December saw several regulators globally updating controls, including Japan, Italy, UN (INCB), Sweden, Germany, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and Switzerland, who ammended a generic statement controlling an area of chemical space, expanding substances under control
For those who want more regular updates, all this information and much, much more is available from Controlled Substances Squared weekly legislation updates. The power of the system is being able to check the regulated status of all your chemicals whenever you want, simply by entering the chemical (name or structure) you want to check.
Below is a brief summary and highlights of some of the countries we monitor and encode in Controlled Substances Squared. The solution that allows you to easily and automatically check if your chemicals are regulated or controlled - even novel and propriatory chemicals
Due to the number and complexity of updates we can't include them all here, just a few of the highlights. Full details including all substances and legislation updates can be obtained by logging into Controlled Substances Squared at https://apps.scitegrity.com/
Japan
In a reverse of the approach more recently taken in several countries, Japan has scheduled Cannabis under its Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Control Act as a narcotic
We had previously warned of these changes in a September legislation alerts.
This means that the use of cannabis is now a criminal offence. These changes have been widely reported in the Japanese media.
Previously, the Cannabis Control Law prohibited the possession and sale of marijuana but imposed no penalties for its use, creating what some experts have referred to as a “legal loophole.” Under the revised legislation, marijuana and its psychoactive component, THC, are now classified as narcotics and regulated under the narcotics control law.
This change criminalizes the use of marijuana and raises the maximum penalty for possession, transfer and now usage to seven years, up from five years. The revised legislation also lifts the ban on pharmaceuticals containing marijuana-derived ingredients, permitting their use in medicine if their efficacy and safety are verified.’
As part of these changes Δ9-THC and Δ8-trans-tetrahydrocannabinol have been moved within the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Control Act, from Table I Narcotics Similar to Table I Narcotics.
In the last few weeks ADB-5’Br-PINACA, Flunitazene, Metodesnitazene, and MD-PiHP have all also been added as controlled substances.
UN INCB
The latest version of the UN Green List of psychotropic substances has been published and contains the following new entries;
Schedule II - 3-Chloromethcathinone (3-CMC), Dipentylone and 2-Fluorodeschloroketamine Schedule IV - Bromazolam
Note: all of these substances have been in Controlled Substances Squared as controlled since they were scheduled by the Commission on Narcotic Drugs in March 2024
Meanwhile the UN Red list has also been updated adding 18 new precursor chemicals for international control
This includes 4-Piperidone and tert-Butyl 4-oxopiperidine-1-carboxylate
Italy
Nine new substances have been added to Table I;
Dextroamphetamine is already controlled as a Table I substance. A new amendment additionally adds Dextroamphetamine to Table of Medicines, section A (Table V(a)).
Sweden
The Swedish Medicines Agency has added the following substances to regulations (LVFS 2011:10) on lists of narcotics;
The following three substances will added to the Ordinance (1999:58) on the prohibition of certain goods hazardous to health listing;
Germany
This amendment makes the following additions to Schedule 2 of the Betäubungsmittelgesetz (BtMG) (Narcotics Act)
Bromazolam, Butonitazene, N,N-Dimethylpentylone, 2-Fluordeschlorketamine
Singapore
New substances added to Misuse of Drugs Act 1973
Added various position isomers and derivatives of 3- phenyl-2- oxiranecarboxylate and 2 variants of piperidine-4-one, plus the addition of Bromazolam to the first schedule and clarification on 23 named substances in the second schedule.
Saudi Arabia
Has added 19 new substances across a range of structural classes and precursors.
Taiwan
Metomidate and Isopropoxate to Schedule III
Switzerland
In this amendment the existing Synthetic Cannabinoids 2 generic in Directory E has been expanded to cover more chemical space. The original wording was: Any substance (except controlled substances of Schedules (a), (b), (d) and (f)) whose structure is derived from 6H-benzo(c)chromen-1-ol (6H-dibenzo(b,d)pyran-1-ol), regardless of the degree of hydrogenation of the non-phenolic benzo ring, by substitution at positions 3, 6 and 9 by any alkyl groups.
This has now been edited to include the following statement - These structures may additionally be substituted in one or more of the following ways: – at any position in any extent with alkyl, alkoxy, halogen and hydroxy groups. In addition to the modification of this generic the substance
Nitromethaqualone has also been added to Directory E
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