Is Psilocybin Legal in Germany?

⚠️ Not Legal Advice

This page is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Drug laws change frequently and vary by region within a country. Always verify the current status with the Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte (BfArM) (https://www.bfarm.de) or a qualified local lawyer before making any decisions. The §31a diversion option is discretionary, not guaranteed, and varies regionally within Germany — it should never be relied upon as if it were a legal exemption.

Last reviewed: July 2026. This entry is drawn from Psilobase's broader Legal Status by Country guide. Because psilocybin law is an actively moving target worldwide, treat any date-stamped legal claim — including this one — as needing re-verification if you are reading it more than a few months after the review date above.

Quick Answer

No, psilocybin is illegal in Germany and remains on Anlage I (the most restricted schedule) of the Betäubungsmittelgesetz (BtMG, Narcotics Act) — the same category as heroin and cocaine. Small personal-use amounts are sometimes diverted from prosecution under §31a BtMG, but there is no decriminalization or legal access framework in place as of 2026.

Current Legal Status in Germany

Unauthorized possession can result in up to 5 years' imprisonment; large-scale trafficking carries penalties up to 15 years. In practice, German prosecutors have discretion under §31a BtMG to discontinue proceedings for very small, clearly personal-use quantities without further sanction — but this is a prosecutorial discretion applied case-by-case, not a legal right or formal decriminalization, and outcomes vary by state (Land) and individual prosecutor.

History: How the Law Got Here

Psilocybin and psilocybin-containing mushrooms have been listed on Anlage I of the BtMG for decades, prohibiting any legal traffic, possession, or use outside authorized research. Germany's 2024 legalization of recreational cannabis (the Cannabis-Gesetz, or CanG) — a major reform passed under the Ampel coalition — raised expectations that psilocybin might be next in line for reform, given the political precedent it set and growing clinical research interest. As of 2026, however, no concrete legislative proposal to reschedule or decriminalize psilocybin has been introduced in the Bundestag. Clinical research has expanded meaningfully: several German university hospitals are running or planning psilocybin-assisted therapy trials, generally operating under exemptions granted by the Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte (BfArM), Germany's federal drug regulator.

How to Verify This Yourself

Laws referenced on this page were last reviewed in July 2026. Before making any decision based on legal status, check directly with the Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte (BfArM): https://www.bfarm.de. For broader cross-country comparison and additional official sources (DEA, Home Office, Health Canada, TGA, EMCDDA, etc.), see the full Legal Status by Country guide.