Can I send medicine to the Philippines?
Yes, with conditions.
Personal use only: prescription drugs as prescribed, with the doctor's license number on the prescription, over-the-counter drugs up to 50 g, and vitamins up to 500 g. More needs FDA clearance.
For every Onvoyo box: Onvoyo can't carry prescription drugs. Over-the-counter medicine and vitamins follow the destination's own rules.
More rules for the Philippines
Not allowed
- Narcotics and other dangerous drugs, and opium pipes
- Drugs, devices, and printed matter for unlawful abortion
- Adulterated or misbranded food, drinks, and medicines
Allowed with conditions
- Medicines
- Allowed without FDA clearance only for personal use: prescription drugs in the quantity on the prescription, which must show the doctor's license number (or a foreign doctor's equivalent), over-the-counter drugs up to 50 g, and vitamins and supplements up to 500 g in total. Anything over the limits is seized unless the FDA has cleared it. Dangerous drugs fall under Dangerous Drugs Board and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency rules.
Quantity limits
- Medicines (baggage, balikbayan boxes, and parcels)
- Without FDA clearance: prescription drugs in the prescribed quantity, over-the-counter drugs up to 50 g, and vitamins or supplements up to 500 g in total.
Before you ship to the Philippines
- Tax-free limit
- Shipments with an FOB or FCA value (the goods alone, without shipping) of PHP 10,000 (about USD 160) or less pay no duty or VAT. Declare a specific value for every item: customs won't give express release to boxes marked "no commercial value" or "for customs purposes only". Medicines, food, cosmetics, and other regulated goods still have to meet agency rules unless they are for personal use and within set limits. Consignments from the same sender to the same receiver on one courier manifest are added together, and at PHP 50,000 or more they need a formal entry.
- Receiver ID
- No tax number is needed to receive a personal box. The courier needs the receiver's full name, address, and mobile number, and may ask for a copy of a valid ID. Returning residents who claim duty-free entry need a Tax Identification Number (TIN) to apply for the Department of Finance's Tax Exemption Indorsement.
- Transit
- 3-6 business days from Asia; 4-8 from North America, Europe, or the Middle East
Questions
Can I send medicine to the Philippines?
Yes, with conditions. Personal use only: prescription drugs as prescribed, with the doctor's license number on the prescription, over-the-counter drugs up to 50 g, and vitamins up to 500 g. More needs FDA clearance.
Ask about a specific item
Official sources
- 1.
Department of Health, Food and Drug Administration, and Bureau of Customs
Joint Circular No. 1: Importation of FDA-DOH Regulated Products for Personal Use (opens in a new tab) - 2.
Bureau of Animal Industry (posted by the Embassy of the Philippines in Washington, D.C.)
Memorandum Circular No. 48, Series of 2021: Veterinary Quarantine Guidelines for the Import of Meat Intended for Personal or Non-Commercial Use (opens in a new tab) - 3.
Bureau of Customs
Guidelines on Arriving Travelers (opens in a new tab) - 4.
Supreme Court of the Philippines E-Library
Republic Act No. 4653 - An Act to Safeguard the Health of the People and Maintain the Dignity of the Nation by Declaring It a National Policy to Prohibit the Commercial Importation of Textile Articles Commonly Known as Used Clothing and Rags (opens in a new tab) - 5.
- 6.
Supreme Court of the Philippines E-Library
Republic Act No. 10863 - An Act Modernizing the Customs and Tariff Administration (opens in a new tab) - 7.
Bureau of Customs (via Supreme Court of the Philippines E-Library)
Customs Administrative Order No. 01-2018 - Amended Rules on Consolidated Shipment of "Balikbayan Boxes" (opens in a new tab)
General guidance, not legal advice. Customs in the Philippines makes the final decision on every box.