Article 30 of the Saudi Anti-Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law
المادة 30 من نظام مكافحة المخدرات والمؤثرات العقلية
The article requires the prescription for narcotic medicines to be kept in the pharmacy after dispensing, with the date and register entry number recorded and the pharmacy stamp applied, and refers the retention period to the Regulations.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
تحفظ الوصفة الطبية الخاصة بمواد مخدرة أو مؤثرات عقلية بعد صرف محتوياتها في الصيدلية، ويسجل عليها تاريخ صرفها ورقم قيدها بسجل الوصفات الطبية، وتختم بخاتم الصيدلية بما يفيد الصرف. وتحدد اللائحة مدة حفظ هذه الوصفات.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 30 explained in plain English
After Article Twenty-Nine required an approved medical prescription to dispense the medicines the Ministry of Health specifies as containing narcotic or psychotropic substances, this article regulates what happens to the prescription after dispensing. The prescription is not returned to the patient to use again, but rather:
- It is kept in the pharmacy after its contents are dispensed.
- The date of its dispensing is recorded on it.
- Its entry number in the prescription register is recorded on it.
- It is stamped with the pharmacy's stamp to show that it has been dispensed.
With these steps, every dispensing leaves a documented trace that can be referred to, and repeat dispensing on the same prescription at another pharmacy is prevented, because it stays at the pharmacy that dispensed it with a mark showing it was dispensed.
As for the period for keeping these prescriptions, the article refers it to the Implementing Regulations, and the text does not set it.
After it comes Article Thirty-One, which requires the pharmacist or the responsible pharmacy technician to record all medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances that arrive at the pharmacy, and what is dispensed of them, in special registers as set by the Regulations. The kept prescription and the register complement each other in following the movement of these medicines. Anyone who needs advice on a pharmacy's obligations would do well to consult a lawyer specialized in health regulations.
Practical example
A pharmacist in Jeddah dispensed a painkilling medicine containing a narcotic substance to a patient on an approved prescription. After dispensing, the pharmacist kept the prescription, wrote on it the date of dispensing and its entry number in the prescription register, stamped it with the pharmacy's stamp, and did not return it to the patient.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
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Frequently asked questions about Article 30 of the Saudi Anti-Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Law
Why does the pharmacy keep the prescription for a narcotic medicine?
Because the article requires the prescription to be kept in the pharmacy after its contents are dispensed, with the date of dispensing and entry number recorded and the pharmacy stamp applied.
How long are narcotic medicine prescriptions kept in the pharmacy?
The text does not specify it; it refers the setting of the retention period to the Implementing Regulations.
More articles on Dispensing Narcotic Medicines by Prescription
- Article 29
The article bars the pharmacist from dispensing medicines specified by the Ministry of Health that contain narcotic substances except on a prescription approved by a human or veterinary doctor or dentist licensed in the Kingdom.
لا يجوز للصيدلي صرف أدوية -تحددها وزارة الصحة - تحتوي على مواد مخدرة أو مؤثرات عقلية إلا بموجب وصفة طبية معتمدة من طبيب بشري أو بيطري أو طبيب أسنان من المرخص له
- Article 31
The article requires the pharmacist or responsible pharmacy technician to record in special registers all medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances received by and dispensed from the pharmacy, according to the Regulations.
يجب على الصيدلي أو فني الصيدلية المسئول تقييد جميع ما يرد إلى الصيدلية من أدوية تحتوي على مواد مخدرة أو مؤثرات عقلية، وما يصرف منها، في سجلات خاصة بذلك، وفق ما
- Article 32
The article requires every treatment institution to review the procedures for prescribing and dispensing narcotic and psychotropic medicines periodically, and to notify the Ministry of Health when it discovers any violation.
على كل مؤسسة علاجية أن تراجع من وقت إلى آخر إجراءات وصف الأدوية المخدرة أو المؤثرات العقلية وصرفها، للتحقق من صحة دواعي وصفها وصرفها وفق ما تقتضيه الأصول الطبية
- Article 33
The article licenses doctors to possess narcotic and psychotropic medicines and prescribe and dispense them from their private clinics, and specialized paramedics to possess some emergency medicines and administer them in emergency cases only, according to the Regulations.
1- يرخص للأطباء بحيازة الأدوية المخدرة أو المؤثرات العقلية ، ووصفها وصرفها من عياداتهم الخاصة، وفق الضوابط التي تحددها اللائحة . 2- للمسعفين المتخصصين حيازة وإع
- Article 34
The article prohibits a doctor from writing a prescription for himself or a member of his family for medicines containing narcotic or psychotropic substances, whatever the quantity.
يحظر على الطبيب أن يحرر لنفسه أو لأحد أفراد عائلته وصفة لأدوية تحتوي على مواد مخدرة أو مؤثرات عقلية بأي كمية كانت.
- Article 35
The article bars an unlicensed person from possessing narcotic or psychotropic medicines except on a licensed doctor's prescription, prohibits giving them up, and requires returning unused medicines, or those of a deceased person, to their source.
1- لا يجوز لأي شخص غير مرخص له حيازة أدوية مخدرة أو مؤثرات عقلية ما لم يصفها له طبيب مرخص له بحسب أحكام هذا النظام. ولا يجوز له التنازل عن الأدوية المخدرة أو ال
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.