Medication Rules…All You Need To Know

I cannot believe Christmas is nearly here!  I hope you are all prepared and looking forward to time with family and friends.

Are any of you lucky enough to be cruising over the Christmas period?  If you are then here is an update on medication rules when travelling abroad.  I hope you find this useful.

There has been a lot in the news about taking medication in to the United Arab Emirates.  There is a new policy in place where you now need to fill in a form online on the government website to declare what medications you are taking with you.  This policy affects anyone entering the country whether it is for a holiday or in transit to your home country.

I myself am a diabetic so this information was very useful to me and has made me think and look in to policies for taking medication abroad.  Did you know that Codeine is banned in the UAE?

There are quite a few countries that have a long list of medications that are banned.  I have found out that there are restrictions in India for taking Metformin which is the medication I am on for diabetes!

A majority of people are now on some form of medication and with laws getting stricter regarding travelling with medication I would advise to check on the government website to see what restrictions there are with regards to taking your medication abroad.

Here are my tips when taking medication abroad:

• Keep your medicines in their original packaging
• Take a copy of your prescription with you
• Remember if your medication is in liquid or gel form you will need to put these in clear plastic bottles of 100ml and place them in a clear plastic bag for going through customs

I hope you have found this information useful.  If you are unsure on what to do about taking medication abroad I would recommend having a look on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website where there is lots of information for you.

Until next time…Happy Cruising!