crime was committed. I just read a thread here but it was not prescription drug related, rather a single woman on a one way ticket into the US refused entry.

flyerCO

Oddly of all those, Japan would be the biggest issue. I take a C-II pain medicine and have gone into Malaysia, China, Thailand (there right now), Singapore, China, Japan, and many others. Malaysia simply requires it be less then 30 day supply, and in the bottle with original prescription. (Note, they may not consider it to be a valid prescription anymore depending on how old it is) Singapore requires you to fill out paperwork to bring in narcotics, but as long as it's less then 30 day supply and you fill out and file the paperwork you're ok. Japan though is really tough on narcotics. While you may not end up with the death penalty, you can expect a long sentence unless you comply with their regulations, and not all customs officers handle the issue the same.

As for OP, the prescription for the pills from a long time ago isn't valid any longer most probably. Unless you're using it for the exact reason it was prescribed, then you don't have a valid prescription to use it. All medications containing hydrocodone were reclassified from C-III to C-II about two years ago. As to C-III and IV medications, those are going to get you into trouble just like a C-II. Steroids are a C-III for example.

chollie

Japan's not just tough on narcotics.

I visited twice before I learned that the Sudafed tabs tucked away in my toiletry kit are prohibited.

flyerCO

Sudafed is used to make method. The main ingredient in it is pesduoephedrine (sp). Without this ingredient it's not possible to make meth.

kwflyer

All prescription medication should be in the original containers, with the prescription label clearly legible, and the name of the person traveling with such substances matching exactly.

Otherwise you are asking for trouble

chollie

Even though I knew I had to start jumping through hoops to buy 'real' Sudafed in the US, for some reason I completely blanked about taking it overseas. I didn't lump it with hard-core pain pill drugs.

So I took my Sudafed tabs to Japan twice. Once there was a pretty thorough bag search at boarding, but fortunately they didn't investigate my pills. Their attention was captured by an unlabelled clear-plastic squeeze bottle (lens cleaner for my camera).

I'm not aware of any other country that takes Sudafed so seriously (other than, perhaps, the US).

Section 107

Lots of countries do, Mexico, for instance.