A new drug law comes into effect today, decriminalizing synthetic drugs.

A new drug law comes into effect this Sunday that decriminalizes synthetic drugs and makes a new distinction between trafficking and consumption of these new substances, defining administrative offenses based on daily doses.

The diploma, which “clarifies the sanctions regime for the possession of drugs for consumption regardless of quantity and sets regular deadlines for updating regulatory standards,” was promulgated by the President of the Republic Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa on August 31 after the Constitutional Court approved the diploma and published it in the Diário da República on September 8.

The new law complements the 1993 decree-law, which establishes a legal regime applicable to the trafficking and consumption of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, with the aim of preventing situations of inequality between new psychoactive substances (NPS) and synthetic drugs and distinguishing traffickers from users.

The law specifies that if the acquisition and possession of drugs exceeds “the quantity required for average individual consumption over a 10-day period, this is evidence that the purpose may not be consumption” but rather trafficking, whereas previously the maximum limit was five days.

Even if the purchase or possession of substances exceeds the quantity consumed within 10 days, the court may decide that the drugs are “for personal use only,” in which case it may dismiss the case and decide not to prosecute. accuse or acquit him and transfer him to the commission for combating drug addiction.

During discussions, the new law generated some controversy, including requests for “consideration” from Interior Minister José Luis Carneiro and “great caution” from Health Minister Manuel Pizarro.

In a debate held at the beginning of July, the SDP and the PS justified their diplomas for the decriminalization of synthetic drugs by the need to distinguish between dealers and users, and to prevent situations of inequality between new psychoactive substances and classic drugs.

According to the European Drugs Report 2022: Trends and Developments, almost seven tonnes of synthetic drugs – substances that are traded for their psychoactive properties but are not controlled by international drug conventions – were seized in 2020.

“There are also concerns about the growing overlap between the illicit drug and new psychoactive substance markets. (…) These events mean that consumers may be unknowingly exposed to potent substances that may increase the risk of fatalities. or non-fatal “overdose,” the report warns.

The same report indicated that at the end of 2021, the European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction was monitoring approximately 880 new psychoactive substances, of which 52 were reported for the first time in Europe in 2021. In 2020, approximately 370 new psychoactive substances were discovered. NSP has been notified in advance of the sale.

In 2020, European Union member states accounted for 21,230 of the 41,100 NSP seizures reported in the EU, Turkey and Norway, representing a total of 5.1 of the 6.9 tonnes of seizures.