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GOODS ACROSS BORDERS

ITEM RULE · TRAVELING

PROHIBITED

Khat 🇩🇪 Germany

VERIFIED · 2026-07-25MEDIUM CONFIDENCE

Khat prohibited; penalties for import

ANSWER

Can I bring Khat into Germany?

PROHIBITEDVERIFIED · 2026-07-25MEDIUM CONFIDENCE

Khat prohibited; penalties for import

DECLARATION

Required at the destination customs authority

SOURCE

zoll.de
Verify against the official customs authority before acting on this answer.Report a correction

Full details

Khat is legal and widely consumed in Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya, Djibouti, and Yemen but is a controlled substance in many Western countries. The UK classified khat as a Class C drug in 2014. The US lists cathinone as Schedule I, making khat illegal. Germany, the Netherlands, and most EU member states

PENALTIES

  • Fine: 1000–500000 EUR
  • Imprisonment up to 60 months
  • Criminal penalty

ENFORCEMENT

ActiveCustoms actively enforces this rule.

Leaving Germany with khat

PROHIBITEDKhat is a controlled substance in Germany — cathinone scheduling means there is no lawful personal export.

Khat (Catha edulis) contains cathinone and cathine, which are scheduled substances in Germany under Betäubungsmittelgesetz § 4; Schengen Convention Art. 75 medication travel certificate — fresh khat is treated as a controlled drug, so possession and export are offences. Khat found at departure screening is seized and the carrier prosecuted under the same framework as at arrival. The plant is a licit commodity only in a small number of producing countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Yemen); everywhere in this site's coverage of this route, carrying it across the border is unlawful.

PRACTICAL ADVICE

Do not carry khat (Catha edulis), fresh or dried, into Germany. Zoll treats it as a controlled drug; carriage triggers seizure plus possible criminal charge under the local misuse-of-drugs statute. There is no permit pathway for personal use.

OFFICIAL SOURCES · VERIFIED 2026-07-25

AIR TRAVEL IS SEPARATE

This page covers destination customs rules in Germany. Whether you can carry khat through security, in carry-on, or in checked baggage depends on airline and screening rules — see air travel rules.

Related rules

Khat rules in other countries

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