United Kingdom
Psilocybin is illegal in the United Kingdom as of 16 Aug 2026.1
- Checked against 2 cited sources at this review.
1. What the law is
Misuse of Drugs Act 1971: psilocin and 'fungus (of any kind) which contains psilocin or an ester of psilocin' are Class A; Schedule 1 under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001. Drugs Act 2005 banned fresh mushrooms.1
The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 controls psilocin and any fungus of any kind that contains it. Spores hold none, so they are lawful to own and unlawful to germinate. Class A, Schedule 1. The Home Office eased research licensing requirements in 2025.
Sub-national records
2. Pending legislation
July 2025 government response to ACMD barriers-to-research advice: trialling removal of the domestic controlled-drug licence requirement for Schedule 1 research at universities and hospitals with HRA/MHRA approval. The Minister of State's commissioning letter of 2 June 2025 asks the ACMD to draw lessons from the rescheduling of cannabis-based products for medicinal use that would help government assess representations for the potential use of psilocybin and other controlled drugs to treat depression. That advice has not been delivered: the ACMD Chair's work-programme letter of 11 March 2026, which lists every current commissioned and self-commissioned workstream, carries no psilocybin item, and the cannabis-based-medicines review it does list is marked in progress with completion expected in summer 2026. No rescheduling has been enacted, on the legislation.gov.uk change registers for both instruments as checked on 16 August 2026.
3. History
The laws behind today’s status, when each took effect, and every review since, in order.
The United Kingdom's status held at Class A and Schedule 1. The entry now cites GOV.UK directly, and records two things in motion: the July 2025 trial of lighter research licensing, and the psilocybin review the government asked its drugs advisory council to carry out.
The United Kingdom entry was checked again against the Act, the regulations and the ACMD's own 2026 work programme. Psilocybin remains Class A and Schedule 1, and the review the government commissioned in 2025 has not reported.
4. Trials in the United Kingdom
Interventional psilocybin trials with at least one study site in the United Kingdom, 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 25 trials with a study site in the United Kingdom, as of Aug 2026. Closed covers trials terminated, suspended, withdrawn or left unverified.
ClinicalTrials.gov data courtesy of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.
13 more trials on file for United Kingdom.
The table above lists the first 12, recruiting first. The register opens on all 25 and narrows further by condition, status, and stage.
See all 25 United Kingdom trials in the register
Condition Treatment Resistant Depression (4) · Depression - Major Depressive Disorder (2) · Depression (2) · Anorexia Nervosa (2) · Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) (1)
Phase Phase 1 (7) · Phase 2 (8) · Phase 3 (2) Status Completed (10) · Unknown status (3) · Recruiting (3)
Registry records remain public on ClinicalTrials.gov and EU CTIS.
5. Common questions
Is psilocybin legal in the United Kingdom?
Psilocybin is illegal in the United Kingdom as of 16 Aug 2026.
Are magic mushrooms ("shrooms") legal in the United Kingdom?
"Magic mushrooms" and "shrooms" are common names for fungi that contain psilocybin. Psilocybin is illegal in the United Kingdom as of 16 Aug 2026. Some laws control the compound and the fungus separately, so this record states the position for psilocybin in the United Kingdom.
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.UK Government.UK Government (opens in new tab) · gov.uk
- 2.UK Government.UK Government (opens in new tab) · gov.uk
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.
The United Kingdom entry was checked again against the Act, the regulations and the ACMD's own 2026 work programme. Psilocybin remains Class A and Schedule 1, and the review the government commissioned in 2025 has not reported.
The United Kingdom's status held at Class A and Schedule 1. The entry now cites GOV.UK directly, and records two things in motion: the July 2025 trial of lighter research licensing, and the psilocybin review the government asked its drugs advisory council to carry out.
United Kingdom: psilocybin legal status. The Psilocybin Record. Accession GB-001. Status as of 16 Aug 2026. https://psilocybinlegalization.com/record/united-kingdom
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