Codeine, including codeine combination tablets and syrups at any strength, and strong opioids such as morphine, oxycodone and fentanyl patches need a Thai FDA permit before you bring them to Thailand. Tramadol is different: it is not on Thailand's narcotics or psychotropic lists, so the ordinary rule applies, up to 30 days' supply with your prescription (as of October 2026).
Painkillers cause more confusion at the Thai border than almost any other group of medicines, because the rules depend on the active ingredient rather than on how strong the tablet feels. A mild codeine combination bought over the counter at home can need a permit, while a stronger-sounding tramadol prescription does not.
This page goes through painkillers by type, using the Thai FDA's classification tables updated in September 2025. It sets out official rules only. Whether you take a painkiller, and how much, is between you and your doctor: do not stop or swap one because of a trip without asking them. The general medicine rules are in our guide to taking prescription medicine into Thailand.
Painkillers at the Thai border (October 2026)
- Codeine, any strength, incl. combinations
- Narcotic: Thai FDA permit
- Morphine, oxycodone, fentanyl, hydromorphone
- Narcotic Category II: permit, max 90 days
- Buprenorphine
- Psychotropic Category II: 30 days with doctor's certificate
- Tramadol
- Not listed: up to 30 days, original packaging, prescription
- Pregabalin, gabapentin
- Not listed: ordinary medicine rule
- Permit deadline
- At least 15 days before arrival or departure
Painkillers by active ingredient
Thailand puts controlled substances on two lists, narcotics and psychotropic substances, each split into categories. The table shows where common painkillers sit. Check the ingredient on your label, not the brand.
| Active ingredient | Thai list and category | What a traveler needs |
|---|---|---|
| Codeine, dihydrocodeine | Narcotic, Category II | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Codeine combination products (with paracetamol, ibuprofen or in cough syrup) | Narcotic, Category III (formulas containing a Category II narcotic) | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone, hydromorphone | Narcotic, Category II | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Fentanyl (incl. patches) | Narcotic, Category II | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Tapentadol, pethidine, methadone, tilidine | Narcotic, Category II | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Pholcodine (in some cough medicines) | Narcotic, Category II | FDA permit, max 90 days |
| Buprenorphine, butorphanol | Psychotropic, Category II | Up to 30 days with doctor's certificate; 31–90 days permit |
| Pentazocine | Psychotropic, Category III | As for buprenorphine |
| Tramadol | Not on either list | Up to 30 days, original packaging, prescription or letter |
| Pregabalin, gabapentin | Not on either list | As for tramadol |
Sources: Thai FDA narcotics table (updated 15 September 2025) and psychotropics table (updated 18 September 2025). Lists change, so check the current versions on the FDA's control page before you travel. Everyday painkillers such as paracetamol and ibuprofen on their own are not controlled substances.
Codeine: no low-dose exemption for travelers
Many travelers assume a weak codeine tablet is fine because it is sold without a prescription at home. In Thailand codeine is a Category II narcotic. A medicine that contains codeine together with other ingredients, such as a codeine and paracetamol tablet or a codeine cough syrup, falls into Category III, which covers medicinal formulas containing a Category II narcotic. The FDA's guidance for travelers requires a permit for both Category II and Category III, and it does not mention any strength below which codeine is exempt.
Thai law does allow some household-medicine formulas to be exempt from the narcotics definition, but we could not obtain the notification that lists them. Without it, no traveler can show at the airport that their particular product is exempt. Treat any codeine product as needing a permit.
A half-used box of codeine tablets in your toiletry bag counts. Leftover cold and flu tablets with codeine, or a codeine cough syrup, are narcotics under Thai rules whatever their strength. Check your first-aid kit before you pack, and ask your doctor or pharmacist about an alternative if you do not need the codeine product on this trip.
The same reasoning applies to dihydrocodeine and to pholcodine, which some countries sell in cough syrups.
Strong opioids: morphine, oxycodone and fentanyl patches
Morphine, oxycodone, hydromorphone, hydrocodone, tapentadol and fentanyl are all Category II narcotics. Travelers under treatment may bring up to a 90-day supply as prescribed, but only with a Thai FDA permit applied for online at least 15 days before arrival. How to apply, from the doctor's certificate to the printed permit, is set out in our guide to the Thai FDA medicine permit.
Fentanyl patches are covered because the ingredient is fentanyl; the FDA does not treat the patch form separately. The permit should name each opioid you carry, including any fast-acting tablet you use for breakthrough pain alongside a slow-release one. If you need more than 90 days of an opioid, plan with your doctor how to continue treatment in Thailand, which usually means a hospital consultation; see our guide to hospitals in Thailand.
Methadone is also a Category II narcotic, while buprenorphine is a psychotropic. People in opioid substitution treatment should contact the FDA's permit office well before booking and keep their treating clinic involved.
Tramadol: the ordinary 30-day rule
Tramadol is not on the Thai FDA's narcotics table, nor on the psychotropics table, in their September 2025 versions. No narcotics permit or doctor's certificate rule applies to travelers carrying it. The general Drug Act rule covers it instead. As the Royal Thai Embassy in London sets it out, you may carry up to 30 days of use, in the pharmacy box with its label, plus the prescription or a doctor's letter.
Some websites claim tramadol is a Category 2 narcotic in Thailand that needs FDA approval. That is not what the FDA's own tables show. For a written answer about your own prescription, e-mail the FDA unit that handles medicines outside the narcotics system, the Bureau of Drug Control, at drug@fda.moph.go.th.
Buying tramadol in Thailand is another matter. In June 2025 the Thai FDA reclassified single-ingredient tramadol taken by mouth as a "specially controlled drug" and limited it to hospitals and clinics, according to a Bangkok Biz News report quoting the FDA's secretary-general. Pharmacies may no longer sell it. Tramadol combined with paracetamol was not affected. The reason given was misuse of tramadol capsules by young people, mixed with cough syrup or kratom.
Bring enough tramadol for the trip, up to the 30-day limit. Since June 2025 a Thai pharmacy cannot sell you plain tramadol, so running out means a visit to a clinic or hospital. Pack the medicine in your hand luggage, in its original box.
Nerve pain medicines and other painkillers
Pregabalin and gabapentin, often prescribed for nerve pain, are on neither Thai list, so they follow the ordinary 30-day rule. For any other painkiller, look up each active ingredient in the FDA tables rather than assuming.
Painkillers combined with a sedative or a decongestant need a second look. Pseudoephedrine, found in some cold and flu combinations, is a Category II psychotropic in Thailand, so it falls under the 30-day doctor's certificate rule. Medicinal cannabis is a separate case altogether: THC is a Category I psychotropic and the traveler guidance offers no route for it. Our page on cannabis in Thailand explains the domestic rules.
Buying painkillers in Thailand
Thai pharmacies sell ordinary painkillers such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, and the wider range is described in our older article on medicines you can buy without a prescription. Codeine and other opioids are a different matter: they are narcotics under Thai law. If a shop offers you one without a prescription, decline, because you then have to explain it to customs when you leave.
For pain that needs more than a pharmacy can offer, see a doctor. If you are prescribed a codeine or opioid medicine in Thailand and want to fly home with it, the FDA's rules cover carrying narcotics out of Thailand as well as in, so the permit question arises on departure too. Your home country has its own limits; see taking medicine home from Thailand.
ADHD medicines have their own guide, ADHD medication and Thailand. If you also take sleeping pills or anxiety medicine, those follow the psychotropic rules described in our guide to sleeping pills in Thailand. A travel insurance policy that pays for a Thai doctor and lost medicine is worth checking before you go.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take codeine to Thailand?
Only with a Thai FDA permit. Codeine is a Category II narcotic, and medicines that combine it with other ingredients are Category III. The FDA's traveler guidance requires a permit for both, applied for at least 15 days before arrival, with no exemption for low-strength products (as of October 2026).
Do I need a permit for tramadol in Thailand?
No. The Thai FDA's September 2025 tables do not list tramadol at all, which leaves it under the rule for ordinary prescription medicines: a supply of no more than 30 days, in the labeled box, with a prescription or a letter from your doctor. Since 2025 plain tramadol is sold in Thailand only by hospitals and clinics.
Can I bring fentanyl patches to Thailand?
Yes, with a permit. Fentanyl is a Category II narcotic, so you need a Thai FDA permit for any amount, and the supply may not exceed 90 days as prescribed. Carry the patches in their original packaging with the permit and your doctor's letter.
Can I buy codeine at a Thai pharmacy?
Codeine is a narcotic under Thai law, so it should not be sold over the counter. If you need a stronger painkiller, see a doctor at a clinic or hospital. Remember that leaving Thailand with a codeine medicine also falls under the FDA's permit rules.
Sources
- Thai FDA – Guidance for travelers under treatment carrying personal medications into/out of Thailand (checked October 2026)
- Thai FDA – Control of narcotics, psychotropic substances and volatile substances (checked October 2026)
- Thai FDA – Table of controlled narcotic drugs (update 15 September 2025) (checked October 2026)
- Thai FDA – Table of controlled psychotropic substances (update 18 September 2025) (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy London – Bringing medications to Thailand (checked October 2026)
- Bangkok Biz News – Thai FDA restricts single-ingredient tramadol to hospitals and clinics (4 June 2025, in Thai) (checked October 2026)