State-by-state and country-by-country guide to DMT legality: Colorado decrim, DEA religious exemptions, and 4-AcO-DMT analogue law.
No. DMT is illegal under United States (US) federal law, and no country has legalized it for general recreational or therapeutic use. A few countries make exceptions, either by decriminalizing personal possession or by permitting ayahuasca in religious or traditional settings. Inside the US, Colorado is the only state that has decriminalized personal possession.
Federal status. DMT (N,N-dimethyltryptamine) is a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), 21 U.S.C. § 812. It has held that classification since the CSA was enacted in 1970. Schedule I means the federal government has determined the drug has a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use, and no accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
Penalties. Possession of DMT is a federal felony anywhere in the US. Distribution and manufacturing carry enhanced penalties.
No medical access route. As of 2026, there is no federal therapeutic pathway to DMT. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has no Expanded Access program for it, and no approved Investigational New Drug (IND) application opens a general compassionate-use route. No proceeding to reschedule DMT is underway.
The April 2026 executive order. The order on psychedelic therapies, “Accelerating Medical Treatments for Serious Mental Illness,” speeds up FDA and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) review processes in general. It does not change DMT’s Schedule I status or create any legal way to access it. Our guide to the psychedelics executive order covers what the order does change.
Colorado. Proposition 122, the Natural Medicine Health Act of 2022, decriminalized personal possession of DMT for adults 21 and older. Colorado is the only US state to have done so. DMT keeps its federal Schedule I status there, so possession is still a federal felony in Colorado.
Everywhere else in the US. Outside Colorado, the only local variation comes from city-level deprioritization policies and narrow DEA religious exemptions. A deprioritization policy is not a legal protection, and it does not make possession legal.
Outside the US. Brazil’s CONAD resolved in 2010 that ayahuasca is legal for religious use. Peru declared ayahuasca a national cultural heritage in 2008 under Supreme Decree No. 040-2008-PCM, and licensed retreat centers there offer it. Portugal, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic have decriminalized personal possession of DMT.
What the exceptions cover. In Brazil and Peru, isolated or synthetic DMT is not separately authorized outside the ayahuasca and traditional-medicine context. Before you travel, match what you plan to take to one of these exact frameworks: ayahuasca in a religious or traditional setting in Brazil or Peru, or personal possession in Portugal, the Netherlands, or the Czech Republic.
| Jurisdiction | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Federal (all states) | Schedule I | DMT has been Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act since 1970. Federal law supersedes state law; even in Colorado, federal agents retain jurisdiction. |
| Colorado | Decriminalized (Prop 122) | The Natural Medicine Health Act (Proposition 122, passed November 2022) decriminalized personal possession of DMT for adults 21 and older under state law. No licensed DMT healing centers exist — the state’s therapeutic program currently covers psilocybin, with DMT healing centers expected to be addressed after June 2026. Sale and distribution remain criminal under state law. Whether DMT shows up on a workplace drug test is answered in the DMT guide. |
| All other states | Schedule I | DMT is a Schedule I controlled substance in all other US states. Several cities (Oakland, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Berkeley, Arcata, Eureka in California; Detroit, Ann Arbor, Hazel Park in Michigan; and others) have passed deprioritization resolutions directing local police to treat entheogen enforcement as low priority — but these resolutions are not legal protections and do not bind state or federal law enforcement. |
Four US religious organizations have obtained confirmed DEA exemptions permitting their members to use DMT-containing ayahuasca in religious ceremonies. These exemptions were established through federal court litigation under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), following the Supreme Court’s landmark 2006 ruling in Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal (UDV), which found that the government had not demonstrated a compelling interest sufficient to override the UDV’s sincere religious practice.
The four confirmed exemption-holding organizations are:
These exemptions are organization-specific. They do not extend to other ayahuasca ceremony providers, neo-shamanic retreat centers, or individuals who independently claim religious use of ayahuasca. Organizations claiming RFRA protection without a court or DEA determination face prosecution risk.
4-AcO-DMT (4-acetoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine, also known as psilacetin or O-acetylpsilocin) is a synthetic tryptamine that is a prodrug of psilocin — meaning it metabolizes into psilocin in the body. It is not explicitly listed on the DEA’s Schedule I list of controlled substances.
However, the Federal Analogue Act (21 U.S.C. § 813) treats any substance “substantially similar” in chemical structure or pharmacological effect to a Schedule I controlled substance as a Schedule I substance — but only when intended for human consumption. The DEA and Department of Justice have argued that 4-AcO-DMT is an analogue of psilocin (which is itself Schedule I as a DMT-related tryptamine and psilocybin metabolite). Federal prosecutions under this theory have occurred; the “not for human consumption” label used by research-chemical vendors does not provide legal protection when there is evidence of intended human use.
Several US states also have their own analogue acts that may apply. 4-AcO-DMT should be treated as carrying meaningful federal and state legal risk regardless of its unscheduled status.
| Country | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil | Legal (ayahuasca) | CONAD (Brazil’s National Drug Policy Council) resolved in 2010 that ayahuasca is legal for religious use. Ayahuasca ceremonies are widely practiced, and numerous churches and retreat centers operate legally. Isolated or synthetic DMT is not separately authorized. |
| Peru | Legal (ayahuasca) | Ayahuasca was declared a national cultural heritage of Peru in 2008 (Supreme Decree No. 040-2008-PCM) and is widely available through licensed retreat centers in the Amazon region. It is used as a traditional medicine and in organized ceremony settings. Isolated or synthetic DMT is not separately addressed. |
| Mexico | Grey area (ayahuasca) | DMT is a prohibited psychotropic substance under Article 245 of Mexico’s General Health Law (Ley General de Salud), and possessing, cultivating, or distributing it is illegal outside specific indigenous ceremonial practices. Ayahuasca brew is not separately scheduled under that law, so ceremonial retreat centers operate in regions like Oaxaca and the Riviera Maya in a tolerated grey area. That grey-area tolerance does not extend to isolated or synthetic DMT, which remains prohibited under Article 245. |
| Ecuador | Legal (ayahuasca, traditional) | Ecuador permits ayahuasca use for traditional and ceremonial purposes as traditional folk medicine, and shamans conducting ceremonies are expected to meet recognized practice criteria. Ecuador does not have a codified national statute comparable to Brazil’s CONAD resolution or Peru’s cultural-heritage decree. Isolated or synthetic DMT outside a traditional ayahuasca ceremony is not separately authorized. |
| Portugal | Decriminalized | Since 2001, Portugal has decriminalized personal possession of all drugs, including DMT, as a public health measure. Possession of small quantities is an administrative offense referred to a dissuasion commission; trafficking and supply remain criminal. No therapeutic access pathway exists. |
| Netherlands | Decriminalized | Personal possession of small quantities of DMT is effectively decriminalized under Dutch drug policy, though DMT is a List I (hard drugs) controlled substance. Ayahuasca ceremonies operate in a legal grey area; several organizations have faced prosecution. Psilocybin truffles (not DMT) are the Netherlands’ better-known legal psychedelic. |
| Czech Republic | Decriminalized (misdemeanor) | Possession of small amounts of DMT (the Czech threshold for “small amount” is generally interpreted as a few doses) is a misdemeanor administrative offense rather than a criminal matter. Sale, production, and larger quantities are criminal offenses. No therapeutic access. |
| Spain | Ayahuasca not scheduled (2025 ruling) | Pure DMT is a controlled substance under Spanish law, but ayahuasca is not individually listed or prohibited on drug schedules. In ruling 316/2025 on 10 July 2025, the High Court of Justice of Madrid held that ayahuasca is not a scheduled substance, following roughly 50 prior lower-court acquittals or case dismissals. Registered religious groups like Santo Daime and União do Vegetal lack import authorization for rituals, so practical use remains legally uncertain. |
| United States | Schedule I | DMT is Schedule I federally with no approved therapeutic use. Colorado has decriminalized personal possession under state law. Four religious organizations hold DEA ayahuasca exemptions. See full detail above. |
| United Kingdom | Class A | DMT is a Class A controlled substance under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 — the highest restriction category. Penalties for possession are up to 7 years; for supply, up to life imprisonment. No therapeutic or research exemption pathway exists for DMT outside of licensed research settings. |
| Australia | Prohibited | DMT is a Schedule 9 (Prohibited Substance) drug in Australia. Australia rescheduled MDMA and psilocybin for therapeutic use in 2023, but DMT was not included in that rescheduling and remains strictly prohibited with no therapeutic pathway. |
| Canada | Schedule III (CDSA) | DMT is a Schedule III substance under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, the same schedule as LSD, psilocybin, and psilocin. Unlike MDMA and psilocybin, DMT has not been the subject of significant Health Canada Special Access Program (SAP) approvals. No legal therapeutic access pathway exists. |
| Egypt, Kenya, Malaysia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa | Schedule I-equivalent | DMT is a controlled/prohibited substance under each country's national drug law, consistent with scheduling obligations under the 1971 UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances, which all six of these countries have ratified. No decriminalization, religious exemption, or therapeutic access pathway exists in any of them. |
| Croatia, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Romania, Finland | Schedule I-equivalent | As EU member states, DMT is a controlled substance under each country's national narcotics law, consistent with EU and UN scheduling. No country-specific exemption or decriminalization for DMT is documented. |
| Russia | Prohibited | DMT is a prohibited narcotic under Russian federal law, with among the strictest enforcement regimes globally. No therapeutic or exemption pathway exists. |
| Hong Kong | Prohibited | DMT is a controlled substance under Hong Kong's Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, with strict criminal penalties for possession and trafficking. No therapeutic access pathway exists. |
| Thailand | Category 1 psychotropic | DMT is classified as a Category 1 psychotropic substance under Thailand’s Psychotropic Substances Act, the category for hallucinogens with high abuse potential and no accepted medical use, and possession is strictly prohibited. Penalties for production, importation, exportation, or sale range from 5 to 20 years imprisonment plus a fine of 100,000 to 400,000 Thai Baht, and severe trafficking cases can carry the death penalty. No decriminalization, religious exemption, or therapeutic access pathway exists, and Thailand’s 2022 cannabis decriminalization does not extend to DMT or other psychotropic substances. |
| Uruguay | Schedule I-equivalent | Uruguay's progressive cannabis policy does not extend to DMT, which remains a controlled substance with no decriminalization or therapeutic exemption. |
| Belgium | Controlled | DMT is a controlled substance under Belgian drug law under the Law of 24 February 1921 as amended, which transposed the 1971 United Nations (UN) Convention on Psychotropic Substances. According to legal reference materials from the Psychedelic Society Belgium, ayahuasca plant ingredients such as Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis are not separately scheduled. Belgian customs has seized DMT-containing plant material in practice. No religious or therapeutic exemption exists under Belgian law. |
| Germany | Anlage I (BtMG) | DMT is listed in Schedule I (Anlage I) of the Betäubungsmittelgesetz (BtMG), Germany's narcotics law. Supplying, cultivating, or manufacturing DMT carries penalties of up to 5 years of imprisonment, or up to 15 years for large quantities. Ayahuasca plant ingredients are not explicitly scheduled, but German customs has seized DMT-containing plant material such as Mimosa hostilis and pursued criminal charges. No therapeutic or religious exemption exists. |
| France | Stupéfiant | French national drug law classifies DMT and its plant sources as stupéfiants, which are controlled narcotic substances. Religious groups such as Santo Daime have not secured a therapeutic or religious exemption in France. No decriminalization or legal access pathway exists. |
| India | Controlled (NDPS Act) | DMT is regulated as a psychotropic substance in India under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985. That statute applies the same controls to DMT as it does to MDMA and LSD. India provides no therapeutic, research, or religious exemption pathway. |
| Japan | Prohibited | Japan controls DMT under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act, documented in English by the Japanese Law Translation database. This statute governs psychotropic drugs not covered by Japan's separate cannabis, stimulant, or opium laws. Enforcement is strict across all psychedelics. No therapeutic or research exemption pathway exists. |
| Greece | Schedule I | Greek law classifies DMT as a Schedule I narcotic substance in the same restrictive category as LSD and MDMA. Most psychedelics are illegal across Greece, where personal use penalties can include fines and prison sentences. The Greek legal framework offers no therapeutic or religious exemption for DMT. |
| Hungary | Schedule I-equivalent | As a European Union (EU) member state, Hungary regulates DMT as a controlled substance under its national narcotics law. This classification fulfills EU and United Nations (UN) scheduling obligations, consistent with the framework in member states like Poland and Romania. Hungarian law documents no country-specific exemption or decriminalization measure for DMT. |
| Jamaica | Unconfirmed | Psilocybin mushrooms were never scheduled under Jamaica's Dangerous Drugs Act, as documented by Harris Sliwoski LLP. DMT's status under that same statute remains unconfirmed in published government records. Psilocybin's status cannot be assumed to extend to DMT or ayahuasca. Anyone considering an ayahuasca retreat in Jamaica should verify the legal status directly before booking. |
| Poland | Schedule I-equivalent | Under Polish national narcotics law, DMT is classified as a controlled substance in accordance with European Union and United Nations scheduling rules. This matches the regulatory framework documented on this page for EU member states like Hungary and Lithuania. Poland documents no national exemption, decriminalization policy, or authorized medical pathway for DMT. |
| Vietnam | Controlled | DMT is a controlled substance under Vietnam's national narcotics framework, updated by Decree 90/2024/ND-CP to amend the list of controlled narcotics and precursors. Vietnam enforces its narcotics laws strictly with severe criminal penalties. The legal system grants no recreational, therapeutic, or religious exemptions for DMT or any other classical psychedelic. |
| Philippines | Controlled (RA 9165) | DMT is controlled in the Philippines under the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 (Republic Act No. 9165). Administered by the Dangerous Drugs Board, this statute places DMT under the same restrictive controls that apply to MDMA and LSD. Philippine law provides no therapeutic, research, or religious exemption pathway for DMT. |
Legal DMT retreats — meaning retreats where DMT is administered in a legally protected context — are almost entirely ayahuasca retreats. The key jurisdictions are:
In the US, the only legal ayahuasca access is through membership in one of the four DEA-exempted religious organizations listed above. These are not retreat centers open to the public; they are religious congregations. Vaporized or synthetic N,N-DMT retreats have no legal pathway in the US as of 2026. The main DMT guide covers the clinical research pipeline (Small Pharma/Helus Pharma SPL026, Imperial College DMTx studies) in more detail.
Colorado is the only US state where personal possession of DMT has been decriminalized, under Proposition 122 (2022) for adults 21 and older. In every other state and under federal law, DMT (N,N-dimethyltryptamine) is a Schedule I controlled substance. Four religious organizations — UDV, Santo Daime, Iowaska Church of Healing, and the Church of Gaia — hold confirmed DEA exemptions to use DMT-containing ayahuasca in their ceremonies.
Personal possession of DMT is decriminalized in Colorado for adults 21+ under Prop 122 (the Natural Medicine Health Act, 2022). You may possess DMT for personal use without criminal penalty under state law. However, no licensed DMT healing centers exist in Colorado — the state's therapeutic program currently covers psilocybin only, with DMT-specific healing centers expected to be considered after June 2026. Federal law (Schedule I) still applies.
4-AcO-DMT (psilacetin) is not explicitly listed on the DEA's Schedule I list. However, it is a prodrug of psilocin, and the DEA and DOJ have argued it is subject to the Federal Analogue Act (FAA), which treats substances substantially similar to Schedule I drugs as Schedule I when intended for human consumption. Several arrests and prosecutions have occurred under this theory. Possession of 4-AcO-DMT carries meaningful federal legal risk even though it is not explicitly scheduled.
No country has legalized DMT for recreational or general therapeutic use. Portugal has decriminalized personal possession of all drugs since 2001, including DMT. The Czech Republic treats small-amount possession as a misdemeanor. The Netherlands has decriminalized personal possession of small quantities. In Brazil, ayahuasca (containing DMT) is legal for religious use and consumed in organized ceremony settings. In Peru, ayahuasca is legal as a traditional medicine and widely available through licensed retreat centers. Everywhere else, DMT is a controlled substance.
Legal DMT retreats — meaning retreats where DMT itself is served legally — are primarily ayahuasca retreats in Peru, Brazil, Costa Rica, and the Netherlands, where the legal status of ayahuasca varies by jurisdiction. In the US, the only legal ayahuasca access is through one of the four DEA-exempted religious organizations (UDV, Santo Daime, Iowaska, Church of Gaia), which are not retreat centers open to the public. Vaporized or synthetic DMT retreats have no legal pathway in the US as of 2026.
Federal personal possession of DMT is a misdemeanor under 21 U.S.C. § 844 for a first offense, carrying up to one year in federal prison and a minimum $1,000 fine. A second personal possession offense increases the maximum to two years. Distribution or manufacture of DMT is a felony under 21 U.S.C. § 841: a first-offense trafficking conviction carries up to 20 years in federal prison and a $1 million fine for small quantities, with higher sentences for larger amounts. These penalties apply regardless of any city or state decriminalization policies, including in Colorado.
No. Transporting DMT — including ayahuasca — into the United States is a federal drug importation offense under 21 U.S.C. §§ 952 and 960, regardless of DMT's legal status in Peru or Brazil. A first-offense conviction carries up to 20 years in federal prison. Peru's recognition of ayahuasca as traditional cultural heritage and Brazil's legal allowance of ayahuasca for religious use do not create any exemption under US law. Returning travelers have had ayahuasca seized at US customs, and prosecutions have occurred.
No. DMT does not cause the compulsive use or withdrawal seen with opioids, alcohol, or stimulants. Its main safeguard against abuse is tachyphylaxis: a second dose within about 24 hours produces a much weaker effect. See our full DMT guide (/guides/dmt) for the pharmacology and the psychological risks that do apply, including psychosis risk for people with a personal or family history.
No. DMT is controlled under Mexico's Ley General de Salud (General Health Law), which lists it among the psychotropic substances with no recognized medical use, comparable to Schedule I in the US. Mexico's narrow legal carve-out for peyote and mescaline, tied to indigenous ceremonial use, does not extend to ayahuasca or DMT. In practice, ayahuasca retreat centers operate openly in Mexico, particularly around Tulum and Oaxaca, in the same kind of unlicensed gray area as Costa Rica rather than an explicit legal pathway (see the Mexico retreat guide at /retreats/ayahuasca-mexico for cost and vetting detail). N,N-DMT is the substance covered here. For 5-MeO-DMT, the Sonoran Desert toad compound, see /guides/5-meo-dmt.
No. Prop 122 (the Natural Medicine Health Act) decriminalizes personal possession, use, and non-commercial sharing of DMT for any adult 21 or older physically present in Colorado. The statute is not written as a residency test. It only protects in-state conduct: carrying DMT across Colorado's border, in either direction, remains a separate federal offense under 21 U.S.C. §§ 841, 952, and 960 regardless of the traveler's activity while in Colorado.
No, having DMT mailed or shipped into Colorado is illegal under federal law, despite state-level decriminalization. Sending DMT through the mail or across state lines constitutes federal drug trafficking and distribution under 21 U.S.C. § 841. Colorado's Proposition 122, the Natural Medicine Health Act, protects only in-state personal possession, use, and non-commercial sharing for adults 21 and older. State decriminalization cannot override federal law or shield mail shipments from federal prosecution.
No, DMT is not legal in Washington, DC, where it remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. Initiative 81, which DC voters passed in November 2020 with 76% of the vote, deprioritizes enforcement for plants that naturally contain DMT without making those plants or DMT legal.
DMT is not legal in any European country for general or recreational use. Portugal has treated personal possession of all drugs, including DMT, as an administrative offense since 2001. The Czech Republic treats small-amount possession as a misdemeanor, and the Netherlands has effectively decriminalized possession of small quantities. Reduced penalties in Portugal and the Czech Republic are not legal access.
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