🇮🇸 Medical cannabis in Iceland

E — cannabinoid medicines only. Lyfjastofnun (Icelandic Medicines Agency) states that medical marijuana is not legal in Iceland; access is limited to medicines with a marketing authorisation, i.e. Sativex and Epidyolex.

Lyfjastofnun (page updated 23 Sept 2026): 'Reglugerð nr. 233/2001 um ávana- og fíkniefni og önnur eftirlitsskyld efni tilgreinir að THC er bannað á íslensku yfirráðasvæði' ... 'Þó heimilar fyrrnefnd reglugerð innflutning á lyfjum með markaðsleyfi frá Lyfjastofnun samkvæmt lyfjalögum til dæmis Epidyolex og Sativex' ... 'Því er læknisfræðilegt marijúana ekki löglegt á Íslandi.' Lög um ávana- og fíkniefni nr. 65/1974 (Narcotics Act) 2. gr. prohibits possession and handling of the substances listed in 6. gr. — which names 'Cannabis (Kannabis, Marihuana, Hass), Cannabis harpix' — on Icelandic territory, with Lyfjastofnun able to grant revocable exceptions 'þegar sérstaklega stendur á'. No cannabis flower or extract appears among the undanþágulyf (exemption medicines) Lyfjastofnun reports.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Lyf í farangri eða pósti og vörusendingum · read 27 September 2026

Sativex (THC/CBD oromucosal spray) and Epidyolex (10 % CBD solution) are available in Iceland as authorised medicines. Cannabis flower, oils and other THC products are not prescribable.

Lyfjastofnun Q&A (16 Feb 2024): 'Lyfin Sativex (sem inniheldur THC og CBD) og Epidyolex (10% CBD lausn) eru fáanleg hér á landi', governed by the Lyfjalög (Medicines Act) like any other medicine; Sativex for moderate-to-severe MS spasticity after inadequate response to other treatment, Epidyolex for seizures in Lennox-Gastaut, Dravet and tuberous sclerosis complex (age 2+, with clobazam). CBD itself is not listed in the narcotics regulation and is not banned, but any THC content makes a product a banned substance. Lyfjastofnun's monthly lists of the twenty most-prescribed undanþágulyf (e.g. June 2026, published 8 July 2026) contain no cannabis product.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Q&A 04: Er heimilt að flytja inn til landsins eða markaðssetja lyf sem innihalda CBD? · read 27 September 2026

Sativex and Epidyolex are prescribed under ordinary medicines rules by licensed doctors; no official page opened states a specialist-only restriction, and there is no cannabis prescriber list because there is no cannabis programme.

Lyfjastofnun's Q&A says the provisions of the Lyfjalög apply 'líkt og um önnur lyf' (as for other medicines). Any product-specific prescribing restriction would be in the product's authorisation conditions (Sérlyfjaskrá, which returned HTTP 403 in this session) — not verified. Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017 um lyfjaávísanir og afhendingu lyfja (Regulation on prescriptions and dispensing) 9. gr. bars telephone prescribing of eftirritunarskyld (controlled) medicines.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Q&A 04 (CBD-containing medicines) · read 27 September 2026

Prescriptions in Iceland are electronic through the national prescription gateway and valid for at most 12 months; controlled (eftirritunarskyld) medicines such as Sativex follow the stricter controlled-medicine rules, including no telephone prescriptions and reporting of paper prescriptions to Lyfjastofnun.

Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017, 5. gr.: 'Hámarksgildistími lyfjaávísunar er 12 mánuðir frá útgáfudegi, útgefanda er þó heimilt að ákveða skemmri gildistíma.' 9. gr.: only a doctor, dentist or vet may dictate a prescription by telephone, and controlled medicines are excluded. 10. gr.: paper prescriptions for 'eftirritunarskyldum ávana- og fíknilyfjum' must be sent to Lyfjastofnun by registered post before the 10th of the following month. Quantity limits per prescription for Sativex were not found.

Source: Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017 um lyfjaávísanir og afhendingu lyfja (reglugerd.is) · read 27 September 2026

No official rule on video-consultation prescribing of Sativex was found; the prescription regulation only excludes controlled medicines from telephone prescriptions. There is no telehealth route to cannabis flower because flower is illegal.

Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017, 9. gr. (telephone prescriptions exclude controlled medicines). No provision on video consultations was identified. Not published.

Source: Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017 um lyfjaávísanir og afhendingu lyfja (reglugerd.is) · read 27 September 2026

Sativex and Epidyolex are dispensed by ordinary Icelandic pharmacies on an electronic prescription; posting controlled medicines into Iceland is prohibited.

Lyfjastofnun (undanþágulyf pages, updated 2021–2026): prescriptions appear in the national lyfjagátt (prescription gateway) and any pharmacy can dispense. Reglugerð nr. 1277/2022 and Lyfjastofnun's import page: 'Ávana og fíknilyf' may not be imported by post or courier at all. No pharmacy register marks cannabis-related products.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Upplýsingar um undanþágulyf fyrir notendur · read 27 September 2026

Iceland uses a stepped co-payment system run by Sjúkratryggingar Íslands over a 12-month period (patients pay 100 % up to ISK 22,800, then falling shares, capped at ISK 62,000 per year for adults); whether Sativex or Epidyolex are covered, or need a lyfjaskírteini (individual medicine certificate), is not stated on the pages opened.

Island.is / Sjúkratryggingar (greiðsluþátttökukerfi lyfja): 'hver einstaklingur greiðir hlutfallslega minna eftir því sem lyfjakostnaður hans eykst innan tólf mánaða tímabils'; tiers 100 % → 40 % → 15 % → 7.5 % → 0 %, thresholds ISK 22,800 / 29,680 / 36,730 / 62,000 (lower for pensioners, disabled and under-22s). Lyfjaskírteini: physician applies, decision within about 3 weeks. Product-level coverage of Sativex/Epidyolex not published on the pages opened.

Source: Island.is — Greiðsluþátttökukerfi lyfja (Sjúkratryggingar) · read 27 September 2026

No official price for Sativex or Epidyolex in Iceland was retrievable this session (the official price list is in Lyfjaverðskrá, not opened).

Lyfjastofnun publishes the Lyfjaverðskrá (medicine price list) under 'Verð og greiðsluþátttaka', but no product price was extracted. No public price documented here.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Verð og greiðsluþátttaka (section index) · read 27 September 2026

The drug-driving rule is in Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019 (Traffic Act), around 50. gr.; the fetched statute text was truncated before that article, so the rule and any exception for prescribed medicines are not verified here.

Alþingi's consolidated text of Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019 was opened but the retrievable content ended at 43. gr.; no article on 'akstur undir áhrifum ávana- og fíkniefna' or the words 'læknisráði'/'lyf sem ökumanni' could be read. Government English translation PDF and Samgöngustofa pages did not resolve. The wording must be verified manually before publication.

Source: Alþingi — Umferðarlög nr. 77/2019 (text truncated in fetch) · read 27 September 2026

Visitors may bring authorised controlled medicines such as Sativex for up to 30 days' use with a doctor's certificate or prescription (Schengen certificate for Schengen residents); cannabis flower, oils or any other THC product cannot be brought in at all, and a Schengen certificate does not change that. Posting controlled medicines is prohibited.

Reglugerð nr. 1277/2022 um innflutning einstaklinga á lyfjum til eigin nota (Regulation on individuals' import of medicines for personal use, in force 25 Nov 2022): 4. gr. general medicines — from EEA up to one year's supply in luggage, 100 days by post; from non-EEA 100 days in luggage, no post. 5. gr. ávana- og fíknilyf — persons resident in Iceland 30 days if bought in Iceland, 7 days if bought abroad (30 with an Icelandic doctor's declaration); non-residents 30 days; Schengen travellers 30 days with an Art. 75 Schengen certificate; postal import prohibited. 3. gr.: show 'vottorði læknis eða lyfjaávísun' to customs. Lyfjastofnun: 'Schengen vottorð dugar ekki til að heimila innflutning einstaklinga á efnum sem eru bönnuð á íslensku yfirráðasvæði' — only medicines with an Icelandic marketing authorisation (Epidyolex, Sativex) may be imported.

Source: Reglugerð nr. 1277/2022 um innflutning einstaklinga á lyfjum til eigin nota (island.is) · read 27 September 2026

Prescriptions from EEA-licensed doctors are valid in Iceland and the regulation does not exclude controlled medicines, so an EEA prescription for Sativex could in principle be dispensed under Icelandic rules; no prescription of any kind can obtain cannabis flower or extracts, which are banned. Visitors may carry Sativex/Epidyolex for up to 30 days.

(1) Non-residents: no legal bar to being prescribed Sativex/Epidyolex; there is no cannabis programme to access. (2) Foreign EEA prescriptions: Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017, 26. gr.: 'Lyfjaávísanir lækna sem hafa starfsleyfi á Evrópska efnahagssvæðinu eru gildar hér á landi', dispensed under Icelandic rules; 27. gr. requires copies of such prescriptions to be sent to Lyfjastofnun by the 10th of the following month. The regulation contains no explicit Art. 11(6)-type exclusion for controlled medicines; whether pharmacies in practice dispense foreign prescriptions for eftirritunarskyld lyf is not published. Any prescription for flower/extract is unenforceable because THC products lack authorisation and are banned (Reglugerð 233/2001). (3) Bringing medicine in: Reglugerð 1277/2022 — controlled authorised medicines 30 days for non-residents (Schengen certificate for Schengen residents; documentation for others); banned substances never, Schengen certificate notwithstanding (Lyfjastofnun). (4) Foreign telemedicine prescriptions: follow from (2) — only for authorised medicines, and subject to the pharmacy's checks; not published specifically.

Source: Reglugerð nr. 1266/2017 um lyfjaávísanir og afhendingu lyfja, 26.–27. gr. (reglugerd.is) · read 27 September 2026

Nothing pending on medical cannabis was found: the regulator's import guidance was updated on 23 September 2026 and still states that medical marijuana is not legal; the 2020 regulation change concerned only industrial hemp seeds (≤0.2 % THC).

Lyfjastofnun news (22 Apr 2020): amendment to Reglugerð nr. 233/2001 allowing import of seeds for industrial hemp with 'að hámarki 0,20%' THC, while 'Öll varsla og meðferð kannabisplöntunnar og afurða sem vinna má úr henni er óheimil hér á landi'; hemp supervision moved to Matvælastofnun in July 2021. Lög nr. 65/1974 amendments listed on Alþingi (L. 93/2021 cannabis seeds; L. 41/2025 consumption rooms) do not create medical access.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Breyting á reglugerð um ávana- og fíkniefni (22.04.2020) · read 27 September 2026

No official count of Sativex or Epidyolex patients in Iceland was found; Lyfjastofnun's monthly top-20 lists of exemption medicines show no cannabis product.

Lyfjastofnun 'Undanþágulyf sem oftast var ávísað í júní 2026' (8 July 2026): the 20th-ranked product had 59 prescriptions and no cannabis product is on the list, implying no exemption route for cannabis of any scale. Authorised-product usage statistics were not located.

Source: Lyfjastofnun — Undanþágulyf sem oftast var ávísað í júní 2026 · read 27 September 2026