Security Alert: Criminal Penalties for Drugs – U.S. Embassy Kuwait (December 22, 2025)
Location: Kuwait, countrywide
Event: Kuwait now has stricter penalties for drug use, drug possession, and drug trafficking.
- Drug use, including having trace amounts of drugs in your body, may lead to a 5-year prison sentence and a fine of 5,000 Kuwaiti dinars.
- Drug possession may lead to a 5-year prison sentence and a fine of 5,000 Kuwaiti dinars.
- Drug trafficking is punishable by death or life imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 Kuwaiti dinars or more.
Penalties may double if use or possession occurred in certain public places, such as places of worship, schools, and fitness centers, or while in prison, a police station, or a drug treatment facility.
The new law may exempt people from prosecution if they seek help for drug use before they are charged, arrested, or investigated. You may wish to consult with an attorney.
Actions to Take:
- Check with the Kuwaiti embassy in Washington, D.C. for any restrictions on prescription medications you take.
- Do not use, keep, produce, sell drugs in Kuwait. Do not bring drugs into Kuwait.
- Do not travel to Kuwait if you have recently used or handled illegal drugs.
- Monitor local and international media for updates.
- Follow all local laws in Kuwait.
Assistance:
Plot No.14, Block 6, Masjed Al-Aqsa Street, Kuwait
+965-2259-1001
KuwaitACS@state.gov
- State Department – Consular Affairs 888-407-4747 or +1-202-501-4444
- Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to get important updates and alerts from the U.S. embassy or consulate. Enrolling helps the U.S. embassy or consulate contact you or your emergency contact in an emergency.
- Follow the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait on Instagram , Twitter/X , and WhatsApp .
