Overview
- Lawmakers amended the New Psychoactive Substances Act to add nitrous oxide and the K.O.-drop precursors GBL and BDO, prohibiting their trade and manufacture while preserving industrial, scientific and medicinal uses.
- A general ban applies to supplying, acquiring or possessing these substances for minors, and sales via vending machines and mail order to private consumers are outlawed.
- Retail rules keep small nitrous oxide cartridges of up to 8.4 grams available for culinary use, with adults limited to purchasing a maximum of ten cartridges per transaction.
- Health officials warned of severe risks from misuse, with the health minister citing potential neurological damage and the federal drugs commissioner describing K.O.-drops as a tool of chemical violence.
- Police, medical and industry voices backed tighter controls yet urged funded prevention and clear, low-bureaucracy exemptions, with chemical industry groups favoring an EU-wide solution.