Japan
Psilocybin is illegal in Japan, where it and mushrooms containing it or psilocin count as narcotics. Possessing, using or handing over either without authorization carries up to seven years in prison. Importing either or growing the mushrooms brings one to ten years.1
- Checked against the 2 sources cited below.
1. What the law is
Japan classes psilocybin and psilocin as narcotics. Possessing, using or handing either over without authorization can bring up to seven years in prison. Importing them or growing the mushrooms that contain them brings one to ten years. For profit, possessing, using or handing them over carries one to ten years, and importing or growing brings a prison term of at least one year. A fine can be added in either case.
The law reaches the mushrooms themselves. A cabinet order that took effect on 6 June 2002 designated mushrooms containing psilocybin or psilocin as narcotic raw material plants, which makes them narcotics as well. The health ministry said in April 2002 that it would name no species: a mushroom is covered if it contains either substance, whatever its form.
A researcher licensed by a prefectural governor may use narcotics for study, and needs the health minister's permission as well to grow the mushrooms.
2. History
The legal events behind this entry, dated and oldest first. Our own reviews and corrections are listed under Changes to this record.
No reform legislation on file for Japan yet. If one passes, it appears here, dated.
3. Proposed laws
No proposed law is on file in Japan that would change this entry, as of the 13 Nov 2026 review.
4. Common questions
Is psilocybin legal in Japan?
Psilocybin is illegal in Japan, where it and mushrooms containing it or psilocin count as narcotics. Possessing, using or handing over either without authorization carries up to seven years in prison. Importing either or growing the mushrooms brings one to ten years.
Are magic mushrooms ("shrooms") legal in Japan?
"Magic mushrooms" and "shrooms" are common names for fungi that contain psilocybin, and this entry states the law on psilocybin itself, which some laws treat separately from the fungus. Psilocybin is illegal in Japan, where it and mushrooms containing it or psilocin count as narcotics. Possessing, using or handing over either without authorization carries up to seven years in prison. Importing either or growing the mushrooms brings one to ten years.
Read the law
Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act (麻薬及び向精神薬取締法, Act Number 14 of 1953), version in force from 1 October 2026. Cabinet Order Number 238 of 1990 (麻薬、麻薬原料植物、向精神薬、麻薬向精神薬原料等を指定する政令), version in force from 6 September 2026, lists psilocybin and psilocin at article 1 items 59 and 60, and the mushrooms at article 3, added by Cabinet Order Number 169 of 2002. Possession falls under articles 28(1) and 66; transfer and receipt under 24, 26 and 66. Use falls under 27(1), 27(5) and 66-2. Import falls under 13(1) and 65(1)(i), cultivation under 12(3) and 65(1)(ii); the terms for profit are in 65(2), 66(2) and 66-2(2). Article 69-6 applies Penal Code (刑法) article 2, reaching anyone acting outside Japan, to articles 64, 64-2, 65, 66, 66-3 to 68-2, 69-2, 69-4 and 69-5. Use (article 66-2) is not listed.1
Sources
This entry's status is checked against the primary sources below, and the methodology explains how each entry is graded for confidence.
- 1.Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act (Act Number 14 of 1953), version in force from 1 Oct 2026e-Gov Law Search (opens in new tab) · laws.e-gov.go.jp
- 2.Cabinet Order Number 238 of 1990, which lists the narcotics, version in force from 6 Sep 2026e-Gov Law Search (opens in new tab) · laws.e-gov.go.jp
This entry is for information only and is not legal or medical advice. Laws change, and enforcement can differ from the letter of the law, so check the current position against the primary sources above before relying on it.
Changes to this record
2 changes on file, the latest on . Show allHide
Every change we have made to this record, dated, corrections included. Nothing changes silently.
Japan's health ministry said in April 2002, before the designation of the mushrooms took effect on 6 June 2002, that it would name no species; this entry had dated the statement to the designation. In the law section, 1 October 2026 and 6 September 2026 are the dates of the versions read; the Act dates from 1953 and the Order from 1990. The entry now gives the prison terms for offenses committed for profit, and a sentence on a clinical study is no longer printed.
Japan joins the register. Psilocybin is a narcotic under the Narcotics and Psychotropics Control Act, and so are mushrooms that contain it. Possessing or using it without authorization is a crime carrying up to seven years in prison.
Psilocybin Media Group. "Japan: psilocybin legal status." The Psilocybin Record, accession JP-001, version of 13 Nov 2026. https://psilocybinlegalization.com/record/japan