Travelling with prescribed cannabis: prepare your documents

What an Article 75 certificate covers

The Schengen certificate concerns prescribed controlled medicines carried by residents between Schengen states. Its maximum validity is 30 days; the competent authority issues or authenticates it from a prescription, with a separate certificate per controlled medicine.

Source: EUR-Lex

Germany provides an example, not every country’s procedure

BfArM’s German guidance for medical cannabis describes a doctor-completed certificate authenticated before departure by the responsible health authority. It also tells travellers to check destination and transit rules. Use your residence authority’s procedure for your own application.

Source: BfArM

Write down the whole journey

Prepare one itinerary with your residence country, departure, each transit stop, destination and return date. Include any alternative route you are considering. A question about a direct flight and a question about a road trip through several countries need different detail.

Alongside the itinerary, list the medicine’s exact name, active ingredient, form, prescribed dose and quantity you intend to carry. Ask your prescriber to check these details; this guide does not recommend changing a dose or calculating a travel allowance. Do not use a certificate’s expiry date to decide how much to pack; ask the destination authority about product-specific entry limits.

Use official contacts to resolve uncertainty

The INCB publishes country submissions, but their updating remains each government’s responsibility. It recommends confirming uncertainties with the destination’s embassy, consulate or competent authority. A missing entry should not be read as permission.

Make your enquiry specific: identify the route and dates, ask which application applies, where to send it, how long processing takes and which originals you must carry. Keep the authority’s answer with the itinerary and revisit it if your plans change.

Source: International Narcotics Control Board

Where CannaCards can help

A membership card is separate from your prescription and travel paperwork. CannaCards’ €60 annual membership, including applicable taxes, includes one initial legal consultation of up to 30 minutes per membership year; additional work needs a separate agreement.

If you need legal clarification, choose the country concerned when requesting a callback. The six-hour commitment runs from original receipt and includes nights and weekends. It is a callback service, not an airport clearance desk or an emergency line. Medical booking remains unavailable pending clinical partner confirmation.

Common questions