Australia
Psilocybin is legal for medical use in Australia as of 19 Aug 2026.1
- Checked against 2 cited sources at this review.
1. What the law is
Poisons Standard (Standard for the Uniform Scheduling of Medicines and Poisons), current compilation: Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard-June 2026) Instrument 2026, F2026L00633, in force 28 May 2026. Psilocybine sits in Schedule 8 for treatment-resistant depression and in Schedule 9 for all other uses, following the TGA final decision of 3 Feb 2023 with effect from 1 Jul 2023. Appendix D clause 5 makes possession without authority an offence. Appendix D clause 9 confines supply to treatment-resistant depression prescribed by a specialist psychiatrist holding an authority under subsection 19(5) of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989, or to a clinical trial approved by or notified to the Secretary.1
Only a psychiatrist approved under one scheme may prescribe psilocybin in Australia, and only for treatment-resistant depression. The Therapeutic Goods Administration moved psilocybine out of Schedule 9 and into Schedule 8 of the Poisons Standard for that single use on 1 July 2023. The authority is personal to the prescribing doctor. No other indication is approved, and every other use stays prohibited.
Australia runs one narrow medical route, and everything outside it is prohibited. Since 1 July 2023 a psychiatrist holding a specific authority may prescribe psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression. No other condition qualifies. A GP or a psychologist cannot prescribe it at all, and neither can a psychiatrist who lacks the authority. Two instruments do the work: the Poisons Standard sets the schedules, and Appendix D clause 9 names who may prescribe and on what terms.
The authority comes from subsection 19(5) of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989, granted to a named doctor. Nothing is approved as a product. No psilocybine medicine appears on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods, so what reaches a patient is an unapproved good moving through a controlled channel. A clinical trial is the other lawful setting. In 2025 a private applicant asked the TGA to open a second indication, existential distress at the end of life; on 29 May 2026 a delegate ruled that the current scheduling remains appropriate, and a final decision is still to come.
2. Pending legislation
Introduced but not yet law. If a bill passes, this record changes with it.
A private applicant asked the TGA to add a second Schedule 8 indication: existential distress towards the end of life, prescribed by a trained palliative care specialist alongside psychotherapy. The Advisory Committee on Medicines Scheduling considered it in June 2025 and recommended no change. On 29 May 2026 a delegate decided that the current scheduling remains appropriate, finding the evidence limited and existential distress absent as a diagnostic category from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Submissions closed on 31 July 2026. No final decision has been published.
3. History
The laws behind today’s status, when each took effect, and every review since, in order.
Medical use status takes effect.
Checked, with no change found. A 2026 consultation may widen who is allowed to prescribe under Australia's Authorised Prescriber scheme, but psilocybine's Schedule 8 listing for treatment-resistant depression is what it has been since 2023.
Australia's entry no longer calls the country the first to regulate psilocybin. It now says what the rule does instead: an authorised psychiatrist may prescribe it for treatment-resistant depression.
Australia's entry now cites the national Poisons Standard rather than a Victorian state page. What the law says is unchanged.
Australia's entry now names the provisions that actually limit prescribing, Appendix D clause 9 of the Poisons Standard and subsection 19(5) of the Therapeutic Goods Act, and records an application to allow psilocybine for existential distress at the end of life. A delegate decided on 29 May 2026 that the current scheduling remains appropriate, and a final decision is still to come. Psilocybin remains prescribable only by an authorised psychiatrist and only for treatment-resistant depression.
4. Trials in Australia
Interventional psilocybin trials with at least one study site in Australia, drawn from ClinicalTrials.gov, EU CTIS, and ISRCTN. Registry data is reported by sponsors and shown as filed.
Recruiting, active, completed and closed add up to the 5 trials with a study site in Australia, as of Aug 2026. Closed covers trials terminated, suspended, withdrawn or left unverified.
| Registry ID | Trial | Phase | Sponsor | Status | Started |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCT06793397 (opens in new tab) | A Study of a Deuterated Psilocin Analog (CYB003) in Humans With Major Depressive Disorder (opens in new tab)Recruiting in Camperdown, Maroochydore, Melbourne | Phase Phase 3 | Sponsor Cybin IRL Limited | Status Recruiting | Started |
| NCT07072728 (opens in new tab) | Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy in Cancer Patients With Adjustment Disorder (opens in new tab)Recruiting in Abbotsford, Leederville, Northcote | Phase Phase 2 | Sponsor Psyence Australia Pty Ltd | Status Recruiting | Started |
| NCT06605105 (opens in new tab) | Phase III Long-term Extension Trial to Assess Safety and Efficacy of CYB003 in MDD (EXTEND) (opens in new tab)Sites in Camperdown, Carlton, Maroochydore | Phase Phase 3 | Sponsor Cybin IRL Limited | Status Enrolling by invitation | Started |
| NCT06643637 (opens in new tab) | A Study to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetics of Multiple Doses of MLS101 in Healthy Participants (opens in new tab)Site at CMAX Clinical Research, Adelaide | Phase Phase 1 | Sponsor MycoMedica Life Sciences PBC | Status Completed | Started |
| NCT06326606 (opens in new tab) | A Study to Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability, and Pharmacokinetics of MLS101 in Healthy Participants (opens in new tab)Site at CMAX Clinical Research Pty Ltd, Adelaide | Phase Phase 1 | Sponsor MycoMedica Life Sciences PBC | Status Completed | Started |
ClinicalTrials.gov data courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
5. Common questions
Are mushrooms legal in Australia?
No, with one medical exception. Psilocybine is a Schedule 9 prohibited substance, and possessing it without authority is an offence under Appendix D of the Poisons Standard. The exception is narrow: since 1 July 2023 an authorised psychiatrist may prescribe it for treatment-resistant depression, which is the only approved indication.
Can I get psilocybin therapy in Australia, and how?
Through a psychiatrist, and only for treatment-resistant depression. The psychiatrist must hold an authority under subsection 19(5) of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 covering psilocybine. It is granted to the individual doctor, not to a clinic, so the starting point is a referral to a psychiatrist who holds one. A clinical trial approved by or notified to the Secretary is the other lawful setting. No route begins with booking a session.
Who can prescribe psilocybin in Australia?
A medical practitioner registered as a specialist psychiatrist who holds a subsection 19(5) authority covering psilocybine. Appendix D clause 9 of the Poisons Standard sets that limit, so a GP, a psychologist and a psychiatrist without the authority are all equally unable to prescribe it.
Can you buy magic mushrooms anywhere in Australia?
No. Nothing in the 2023 change created a retail channel, a dispensary or a legal supplier, and supply outside the prescribing route is an offence. Psilocybine reaches a patient only through an authorised psychiatrist or a clinical trial.
Magic mushrooms grow wild in Australia. Is picking them legal?
Growing wild changes nothing about the law. Psilocybine is prohibited under Schedule 9 regardless of where it came from, and Appendix D clause 5 makes possession without authority an offence, so picking wild mushrooms is possession of a prohibited substance.
Is psilocybin an approved medicine in Australia?
No. No psilocybine product is entered on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods, and psilocybine is not listed in the TGA Ingredient Database. An authorised psychiatrist supplies an unapproved good through a controlled channel, which is why access depends on a personal authority and not on an ordinary prescription.
Can psilocybin be prescribed for PTSD in Australia?
No. The Schedule 8 entry for psilocybine covers treatment-resistant depression and nothing else. The February 2023 decision that created it also rescheduled MDMA, and MDMA is the substance authorised for post-traumatic stress disorder, which is why the two are often reported together and easily confused.
Will psilocybin be allowed for end-of-life distress in Australia?
Not on the current decision. A private applicant asked the TGA to add existential distress at the end of life as a second Schedule 8 indication, prescribed by a trained palliative care specialist alongside psychotherapy. On 29 May 2026 a delegate decided that the current scheduling remains appropriate, finding the evidence limited and noting that existential distress is not a diagnostic category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Of 595 submissions 590 backed the change, but Palliative Care Australia urged waiting for stronger trial results. Submissions closed 31 July 2026 and a final decision is still to come.
Are magic mushrooms ("shrooms") legal in Australia?
"Magic mushrooms" and "shrooms" are common names for fungi that contain psilocybin. Psilocybin is legal for medical use in Australia as of 19 Aug 2026. Some laws control the compound and the fungus separately, so this record states the position for psilocybin in Australia.
Sources and confidence
Every status line is checked against the primary sources below. How each record is graded for confidence is set out in the methodology.
- 1.legislation.gov.au (opens in new tab) · legislation.gov.au
- 2.health.vic.gov.au (opens in new tab) · health.vic.gov.au
Cited at the review
This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Laws change frequently, and enforcement practice can differ from the letter of the law. Verify current status with local authorities before relying on this record.
Changes to this record
Every change we have made to this record, dated, corrections included. Nothing changes silently.
Australia's entry now names the provisions that actually limit prescribing, Appendix D clause 9 of the Poisons Standard and subsection 19(5) of the Therapeutic Goods Act, and records an application to allow psilocybine for existential distress at the end of life. A delegate decided on 29 May 2026 that the current scheduling remains appropriate, and a final decision is still to come. Psilocybin remains prescribable only by an authorised psychiatrist and only for treatment-resistant depression.
Australia's entry now cites the national Poisons Standard rather than a Victorian state page. What the law says is unchanged.
Australia's entry no longer calls the country the first to regulate psilocybin. It now says what the rule does instead: an authorised psychiatrist may prescribe it for treatment-resistant depression.
Checked, with no change found. A 2026 consultation may widen who is allowed to prescribe under Australia's Authorised Prescriber scheme, but psilocybine's Schedule 8 listing for treatment-resistant depression is what it has been since 2023.
Australia: psilocybin legal status. The Psilocybin Record. Accession AU-001. Status as of 19 Aug 2026. https://psilocybinlegalization.com/record/australia
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