Insights / 01-02-2022

Portugal

 

João Maria Mota de Campos
PLMJ

Tiago Linhares Carneiro
PLMJ

1) Psychoactive Substances Legislation

In Portugal, the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, ratified in 1981, led to the approval of the legal regime applicable to these substances. Following, other regulations have complemented this legal framework, most notably, in one hand, decriminalising the acquisition, possession and consumption of such substances and, on the other hand, regulating the trade of new psychoactive substances.

Notwithstanding, under specific circumstances, narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances may be prescribed for medicinal usage, and their production, manufacture, employment, trade, import, export, transit, transport and possession, subjected to prior authorization from INFARMED, the Portuguese administrative authority that supervises the usage of human medicinal products.

The Portuguese regulations applicable to drugs and psychotropic substances are the following:

• Decree-Law no. 15/93, dated January 22nd together with Regulatory-Decree no. 61/94, dated October 12th – establish the legal framework applicable to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.

These substances are grouped, according to their properties, in six tables that are part of these regulations. MDMA (3,4-metilenadioxianfetamina) is found in table II-A, while 5-MAPB is not included. These tables have been updated several times since 1993.

• Law no. 30/2000, dated November 29th – establishes the framework applicable to the acquisition, possession and consumption of the substances specified in the legislation above.

The scope of this law was to decriminalize the acquisition and possession of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances for personal consumption, making these activities a misdemeanor, reducing the criminality associated with these substances. It must be noted that this law does not foresee the decriminalisation of illegal traffic and selling of such substances.

• Decree-Law no. 176/2006, dated August 30th - establishes the legal framework applicable to the medicinal products for human use, applicable to narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances when manufactured as a medicinal product.
• Decree-Law no. 54/2013, dated April 17th and Ordinance no. 154/2013, dated April 17th – defins the legal framework applicable to the prevention and protection against the advertisement and trade of new psychoactive substances.
• Analogue Compounds Legislation.

In 2013, with the proliferation of shops dedicated to the sale of new psychoactive substances that, as analogues of existing substances, were out of the scope of the existing legislation, it was recognised that innovation on new psychoactive substances was ahead than the time required to adapt the existing legislation (Decree-Law no. 15/93).

Hence, Decree-Law no. 54/2013, dated April 17th was adopted, regulating the prevention and protection against the advertisement and trade of new psychoactive substances. This law defines (article 2) new psychoactive substances as:

“New psychoactive substances are substances not specifically regulated and monitored under specific legislation that, in pure form or in a preparation, may pose a threat to public health comparable to the substances covered by that legislation, with danger to life or to health and physical integrity, due to the effects on the central nervous system and may induce significant changes in motor function and mental functions, including reasoning, critical judgment and behavior, often with states of delirium, hallucinations or extreme euphoria, and can cause dependence and, in some cases, produce lasting or even permanent damage to the health of consumers.”

In addition, it considers (article 3):

“For the purposes of this Decree-Law, new psychoactive substances are considered to be those defined under the terms of the previous article, included on a list to be approved by an Executive Order from the Government member responsible for the area of health, as well as derivatives, isomers, and salts of those substances, whenever possible, including all preparations in which they are associated with other compounds.”