Where Are Psychedelics Legal Around The Globe In 2024

• By Sam Woolfe
• March 8, 2022June 30, 2026
• legal psychedelics psychedelic drugs psychedelics psychedelics treatment
• With 4 comments

Last reviewed and updated: June 30, 2026.

Key Takeaways

Australia	TGA Feb 2023 — first country in the world to approve psilocybin (TRD) + MDMA (PTSD) at the regulatory level; psychiatrist-prescribed under Authorized Prescriber framework; first patients treated 2023
Norway	National public reimbursement for generic ketamine for TRD approved 2025 — first country to include generic ketamine for TRD in national health coverage
Netherlands	Psilocybin truffles legally sold in smart shops (legal gray zone); Amsterdam ceremony industry growing; no formal therapeutic regulatory framework yet
Canada SAP	Special Access Program: psilocybin + MDMA accessible for terminal/treatment-resistant patients since 2022; individual application process; functioning legal pathway now
UK	NICE approved esketamine (Spravato) for TRD 2022; psilocybin holds Breakthrough Therapy Designation; Phase 2b trials ongoing

Updated June 1, 2024

Where are psychedelics legal? Well, it’s first worth highlighting that most psychedelics are illegal in most countries around the world. However, there are several psychedelics that, in quite a few countries, are either legal or have been decriminalized.

Moreover, the legal landscape of psychedelics is constantly evolving and in a matter of years, we will see psychedelics being legalized or decriminalized in additional countries and states in the United States.

Of course, for anyone who wishes to have a psychedelic experience — be that solo, as part of therapy, or at a retreat — without interference from the law, then you will want to know precisely where you can have this sort of experience. After all, illegally purchasing and prohibited substances can carry the weight of additional risk and worry that no one ideally wants to have to deal with.

This guide will explore, firstly, why psychedelics are illegal. Next, we will take a look at legal and decriminalized psychedelics in the U.S., and then in other parts of the world.

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Why Are Psychedelics Illegal?

It’s curious to note that so few psychedelics are actually legal. There are several reasons for this, although they tend to be related.

1960s Hysteria

In the 1950s, researchers were fruitfully studying psychedelics like LSD, especially in the context of using them for the treatment of conditions such as alcoholism. By the 1960s, the use of LSD left the realm of science and psychotherapy and became mainstream and widely used by the public.

Following this, the media at the time published many sensationalized reports of frightening LSD-induced effects, despite the evidence showing that serious side effects of LSD are very rare.

The media contributed to the hysteria surrounding LSD, as did, it should be mentioned, real cases of adverse effects following LSD use. During the 1960s, LSD tabs were potent — much stronger than they tend to be today.

Clandestine chemists like Owsley Stanley were making tabs that had 250ug (micrograms) on each tab. This is definitely a strong dose. It is capable of inducing strong reactions, which may take the form of a mystical experience or a frightening experience (or “bad trip”).

These doses were part of the reason for the increase in accidents and hospitalizations related to LSD.

The ‘60s drug hysteria, understandably, increased people’s fears about psychedelics, leading to psychedelic stigma.

This stigma is made up of all the inaccurate or exaggerated negative beliefs that people have about psychedelics and the people who use them. Widespread psychedelic stigma is one key reason why these chemicals became highly controlled substances in most countries.

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The United States Controlled Substances Act

The United States Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which came into force in 1971, included psychedelics like LSD, DMT, psilocybin, mescaline as Schedule I substances. They remain in this category to this day.

Any Schedule I substance, in the eyes of U.S. federal law, has a high potential for abuse and no recognized medical value.

Of course, existing research on these compounds suggests they do not have a high potential for abuse (and can even be anti-addictive), and that they can also be used effectively in the treatment of many mental health issues.

In June 1971, then U.S. President Richard Nixon announced that drug abuse was “public enemy number one”. Psychedelics were included in his “war on drugs”.

Psychedelics And The Counterculture Movement

It is widely acknowledged that psychedelics can radically alter the way you think. However, these substances not only affect how you think as you experience the effects; they might also lead to enduring changes in your beliefs or at least strengthen your pre-existing beliefs.

In the 1960s, psychedelic use became associated with youthful rebellion, social upheaval, and political dissent.

John Ehrlichman, an aide to Nixon, later admitted that Nixon’s anti-drug campaign was partly fueled by opposition to the antiwar left. In the 1960s, there were many protests against the Vietnam War happening all over the U.S. The anti-war movement peaked in the 1960s, and this movement was very popular among the counterculture, which was known to advocate for the use of psychedelics.

In Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD (1985), authors Martin A. Lee and Bruce Shlain emphasized that LSD was tightly wrapped up with the antiwar movement and New Left of the 60s.

It seemed that psychedelics were linked to specific attitudes and, as indicated by Ehrlichman’s statement, we can see the U.S. government at the time felt threatened by this.

Psychedelic writers Terence McKenna and Dennis McKenna have both argued that psychedelics are illegal because they lead to unconventional thinking. This can challenge the status quo and lead to dissent.

RELATED: A Guide To Vancouver’s Magic Mushroom Dispensaries

Where Are Psychedelics Legal In The U.S.?

There are actually several psychedelics that have been legalized or decriminalized in the U.S. But they only have this legal status in certain contexts, states, or cities.

Ayahuasca

Ayahuasca is a hallucinogenic brew that contains the psychedelic compound DMT. This brew is legal for members of “ayahuasca churches”: Syncretic religions that combine Christianity with other beliefs, the members of which use ayahuasca as a religious sacrament.

Ayahuasca is a legal psychedelic for members of União do Vegetal (UDV) religion throughout the country and legal for members of the Santo Daime religion to use in ceremonies in California, Oregon, Massachusetts, and Washington State.

In 1999, U.S. customs officials seized a shipment of ayahuasca and raided a UDV member’s office. Following the incident, the UDV fought court battles to stop the U.S. government from interfering with its religious use of ayahuasca (known as Hoasca in the UDV).

After long legal battles, the Supreme Court ruled in 2006 that UDV members in the U.S. could legally use ayahuasca as a religious sacrament.

Ayahuasca has since been decriminalized in the following U.S. cities and states as well.

• Oakland, California
• Colorado
• Oregon
• Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Washington, D.C.
• Seattle, Washington

This means a person will not face prosecution for possessing or using the psychedelic brew in these cities.

Cannabis

While cannabis is not generally a psychedelic, it can certainly have psychedelic effects. These effects can manifest when a user takes cannabis in high doses or as an edible.

So, we can think of cannabis perhaps as a mild psychedelic or a non-classic psychedelic.

Cannabis is legal for recreational use for adults in the following states.

• Alaska
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Illinois
• Maine
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Montana
• Nevada
• New Jersey
• New York
• Oregon
• Vermont
• Washington

Cannabis is also legal for medical use in these states, as well as many other states.

Fly Agaric

Amanita muscaria (also known as fly agaric or the toadstool mushroom) contains the psychedelic compound muscimol. This particular mushroom is not a controlled substance on a federal level. Muscimol does not belong to any class of chemicals like the other classic psychedelics: It is not a tryptamine, phenethylamine, or ergoline psychedelic.

The effects of muscimol can be psychedelic, but they can also produce delirium, as well as a range of unpleasant physical effects. Muscimol and ibotenic acid (also found in fly agaric) are toxic compounds.

Ketamine

Another non-traditional psychedelic is ketamine. We can think of ketamine as dissociative anesthesia since it produces both dissociative and psychedelic effects.

Yes, ketamine is legal — so long as its use is in a licensed, clinical setting. It is not, however, legal to use recreationally. In the U.S., ketamine is a Schedule III drug.

LSA-Containing Seeds

Ergine or lysergic acid amide (LSA) is a psychedelic compound that has some similar effects to LSD. Like LSD, LSA is an ergoline compound; plus, they are both derivatives of lysergic acid.

LSA comes from Hawaiian baby woodrose (Argyreia nervosa) seeds and morning glory (Ipomoea violacea) seeds. While you can legally buy and possess these seeds in most states, any intent of consuming them makes them illegal in a few states.

Extracting LSA from the seeds is illegal throughout the country.

Peyote

The peyote cactus contains the psychedelic compound mescaline, which belongs to the phenethylamine class of psychedelics. Peyote is only legal if you are a member of the Native American Church (NAC) or if you are a Native American using the cactus in a traditional Indian ceremony.

NAC members and Native Americans can legally use, possess, and transport peyote if this takes place in a religious context. This exemption is granted by the American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA) of 1978, as well as an amendment made to this law in 1994.

If these conditions don’t apply to you, possessing peyote would be illegal — since mescaline is a Schedule I drug. The U.S. prohibits peyote production, sale, and possession.

Psilocybin

In November 2020, Oregon became the first state to legalize psilocybin (for medicinal use only). Colorado followed suite with Proposition 122 in November 2022.

In Santa Cruz and Oakland, California; Washington D.C.; Somerville and Cambridge, Massachusetts; Seattle, Washington; and Arbor, Michigan, magic mushrooms have been decriminalized.

This means that, in these cities, a person can cultivate and possess them for personal use without having to worry about the law. Psilocybin mushrooms are still illegal to sell, nevertheless.

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Salvia

Salvia divinorum (or salvia, for short) is a psychedelic plant that you can smoke, leading to intense psychedelic effects, with a rapid onset. This is similar to DMT — and, like DMT, people who use salvia find that it transports them to another realm.

However, the salvia experience is distinct.

For instance, salvinorin-A (a psychoactive chemical found in salvia) is a kappa-opioid agonist with dissociative effects, whereas DMT is a 5-HT2A agonist and a classic tryptamine psychedelic.

Salvia is not illegal on a federal level, although some states do regulate its use.

RELATED: The Best Psilocybin Retreats In Europe

Where Are Psychedelics Legal In Other Parts Of The World?

Some psychedelics, like ayahuasca, are also legal in other parts of the world.

Let’s take a look at some of these countries (in many of them, you can find psychedelic retreats, which might be the option you’re most interested in).

Where Are Psychedelics Legal Elsewhere In North America?

• Canada. Cannabis is fully legal and the research chemical 1P-LSD (similar to LSD) is legal to buy and possess. (Research chemicals — or RCs — are compounds with use for medical and scientific research. Some people also use these recreationally. Since many are new, they often fall outside the scope of the law.) Santo Daime members can legally use ayahuasca in Canada but only in Montreal and Toronto. The Canadian government has also legalized psilocybin and MDMA therapy for patients who have life-threatening illnesses.
• Jamaica. Psilocybin mushrooms are legal, and there are many options for retreats in the country.

Where Are Psychedelics Legal In Latin America?

• Brazil. Ayahuasca is fully legal and magic mushrooms are legal (but the psilocybin in the mushrooms is not).
• Colombia. There is no legislation regulating ayahuasca, although ayahuasca retreats are popular in the country and receive no interference from the law.
• Costa Rica. Ayahuasca is fully legal.
• Ecuador. Ayahuasca is legal as traditional medicine.
• Peru. Ayahuasca and the San Pedro cactus (which contains mescaline) are legal as traditional medicines.

Where Are Psychedelics Legal In Europe?

• The Netherlands. Magic mushrooms are illegal but sclerotia (or magic truffles) are not (these are parts of the mushroom that grow underground but which still contain the compounds psilocybin and psilocin). For this reason, you can find psilocybin retreats taking place in the Netherlands, using magic truffles, rather than mushrooms. Other legal psychedelics in the Netherlands include cannabis, mescaline-containing cacti, and salvia.
• Portugal. All drugs have been decriminalized, so you can possess and use psychedelics without worrying about facing legal consequences. This is why there are many ayahuasca retreats in the country.
• Spain has also adopted a policy of drug decriminalization.

Are you curious about psychedelics, but have concerns about prohibited status? As we highlight above, there are many places where these compounds will not bring legal trouble.

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Global Psychedelic Law in 2026: The Regulatory Landscape Has Fundamentally Shifted

Since this article was written, the global regulatory landscape for psychedelic therapy has undergone changes that would have been difficult to predict even two years ago. The most significant development: Australia became the first country in the world to formally approve psychedelic-assisted therapy at the national regulatory level. In February 2023, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) approved psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression (TRD) and MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), rescheduling both substances from Schedule 9 (prohibited) to Schedule 8 (controlled — prescribable by authorized psychiatrists). The first patients were treated under this framework in 2023. This is not decriminalization, harm reduction, or a research exemption: it is formal therapeutic approval, the first of its kind anywhere in the world.

Europe has seen meaningful regulatory progress on related compounds. Norway’s Decision Making Forum approved national public reimbursement for generic ketamine for treatment-resistant depression in 2025 — making Norway the first country to formally include generic ketamine for TRD in its national health coverage system. In the United Kingdom, NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) approved esketamine (Spravato) for TRD in 2022, and psilocybin currently holds Breakthrough Therapy Designation in the UK with Phase 2b trials ongoing. Germany fully legalized cannabis for personal use in April 2024, and psychedelic therapy research is expanding at academic centers including Charité Berlin and the University of Cologne. The Netherlands remains the only European jurisdiction where psilocybin-containing truffles are commercially sold legally; Amsterdam’s truffle ceremony industry has grown substantially, though there is ongoing regulatory debate about formal therapeutic frameworks versus the current legal gray zone.

Canada’s Special Access Program (SAP) has been a significant but underreported development. Since 2022, the SAP has allowed physicians to request psilocybin and MDMA for patients with terminal illness or treatment-resistant conditions who have exhausted other options. Some provinces have moved toward broader interpretive frameworks, and several licensed practitioners have built formal SAP-based practices. While this is not open access — each patient requires individual application approval — it represents a functioning legal pathway for psilocybin-assisted therapy in Canada right now, not in some future state. The SAP is best understood as a compassionate-use framework that bridges the gap between research access and full approval.

The most forward-looking development as of June 2026 is the positive Phase 3 trial results for Definium DT120, MindMed’s LSD-based compound. A positive Phase 3 is a regulatory milestone: it means the efficacy and safety data are in, and the compound is on a trajectory toward FDA approval. Once approved in the United States, LSD would exist as a Schedule III or IV prescription medicine — which would likely trigger rescheduling reviews in multiple countries. This would represent the first formal pharmaceutical approval of an LSD-based drug anywhere, and it would create significant international pressure on jurisdictions that currently treat LSD exclusively as a Schedule I equivalent substance with no recognized medical use. The global legal map for psychedelics is not static: it is moving faster than any prior period in history.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which country was first to legalize psychedelic therapy?

Australia was the first country in the world to formally legalize psychedelic-assisted therapy at the national regulatory level. In February 2023, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) rescheduled psilocybin (for treatment-resistant depression) and MDMA (for PTSD) from Schedule 9 (prohibited) to Schedule 8 (controlled/prescribable). Authorized psychiatrists in Australia can now prescribe both compounds under the Authorized Prescriber framework. This is distinct from decriminalization (which removes criminal penalties without creating a medical pathway) and from research exemptions (which allow controlled trial use): it is formal therapeutic approval, making Australia the global first. The first patients were treated under this framework in 2023. No other country had taken an equivalent step as of June 2026, though Canada’s Special Access Program functions as a de facto pathway for individual patients.

Is psilocybin legal in the Netherlands?

Psilocybin mushrooms (the dried form) remain illegal in the Netherlands. However, psilocybin-containing truffles — specifically the sclerotia of psilocybin mushroom species — occupy a legal gray zone and are commercially sold in “smart shops” throughout the country. This distinction exists because truffles were not explicitly included in the 1999 drug law amendment that banned dried mushrooms. The result is a commercially legal truffle market, particularly in Amsterdam, where truffle ceremonies have grown into a small industry. Participants can legally purchase and consume truffles in facilitated ceremony settings. However, there is no formal therapeutic regulatory framework: these are not FDA-equivalent approved medical treatments, there is no licensed practitioner credentialing system analogous to Australia’s Authorized Prescriber framework, and the legal status remains legally ambiguous at the EU level. Regulatory debate about formalization is ongoing.

Can you legally access psilocybin therapy in Canada?

Yes, through Canada’s Special Access Program (SAP), though access requires an individual application process. Since 2022, Health Canada’s SAP has allowed physicians to apply for authorization to use psilocybin or MDMA for specific patients with terminal illness or treatment-resistant conditions who have not responded to other available treatments. Each application is reviewed individually; approval is not automatic. If approved, the physician can obtain the substance from a licensed producer and use it with the patient in a supervised therapeutic context. Several practitioners across Canadian provinces have built formal SAP-based practices and have treated multiple patients through this framework. It is not open access — you cannot simply book a session — but it is a functioning legal pathway that exists now. For patients who meet the criteria and can work with an experienced SAP-navigating physician, psilocybin-assisted therapy is legally accessible in Canada today.

Is LSD legal anywhere as a medicine?

As of June 2026, LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is not yet approved as a prescription medicine in any jurisdiction. However, this is poised to change. MindMed’s Definium DT120 — a refined LSD compound — reported positive Phase 3 trial results in June 2026, making it the first LSD-based drug to complete Phase 3 with positive efficacy data. A positive Phase 3 is the last major clinical milestone before regulatory submission; an NDA (New Drug Application) to the FDA would likely follow in late 2026 or 2027. If approved, DT120 would be rescheduled from Schedule I to a lower schedule (likely Schedule III or IV) and would be prescribable by licensed physicians in the United States. This would almost certainly trigger rescheduling reviews and therapeutic approval debates in other countries. Switzerland has a long-running tradition of LSD research (Hofmann discovered LSD at Sandoz in Basel), and European regulators would likely face significant public and scientific pressure to follow a U.S. approval. The “LSD has no recognized medical use” regulatory framing is in the process of becoming obsolete.

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