Guidance

Import a human medicine

Guidance for UK wholesalers and manufacturers on how to import human medicines including unlicensed medicines, how to apply for a licence and how much it costs.

• From: Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and Department of Health and Social Care
• Published: 9 August 2005
• Last updated: 29 January 2025 — See all updates

Import a licensed medicine

If you want to import a licensed medicine you’ll need to apply for one or more licences:

• Wholesale distribution licence (WDA(H))
• Manufacturer’s licence
• Marketing authorisation, also known as product licence (MA)

If the human medicine you want to import contains a controlled substance (having or using it is controlled by law) you must contact the Home Office.

Apply for a wholesaler licence (WDA(H))

You’ll need to apply for a wholesaler licence if you import medicine from:

• a country on an approved country for import list or if you are in Northern Ireland a country in the European Economic Area (EEA) and then supply it to another country, including the UK
• a country other than an approved country for import and export it to a country other than an approved country for import or if you are in Northern Ireland a EEA country and export it to a non-EEA country

How much you pay depends on the type of application, the number of sites, and your total turnover in licensed human medicines.

If your company is based in Great Britain, you may need a Responsible Person for Import.

Apply for a wholesaler licence

Apply for a manufacturer licence

You’ll need to apply for a manufacturer licence if you import medicine from a country other than an approved country for import for use in the UK or to supply it to a country on an approved country for import list.

If you are in Northern Ireland you’ll need to apply for a manufacturer licence if you import medicine from outside the EEA for use in the UK or to supply it to an EEA country.

Apply for a manufacturer licence

Apply for a marketing authorisation (MA) licence

You need to have an MA licence before you can sell a human medicine. There are many types of MA licence so the process you need to follow depends on the type of MA licence you need.

Before a medicine can be released to the market, a Qualified Person (QP) named in the manufacturer/importer licence must certify that it has been manufactured and tested according to:

• the MA
• good manufacturing practice

Site inspections

MHRA will inspect the manufacturing site you use to produce or import the medicine when you’re applying for an MA.

There is a list of GMP-compliant manufacturers available on the MHRA-GMDP or for certificates issued prior to 1st January 2021 on the EUDRAGMDP website.

There is a list of GMP-compliant manufacturers available on MHRA-GMDP.

Apply for an MA licence

Import an unlicensed medicine

If you want to import an unlicensed medicine into the UK you will need:

• a Manufacturer’s “Specials” Licence (MSL) if you’re importing a medicine from a country other than an approved country for import or if you are in Northern Ireland from outside the EEA (you will need to supply supporting documents)
• a Wholesale Dealer’s Licence (WDA (H)) if you’re importing a medicine from a country on an approved country for import list

Before you import an unlicensed medicine you will need to notify the MHRA of your intent to import an unlicensed medicine before you import it. You can only proceed with the import if the MHRA does not object to it.

Additional information on the importation and supply of unlicensed medicines can be found on Supply unlicensed medicinal products (specials)

Import an introduced product

You must be a licensed wholesale dealer in the UK to import an introduced product.

You may only obtain an introduced medicine from a person authorised in the country other than an approved country for import or if you are in Northern Ireland in the non-EEA country to supply medicinal products by wholesale distribution.

You can only export an introduced product to a person authorised in the country other than an approved country for import or if you are in Northern Ireland the non-EEA country to receive medicinal products for wholesale distribution or supply to the public.

An introduced medicinal product will not have an MA for the UK or a country on an approved country for import list.

Contact

Please refer to Contact the MHRA

Published 9 August 2005
Last updated 29 January 2025 + show all updates

1. 29 January 2025

   Updated to reflect current guidance on the importation of medicines. Details on the importation of unlicensed medicines were moved to a new, dedicated page.

2. 31 December 2020

   Added information applying for a wholesaler licence or a manufacturer licence, the process for importing an unlicensed medicine and importing a special. This follows the end of the transition period.

3. 20 October 2020

   New information around Northern Ireland has been added

4. 9 August 2005

   First published.