I have received a warning regarding illegal importation of medicinal products or importation of non-compliant medical devices. Will I be fined?
You will not be fined. When the FAMHP seize your postal package and it is for the first time, you will only receive a warning and your file will be closed without any further consequences.
When we detect a violation related to the medicinal products or medical device legislation for a second time, after you have already received a warning, an out-of-court settlement will be proposed that amounts to a minimum of 400 euros. In exceptional cases, files will be turned over to the prosecutor's office for further investigation.
Citizens do not always have sufficient awareness of legislation. It is also not always easy to determine whether ordered products are medicinal products, medical devices, dietary supplements or cosmetics. Read our tips in our brochure on how to recognise illegal websites (available in French and Dutch).
The products I ordered are not medicinal products, but dietary supplements or cosmetics. Can I still receive them?
No, under Belgian law, a product acquires the status of a medicinal products if:
- it contains a pharmacologically active substance;
- it is presented as a medicinal product (e.g. by stating therapeutic claims such as: ‘works against colds’, ‘prevents cancer’, etc.).
We therefore consider your goods to be medicinal products. The fact that the products may be marketed elsewhere in the world as dietary supplements or cosmetics is not a valid argument. When imported into Belgium, Belgian legislation applies.
I do not want to part with the seized products. Will I get my products back?
If you believe that we have seized your products wrongfully, and you do not wish to renounce them, you can send a registered letter within 14 calendar days to: Federal Agency for Medicinal products and Health Products, Special Investigation Unit, Avenue Galilée 5/03, 1210 Saint-Josse-ten-Noode. This does not mean that you will automatically get your products back. Your statement will be added to your file and turned over to the FAMHP officer and legal counsel for further action.
If I still want to use those seized products, then this is still my own choice? Can I still get the products back?
NNo, you are violating Belgian law. Our legislation aims to protect your health. The use of such medicinal products is associated with serious health risks. Seized medicinal products are often illegally manufactured, without quality control. Therefore, the quality of these medicinal products cannot be guaranteed. Underdosing or overdosing of the active ingredient in illegal medicinal products occurs frequently. It is also possible that there is a different active ingredient in the medicinal products than what is listed on the packaging or that the medicinal products are contaminated with pesticides, heavy metals or bacteria.
Since I did not receive my order, I contacted the seller. The latter sent my order a second time. Will this cause me problems?
If our inspection services seize a second package within a reasonable time and with the same contents as the first package, you will receive a second warning.
If we find another medicinal product or medical device law violation outside of that reasonable period of time, you do run the risk of being fined. The minimum fine is 400 euros.
What if the medicinal products I ordered are not available in Belgium (and Europe)? Will I be able to receive my medicinal products then?
No, there are legally permitted procedures for patients who need to be treated with medicinal products that are not on the market in Belgium or the European Union. Importantly, only medicinal products licensed in another country may be imported. This import must always be made by your pharmacist, based on a prescription from your doctor with a physician's statement. In this physician's statement, your doctor declares that you cannot be adequately treated with the medicinal products currently available in Belgium. Along with this physician's statement and your doctor's prescription, you must go to a Belgian pharmacy. They can then import the medicinal product for you from abroad. This means you can never import medicinal products yourself – the import must always take place through your pharmacist.
I ordered some medicinal products over the internet because I need these medicinal products for personal therapeutic use. I even have a prescription. Will I still be able to receive my medicinal products?
No. In Belgium, medicinal products on medical prescription may only be delivered to the patient in person at the pharmacy upon presentation of a medical prescription.
Medicinal products without a medical prescription may be offered for sale on the internet by pharmacies under strict conditions and only on websites that are notified to the FAMHP and the Order of Pharmacists. The list of notified websites is published on the FAMHP website.
If I am not allowed to import these products, how is it possible that I can still order them over the internet? Can you not shut that website down, then?
Illegal websites are regularly shut down by the relevant authorities, but criminal organisations are just as quick to launch new websites. As the Belgian government, we are only authorised to shut down ‘.be’ websites. You can always report any illegal websites with ‘.be’ to
welcome@fagg.be.
I ordered the products through a reliable website. So why were my products seized?
Many illegal websites give a reliable and professional impression and often give assurances that the products come from Europe, but nothing could be further from the truth. Often, these are websites with misleading information, selling illegal products. Tips on how to recognise illegal websites can be found in our brochure (available in
French and
Dutch).
How do I recognise a legal online pharmacy?
When the European online pharmacy logo is listed on a website, you can easily verify that the website is legal and trustworthy.
Click on the logo. You will be redirected to an authorised government website with a list of pharmacies that legally offer medicinal products online. If the pharmacy is listed, you can proceed with your purchase with confidence. If this is a Belgian website, it will take you to this page on the FAMHP website. If it is a foreign website, you will be directed to the website for the competent authority for that country. The European Medicinal products Agency (EMA) website lists the competent authority for each country.
How do I recognise an illegal online pharmacy?
If you notice one or more of the following on an online pharmacy's website, then the website is probably unreliable.
The website offers medicinal products for sale that require a medical prescription in Belgium. This is prohibited by law.
The website contains typos, spelling and grammatical errors and pieces of text that have been poorly translated including strange and unusual wording.
The name of the person responsible for the website is nowhere to be found.
You can consult a doctor online to obtain a prescription.
Products are presented as wonder drugs that can cure serious diseases or conditions.
Some more tips on how to recognise illegal websites can be found in our brochure (available in French and Dutch).
I received a warning letter from the FAMHP for illegal drug importation, but I did not order anything at all. What should I do?
Contact us using the information provided on the warning letter. If you wish, you can file a complaint with the police against unknown people if someone orders illegal medicinal products in your name or to your address.
I received a warning letter from the FAMHP for illegal drug importation, but I did not order anything at all through a website. These medicinal products were sent to me by a family member and I need these medicinal products for my treatment.
The shipment of medicinal products by citizens of third countries (countries outside the European Economic Area) to Belgium is never permitted. In Belgium, obtaining medicinal products, both over-the-counter and by prescription, is always tied to the legal distribution chain. This means that medicinal products may only be obtained through pharmacies. If your treatment cannot be interrupted, you can consult a general practitioner in Belgium, who can provide you with a prescription with which you can obtain the medicinal products from a Belgian pharmacy.
Between Member States within the European Union, the shipment of medicinal products is only permitted on the condition that these medicinal products are authorised in a Member State and that they have also been lawfully obtained through the legal medicinal product circuit.
Narcotics or psychotropic substances should never be sent to you. The same applies to other specially regulated substances.
The shipment of medicinal products by citizens of third countries (countries outside the European Economic Area) to Belgium is never permitted. In Belgium, obtaining medicinal products, both over-the-counter and by prescription, is always tied to the legal distribution chain. This means that medicinal products may only be obtained through pharmacies. If your treatment cannot be interrupted, you can consult a general practitioner in Belgium, who can provide you with a prescription with which you can obtain the medicinal products from a Belgian pharmacy.
Between Member States within the European Union, the shipment of medicinal products is only permitted on the condition that these medicinal products are authorised in a Member State and that they have also been lawfully obtained through the legal medicinal product circuit.
Narcotics or psychotropic substances should never be sent to you. The same applies to other specially regulated substances.
I want to send medicinal products to a family member abroad. Is this possible and how can I avoid having my shipment stopped?
The shipment of medicinal products to citizens of third countries (countries outside the European Economic Area) from Belgium is never permitted. The medicinal products can be obtained locally, taking into account the rules in place locally.
Between Member States within the European Union, the shipment of medicinal products is only permitted on the condition that these medicinal products are authorised in a Member State and that they have also been lawfully obtained through the legal medicinal product circuit.
You should never send narcotics or psychotropic substances. The same applies to other specially regulated substances.
