The Legal Status of Anabolic Steroids in EU Countries

“Are steroids legal in Europe?” — there is no single answer to this question. In the European Union there is no unified criminal law on anabolic steroids: only the rules on the circulation of medicinal products are common, and everything else each state decides on its own. In some countries possession for personal use is not punishable, in others it is a criminal offense. The editorial team explains what makes up the legal status of steroids in the EU and how national models differ.

The pan-European framework

Anabolic androgenic steroids that have a medical use (testosterone and its esters, nandrolone, oxandrolone and others) are medicinal products in the EU. Their circulation is regulated by Directive 2001/83/EC on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use and by national pharmaceutical legislation. Under this framework, such preparations are dispensed only on a doctor's prescription.

The directive sets general principles: registration of preparations, licensing of manufacturing and distribution, control over pharmacies, pharmacovigilance. The sale of prescription drugs outside this system is a violation in any EU country. However, the consequences for the buyer or possessor are determined by national law.

Importantly, anabolic steroids are not included in the international UN conventions on narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. Therefore, unlike, for example, opioids, their status is not unified globally. In the USA they are classified as controlled substances under federal law, while in Europe each country has chosen its own path.

Common to all EU states is participation in the Council of Europe Anti-Doping Convention and the UNESCO Convention, which oblige them to restrict the availability of doping agents in sport. These agreements do not set specific punishments, but they encourage states to improve their legislation.

Besides registered medicines, the market is rife with so-called designer steroids and preparations that have never undergone registration. They do not have the status of a medicinal product, and their legal assessment differs across countries: some states add them to special lists, others act through general provisions on dangerous products.

Three models of national regulation

Summarizing, three approaches to the regulation of anabolic steroids can be identified in European countries. They differ in whom the law considers an offender: only the supplier, the supplier and the possessor of large quantities, or also the end user.

This classification is conditional: within each model there are many nuances, and legislation changes regularly. For example, a country may not punish use but consider the import of any quantity without a prescription a criminal offense.

Regardless of the model, in all EU countries the illegal trade in prescription drugs and the sale of counterfeit medicines are prosecuted. The difference concerns mainly the end user and small quantities.

For athletes the situation is complicated by the fact that even in countries with liberal criminal regulation, sports anti-doping rules apply. Legality of possession under national law does not protect against disqualification under the WADA Code.

Examples of individual countries

Swedenhas one of the strictest approaches. A special 1991 law on the prohibition of certain doping agents bans their import, manufacture, sale and possession, and since 1999 their use has also been prohibited. That is, even the use of steroids without a prescription for personal needs is an offense.

Italyadopted Law No. 376 of 14 December 2000 on the protection of health in sport and the fight against doping. It provides criminal liability for supplying doping agents and for using them in order to alter sporting results, which makes the Italian model one of the first in Europe where self-doping can be a crime.

Germanyhas, since 2015, the Act against Doping in Sport (AntiDopG). It prohibits the circulation of doping agents for everyone, sets thresholds of “insignificant quantity” for possession, and criminalizes self-doping by top-level athletes. For ordinary gym-goers, personal use as such is not a crime, but possession above the thresholds is.

Franceregulates this area through the Sports Code (Code du sport): the illegal circulation of doping substances entails criminal liability, and for athletes there are separate prohibitions on possession without medical justification.Spaincontains in its Criminal Code a provision on liability for supplying or prescribing prohibited substances to athletes without therapeutic justification.

The Netherlandsis an example of the “pharmaceutical” model: steroids are regulated by medicinal-products legislation and are not included in the drug law. Illegal sale and distribution are prosecuted, whereas personal possession of a small quantity, according to available data, is not criminally punishable. Even so, here too import and sale without a license are prohibited.

Import, shipping and online purchase

Even within the Schengen area and the single EU market, the import of prescription drugs by a private individual is restricted. Usually it is permitted to carry medicines for personal treatment in a quantity corresponding to the course, with a prescription or medical document. The specific limits are set by each state.

Buying prescription drugs online is a separate risk. In the EU, legal online pharmacies have a common logo, introduced by the falsified medicines directive (2011/62/EU), and a link to the national register. Sites that sell steroids without a prescription, by definition, operate outside the law.

• parcels with prescription drugs without documents may be detained by customs;
• in stricter jurisdictions, receiving such a parcel may become grounds for criminal proceedings;
• preparations from illegal sources often have the wrong dosage, a different active substance or contamination;
• the absence of a prescription means the absence of medical control of side effects.

European customs and law-enforcement bodies regularly conduct joint operations against the illegal circulation of medicines and doping agents. Their target is primarily suppliers, but in countries with strict legislation buyers can also come under attack.

Sport, health and legal risks

Legal status is only one part of the picture. Regardless of whether possession is punishable in a particular country, the non-medical use of anabolic steroids is associated with serious health risks. The Endocrine Society scientific statement (Pope et al., 2014) describes among them cardiovascular complications, suppression of one's own hormonal system, infertility, mental disorders and the risk of dependence.

For athletes it is important to remember that anti-doping rules apply independently of state laws. Anabolic agents are on the WADA Prohibited List and are prohibited at all times — both in and out of competition. Disqualification for them is, as a rule, the longest.

The medical use of androgens is possible for clear indications, for example in confirmed hypogonadism, and only on a doctor's prescription with regular monitoring. An athlete who needs such therapy must obtain a therapeutic use exemption.

For Ukrainians who live in or travel to the EU, the practical conclusion is simple: the rules of the country of stay may differ substantially from the usual ones, and ignorance of the law does not exempt from liability. In case of doubt, it is worth consulting a local lawyer or doctor.

Editorial conclusions

In the EU, anabolic steroids are prescription medicinal products, but there is no unified criminal regulation: each country determines liability on its own.

The models vary from the “pharmaceutical” one, where only illegal circulation is punishable, to the Swedish one, where even use is prohibited. Germany, Italy, France and Spain have special anti-doping provisions.

Regardless of national law, WADA rules concern athletes, and all users face real risks to health and from the quality of illegal preparations.

We also recommend reading our materials on anti-doping rules in Germany and Poland, and on liability for importing prescription drugs into Ukraine.

References

1. Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 November 2001 on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use. Official Journal of the European Communities. 2001;L 311.
2. Directive 2011/62/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2011 amending Directive 2001/83/EC (falsified medicinal products). Official Journal of the European Union. 2011;L 174.
3. Lag (1991:1969) om förbud mot vissa dopningsmedel. Stockholm: Sveriges riksdag.
4. Legge 14 dicembre 2000, n. 376. Disciplina della tutela sanitaria delle attività sportive e della lotta contro il doping. Gazzetta Ufficiale. 2000.
5. Gesetz gegen Doping im Sport (Anti-Doping-Gesetz – AntiDopG) vom 10. Dezember 2015. Bundesgesetzblatt. 2015; Teil I.
6. Pope HG Jr, Wood RI, Rogol A, et al. Adverse health consequences of performance-enhancing drugs: an Endocrine Society scientific statement. Endocr Rev. 2014;35(3):341–375.
7. World Anti-Doping Agency. The Prohibited List. Montreal: WADA; оновлюється щорічно.
8. Council of Europe. Anti-Doping Convention (ETS No. 135). Strasbourg; 1989.