jiejie

I think your travel partner is overblowing the issue. I flatly disagree with @Chinatrvl who posted above in a rather alarmist matter. The Chinese show an amazing amount of common sense on matters like this, and aren't interested in grabbing each and every foreigner who's bringing meds prescribed by a doctor, in small amounts to cover their personal needs while in China. While the Chinese statute does say that "unauthorized possession" is a criminal offense, I'm 99.9% confident that this sort of medicine brought in by a foreigner with a doctors prescription (even issued in a foreign country), would be deemed an "authorized possession," as Chinese logic bends. I think the Chinese would have a problem with opium, heroin, cocaine, marijuana, amphetamine, and possibly large amounts of synthetics like oxycodone, but most commercial medications in reasonable quantities with proven therapeutic uses should be OK. Following medical treatment in Thailand, I've entered China on multiple occasions with narcotic painkillers (controlled) for short term use without question or repercussions.

Case in point: Ritalin. There are a large number of expat and traveling kids (and some adults) entering China who are on Ritalin under doctor supervision. Ritalin is a controlled substance in China as in the USA. Certainly they aren't being accosted by Customs and clapped into detention cells nor having their meds confiscated.

But in the end, s/he has to do what is most comfortable for them. If they can travel successfully without the medication, there you go. But if it's necessary for functioning, then trying do without and suffer through a China/Asia trip might not be the best idea.

889

“Following medical treatment in Thailand, I've entered China on multiple occasions with narcotic painkillers (controlled) for short term use without question or repercussions.”

But is that following "open your bags, please" inspection? The reason nobody's very concerned about this is simply because almost never is luggage examined on arrival in China. It's not because people have first-hand experience of Customs officers examining their luggage and ignoring all the pill bottles. In years and years of entry to China, I think my luggage was examined once, at Peking airport ages ago. Indeed, I remember it because it was so out of usual practice.

Let's say the OP's partner decides to be super-cautious and go through the red channel (not that I'm suggesting that). I doubt anyone here knows first-hand what would happen to those medicines, because nobody here would do that.

anacapamalibu

US position.

If you are not an expert in FDA Pharmaceutical Determination and
not an expert on the Controlled Substance Act...best not to bring
any foreign prescription medication into US.


CBP Advises Travelers of Entry Regulations Pertaining to Prescription Medications

Please note that only medications that can be legally prescribed in the U.S. may be imported for personal use.
possible: arrest and prosecution


In order to avoid delays and possible penalties ie:possible: arrest and prosecution , U.S. residents are advised to take the following steps: Declare all drugs, medicine, and similar products to a CBP official upon arrival to the U.S.; Carry such substances in their original containers; and Present a valid prescription for the substance issued by a U.S.-licensed practitioner who is registered with, and authorized by, the DEA to prescribe the medication.

If a U.S. resident wants to bring in a controlled substance (other than narcotics such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, or LSD) but does not have a prescription for the substance issued by a U.S.-licensed practitioner, the individual may not import more than 50 dosage units of the medication into the United States. * see the "however"



*Travelers who plan to visit Mexico, or any other country, for medical purposes or medical procedures, and who purchase medications, are subject to FDA pharmaceutical entry determinations upon returning to the U.S.

For example, Tramadol and Xanax, two commonly encountered pharmaceuticals at U.S./Mexico land border crossings, are listed as Schedule IV drugs by the Controlled Substances Act, and require valid U.S. prescriptions to be allowed to enter.
Once again..penalty...possible: arrest and prosecution

889

A long post with lots to read, but this thread is about entry to Mainland China and Hong Kong.

And entering the U.S. there's a very reasonable possibility your luggage will be examined. The scenarios are completely different. There's a post somewhere on this forum about a guy who got blocked from a trusted traveller program because he'd brought a Kinder egg into the U.S. years before! The U.S. and Mainland China are very different places in many respects.

anacapamalibu

I don't see anything on the form nor on the
official website that requires "declaring" prescription
medication and going thru the red lane.

http://english.customs.gov.cn/Static...c5d7a5479.html



So I guess to completely eliminate that 1/1000th of one percent chance that they would randomly search your green lane bag and come across a prescription bottle with a small qty of pills in it and call in an expert to identify
the pills and determine they are on the banned list. Better not travel.

anacapamalibu

not this guy..

SJOGuy

No. Asthma inhalers do not contain anabolic steroids. They are corticosteroids and have nothing to do with the products that bodybuilders use. And if it's a purely rescue inhaler, rather than a maintenance one, it will not contain a corticosteroid at all.

DaileyB

Since various medical/medicine issues have been raised on this thread, I will relate a story about my attempt to find Benadryl about 4 years ago in Beijing. I was visiting my then fiance who was a doctor in the third largest hospital in Beijing. I had a minor cough that would never quit. (Turned out to be gastric reflux) Because it never quit, I went 3 days with absolutely no sleep. In the US, Benadryl had acted to make me go to sleep before. So, I figured I would try to get Benadryl well into the first day.

I was amazed that there wasn't any Benadryl in Beijing notwithstanding my fiance's attempts to find some. She did tell me that sleeping pills were strictly regulated in China, so I didn't even consider getting them. (Looking back I probably should have scheduled a doctor's visit and gotten a prescription.) In any event, she was able to get valium (gave me the scientific name for it, which I didn't recognize), and I took it. It didn't do any good, and in fact, I really disliked the sensation it gave me.

It still surpises me greatly that I couldn't get Benadryl, which is so common in the US.

anacapamalibu

Zopiclone is OTC in China. Its same ingredient as brand Lunesta, here in US.
Eliminates jet lag insomnia. Available at PVG term 2 and any drug store in China.
30 rmb for 20pk.

Loren Pechtel

Several years ago my wife forgot to pack her HRT pills--and to our considerable surprise there was nothing like it available. The closest they had were birth control pills and there wasn't any way to get the dose right from those. Note that my wife is a native speaker, this was not a language barrier.

anacapamalibu

Moxibustion is a TCM alternative to HRT.

Loren Pechtel

I'll have to ask her about that.

anacapamalibu

Scientific research study.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26550020

As long as you are visiting China...worth looking into.

Loren Pechtel

That's talking about perimenopause.

(And note that moxibustion stuff can be obtained in the US.)

travels007

Is there a website that lists what medications are not allowed into Mainland China? There are a few prescription medications that my parents need to bring for personal use.

Also, would over-the-counter container of acetaminophen (pain & fever relief) cause any problems if the container is all in English?