Psilocybin law in Costa Rica
Illegal but tolerated in practice Checked 11 October 2026
Psilocybin and psilocin are on Lista I of Costa Rica's national list of controlled psychotropic substances (updated 10 September 2026), and Law 8204 punishes unauthorised supply, including of natural products, with 8 to 15 years in prison. Psilocybin retreats nonetheless operate openly, and a news search on 4 October 2026 found no reported prosecution of a psilocybin retreat. We list them as illegal but tolerated in practice, which can change without notice.
Psilocybin is illegal under national law, but retreats operate openly and a dated search found no reported prosecution of one. A summary of published sources, not legal advice.
What the sources say
- The Ministerio de Salud's list of substances under national control, updated 10 September 2026 under Reglamento 45161-S, includes psilocina (PP 012) and PSILOCIBINA (PP 013) among the psychotropic substances of Lista I, alongside DMT and mescaline. The same entries appear in the October 2022 edition. The list does not name mushrooms or any fungus. [Lista de sustancias sometidas a fiscalizacion nacional, incluidos los medicamentos psicotropicos y estupefacientes (actualizada el 10 de septiembre de 2026), Ministerio de Salud de Costa Rica, Direccion de Drogas y Estupefacientes, 2026-09-10, read 3 October 2026] [Lista de Estupefacientes y Sustancias Psicotropicas Sometidas a Fiscalizacion Nacional (actualizada el 10 de octubre de 2022), Ministerio de Salud de Costa Rica, 2022-10-10, read 3 October 2026]
- Article 1 of Law 8204 applies the law to substances in the 1961 Single Convention, the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances (approved by Costa Rica by Law 4990 of 10 June 1972) and the 1988 Convention, and has the Ministry of Health publish the national lists. Psilocybin and psilocin are in Schedule I of the 1971 Convention. [Ley 8204 (text), Transnational Institute (copy of statute), 2001, read 3 October 2026] [Ley 8204, Instituto Costarricense sobre Drogas, read 3 October 2026]
- Article 58 of Law 8204 sets 8 to 15 years in prison for anyone who, without legal authorisation, distributes, supplies, prepares, cultivates, transports, stores or sells the drugs, substances or products the law covers, or cultivates the plants they are obtained from, and for anyone who holds seeds or other natural products to produce them. Article 77 raises the range to 8 to 20 years in listed circumstances, including supply to people under 18 and an offender who uses a position as educator or spiritual guide to restrict the victim's freedom. [Ley 8204 (text), Transnational Institute (copy of statute), 2001, read 3 October 2026]
- The INCB has said that plants containing psilocybin are not themselves under international control, but it recommends that governments control such plant material nationally where necessary. Costa Rica's Article 58 reaches the plants and natural products from which controlled substances are obtained, so the international position does not create a national grey area. [Report of the International Narcotics Control Board for 2010 (paras 284-287), International Narcotics Control Board, 2011-03, read 3 October 2026] [Ley 8204 (text), Transnational Institute (copy of statute), 2001, read 3 October 2026]
- No Ministry of Health statement, court ruling or legal analysis was found that treats psilocybin mushrooms as outside Law 8204. A March 2025 opinion column argues generally that sacred plants not on the restricted lists are permitted, but it does not address psilocybin's own listing. Claims of a grey area found online come from retreat operators and booking sites. The Ministry's January 2025 warning on ayahuasca and ibogaine, the closest official statement, said such products are unregistered and not authorised for therapeutic use. [Ayahuasca, Iboga, Psilocibina y "turismo medico alternativo": se abren mas posibilidades para Costa Rica? (Ignacio Garcia), Delfino.cr, 2025-03-13, read 3 October 2026] [Advertencia Sanitaria sobre uso, Consumo, y Publicidad de Ayahuasca e Ibogaina, Ministerio de Salud de Costa Rica, 2025-01-27, read 11 October 2026]
- Retreats operate openly. The Tico Times (27 August 2026) cites an estimate of around 80 psychedelic retreat centres in Costa Rica, roughly 60 of them offering ayahuasca, with others focused on psilocybin mushrooms and ibogaine. On 4 October 2026 BookRetreats' Costa Rica magic mushroom page was headed "59 Best Magic Mushroom Retreats around Costa Rica"; that figure counts programme listings, not distinct centres. [Costa Rica Psychedelic Retreat Industry Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Tourist Death, The Tico Times, 2026-08-27, read 4 October 2026] [Magic mushroom retreats in Costa Rica (listing page), BookRetreats, read 4 October 2026]
- The closest enforcement we found concerns ibogaine, not psilocybin. After the American tourist Lauren Levis died on 5 August 2024 following ibogaine at Soul Centro in Bahia Grande de Paquera, the OIJ in Nicoya sent its findings to local prosecutors on 13 March 2025. The report did not say anyone had been charged. [OIJ remitio a Fiscalia hallazgos sobre muerte de turista en 'retiro' con iboga (Jose Adelio Murillo), CRHoy, 2025-03-29, read 4 October 2026] [Costa Rica Psychedelic Retreat Industry Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Tourist Death, The Tico Times, 2026-08-27, read 4 October 2026]
Retreats in Costa Rica, with the law on each profile.
Dated changes
- 10 September 2026: The Ministry of Health published an updated list of substances under national control, under Reglamento 45161-S. Psilocybin and psilocin remain on Lista I of psychotropic substances, as in the October 2022 edition. Source
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