Is Ketamine Legal? Prescription, Clinics and Recreational Use

Is ketamine legal in the US?

Ketamine is a Schedule III controlled drug in the US. It is legal when a licensed practitioner prescribes or supplies it, and illegal to possess without that authority.

The DEA lists “ketamine, its salts, isomers, and salts of isomers” in 21 CFR 1308.13(c) as a Schedule III depressant (checked 2026-10-26).

The possession rule sits in 21 U.S.C. 844(a). It is unlawful to knowingly possess a controlled substance unless it was obtained directly, or with a valid prescription, from a practitioner acting in the course of professional practice. A first offense carries up to 1 year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine. Repeat offenses carry higher minimums.

• A clinic dose from a licensed prescriber is lawful, and so is a prescription filled at a pharmacy.
• Ketamine from a friend or an unlicensed website is illegal. Online dispensing is lawful only when the prescription and pharmacy rules are met.

States add their own penalties and clinic rules. The figures here are federal.

Is ketamine legal in the UK, Canada and Australia?

Ketamine is a controlled drug in the UK, Canada and Australia, and in each country it is lawful only through a prescriber or an authorised route.

	US	UK	Canada	Australia
Classification	Schedule III (Controlled Substances Act)	Class B (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971)	Schedule I, item 14(1) (CDSA), listed under phencyclidine analogues	Schedule 8 (Poisons Standard)
Medical route	Valid prescription from a practitioner	Prescription; Schedule 2 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations since 30 Nov 2015	“Except as authorized under the regulations”	Prescription under state and territory Schedule 8 rules
Possession without prescription	Federal offense; first offense up to 1 year and minimum $1,000 fine	Offense; up to 5 years	Offense; up to 7 years on indictment, or a fine up to $1,000 or up to 6 months on a first summary conviction	Set by state and territory law
Supply	Not covered here	Up to 14 years	Not covered here	Not covered here

Status as of 2026-10-26. The prison terms shown are statutory maximums. The US fine is a statutory minimum, with an exception for inability to pay. None of these figures are typical sentences.

In the UK, the Home Office consultation described ketamine as Schedule 4 Part 1 of the Misuse of Drugs Regulations when it opened in 2014. A GOV.UK notice dated 2015-11-16 says the move to Schedule 2 took effect on 30 November 2015.

In Canada, section 4(1) of the CDSA bars possessing a Schedule I substance except as authorised under the regulations. Section 4(3) sets the penalties in the table.

In Australia, the Poisons Standard (October 2026) sets the schedule, and each state and territory writes its own offences and permit rules.

Is ketamine legal for recreational use?

Recreational use is illegal in the US, UK and Canada because possession without a prescription is an offense in all three.

The possession offenses in the US, UK and Canada turn on lawful authority, such as a prescription, not on the reason someone wants the drug. Those three statutes contain no personal-use exception for ketamine.

Is ketamine legal for depression?

Doctors can prescribe ketamine for depression, but in the US that use is off-label. Only esketamine (Spravato) has FDA approval for it.

The FDA calls the use of an approved drug for an unapproved purpose “off-label” use. Once a drug is approved, providers generally may prescribe it for an unapproved use when they judge it medically appropriate. The FDA has not decided that the drug is safe and effective for that use.

The two labels show the difference.

	Ketalar (ketamine injection)	Spravato (esketamine nasal spray)
Label date checked	Updated 2026-03-27	Updated 2026-09-22
Approved use	Anesthesia: sole agent for some procedures, induction, or supplement to other anesthetics	Treatment-resistant depression in adults, alone or with an oral antidepressant; depressive symptoms in adults with major depressive disorder and acute suicidal ideation or behavior, with an oral antidepressant
Depression on label	No	Yes
Controlled status	Schedule III	Schedule III

Sources: the Ketalar label and the Spravato label, both on DailyMed, checked 2026-10-26.

So a ketamine infusion for depression is a lawful prescription, not an FDA-approved treatment for depression. Spravato is approved for depression and is available only through a restricted program, the SPRAVATO REMS. For the setting, cost and logistics of each, see Spravato vs IV ketamine. Its label says effectiveness in preventing suicide or reducing suicidal ideation has not been demonstrated.

In Australia, press coverage in March 2021 described the TGA’s approval of Spravato for treatment-resistant depression and noted that clinicians already prescribed ketamine off-label (The Medical Republic, 2021-03-22).

Are ketamine clinics legal?

Ketamine clinics are legal when licensed prescribers run them and the drug is handled under controlled-substance rules, even though the use is often off-label.

A clinic can be fully licensed and still offer a treatment the FDA has not approved for what it advertises. Four checks tell you what you are buying:

1. Who writes the prescription, and what is their licence?
2. Is the product an approved ketamine or esketamine product, or a compounded one?
3. What does the label of that product say it is approved for?
4. How does the clinic record and store a Schedule III drug?

A clinic that answers all four plainly is running inside the law. Doctors prescribing psychedelic-adjacent drugs is a wider question, covered in can a doctor prescribe psilocybin.

What legal status tells you

Scheduling reflects abuse potential and accepted medical use. Schedule III puts ketamine in the same US tier as other drugs with accepted medical use and moderate abuse potential. The Spravato label lists abuse and misuse risk and requires assessment before prescribing. Compare how other drugs are scheduled in is MDMA legal.

For other substances, see the psychedelic legal-status guides or the Psychedelic Status home page.