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The Narcotics Control Section (NCS) within the Office of Drug Control (ODC) is responsible for issuing licences and permits to import and export controlled drugs and precursor chemicals under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956 and the Customs (Prohibited Exports) Regulations 1958.
NCS also issues Manufacture Licences and Manufacture Permits to manufacture narcotic drugs (excluding medicinal cannabis) under the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967, in addition to varying, suspending and revoking those Manufacture Licences and Manufacture Permits as required.
Service Standard
The ODC aims to meet the following service standards from the date of receipt of an application to date of dispatch (either via email or hard-copy, depending on the licence or permit).
Incomplete applications or applications with errors will stop the processing clock and result in delays.
| Application type | Working days |
|---|---|
| Licence to Import and/or Export | 30 |
| Import and/or Export Licence Amendment | 20 |
| Import Permit | 20 |
| Export Permit | 20 |
| Special Access Scheme Category A Import | 2 |
| First Aid Kits (Military, Sporting Teams) | 20 |
| Import of Kava | 20 |
| Narcotic Drug Manufacture Licence* | 120 |
| Narcotic Drug Manufacture Licence Variation* | 60 |
| Narcotic Drug Manufacture Permit* | 60 |
| Narcotic Drug Manufacture Permit Variation* | 30 |
*Note: these applications do not include medicinal cannabis.
Performance Target
The target for meeting the service standard is 95%
Performance Results (Fiscal Year)
| Performance results | FY 2020-2021 | FY 2021-2022 | FY 2022-2023 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Performance | 98.6% | 97.5% | 98.4% |
| Number of Processed Applications | 9530 | 10976 | 12053 |