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Guidance: Medicines that you cannot export from the UK or hoard

Medicines Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency

March 20
15:50 2024

This document lists the medicines that cannot be exported from the UK or hoarded. The list is updated regularly.

The government has produced guidance on export and hoarding of restricted medicines.

In October 2019, a letter to holders of a wholesale dealer licence (PDF, 52KB) was sent out about the restrictions on parallel exports.

As of 1 January 2021, you may no longer be able to export branded medicines that have been placed on the UK market to countries in the European Economic Area (EEA).

Check the guidance on the exhaustion of Intellectual Property rights and parallel trade.

Hoarding or exporting a medicine on the list is considered a breach of regulation 43(2) of the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 and a contravention of the wholesale dealer licence, and may lead to regulatory action by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), which could include immediate suspension of the wholesale dealer licence.

Further advice and information

If you have any questions about the restrictions, email restrictedmedicines@dhsc.gov.uk.

Published 3 October 2019
Last updated 20 March 2024 +show all updates
  1. Added to the list: Vitamin B substances with ascorbic acid.

  2. Added the following product to the list: Salbutamol (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: nebuliser liquid unit dose vials).

  3. Added the following products to the list: Iodixanol (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: solution for injection); Iohexol (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: solution for injection); Nadolol (strength: 80mg, pharmaceutical form: tablets); potassium chloride/potassium bicarbonate (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: effervescent tablet); sodium dihydrogen phosphate anhydrous (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: effervescent tablet).

  4. Added the following product to the list: Olanzapine embonate: all strengths; powder and solvent for suspension for injection.

  5. The following products have been added to the list of medicines: Hyoscine hydrobromide (strength: 1.5mg, pharmaceutical form: patches); Bumetanide (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: tablets); Methylphenidate hydrochloride (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: all); Atomoxetine (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: all); Lisdexamfetamine mesylate (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: all); Dexamfetamine sulfate (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: all); and Guanfacine (strength: all, pharmaceutical form: all).

  6. The following products have been added: Ketamine; Bupivacaine + Fentanyl; Levobupivacaine; Human corticotrophin releasing hormone (hCRH) (Unlicenced). The following products have been removed: Ceftazidime; Cefuroxime; Co-trimoxazole; Cyclizine; Esomeprazole; Fentanyl; Hepatitis B vaccine; Hyoscine butylbromide; Influenza vaccine; Insulin soluble human; Piperacillin + Tazobactam; Potassium chloride; Sarilumab; Suxamethonium; Tocilizumab; Vancomycin. The following products have been amended: Dexamethasone; Diamorphine.

  7. Added to the list of medicines: Permethrin 5% cream.

  8. Added to the list of medicines: Semaglutide, all strengths, tablets; Dulaglutide, all strengths, solution for injection; Exenatide, all strengths, solution for injection; Liraglutide, 6mg/ml, solution for injection; Insulin degludec + Liraglutide, 100units/ml + 3.6mg/ml, solution for injection.

  9. Added to the list of medicines: Progesterone, 100mg oral capsules.

  10. Added to the list of medicines: Glucagon: all strengths; powder for injection, solution for injection.

  11. Added the following 2 products to the list: 'Nirmatrelvir and ritonavir' and 'Molnupiravir'.

  12. Added on 20 December 2022: the following 3 products have been added to the list: Flucloxacillin, Oseltamivir and Zanamivir. Added on 4 October 2019:20 medicines were added to the list of medicines that are subject to export and hoarding restrictions: Adrenaline, Conjugated oestrogens, Conjugated oestrogens + Bazedoxifene, Conjugated oestrogens + Medroxyprogesterone, Estradiol, Estradiol + Dydrogesterone, Estradiol + Levonorgestrel, Estradiol + Medroxyprogesterone, Estradiol + Norethisterone acetate, Estradiol + Norgestrel, Estriol, Hepatitis B vaccine, Levonorgestrel, Medroxyprogesterone, Oseltamivir, Ospemifene, Prazosin, Progesterone, Rivaroxaban and Tibolone.

  13. Further presentations of 2 medicines have been added to the list: Amoxicillin oral suspension and oral solution, and Phenoxymethylpenicillin (Penicillin V) oral suspension and oral solution.

  14. Ten medicines have been removed from the list of medicines intended for the UK market that cannot be exported from the UK. They are: Anakinra, Budesonide, calcium chloride, Colestyramine, Dexmedetomidine, Epoprostenol, Milrinone, Rifampicin, Rivaroxaban and Salbutamol. Insulin human has been removed as this is the same product as insulin solub

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