In April 2026, the Government announced tighter controls on nitrous oxide to reduce harm from unlawful use as a psychoactive substance. This includes:
- regulatory changes to clarify that large nitrous oxide canisters with a net weight of more than 10g of nitrous oxide purportedly for whipping cream are a psychoactive substance under the Psychoactive Substances Act 2013; and
- tighter import controls, making it unlawful to import nitrous oxide into New Zealand without a permit issued by the Director-General of Health.
These changes came into force on 5 June 2026.
To give effect to these changes, Medsafe has established (and is responsible for administering) the Nitrous Oxide Importer Permit Scheme. The permit scheme will enable the importation of nitrous oxide for lawful purposes, such as commercial, industrial, medicinal, scientific, educational, food preparation or other legitimate uses, to continue.
Medsafe will issue a permit to importers if satisfied that:
- the nitrous oxide is intended for a lawful use and
- the importer will take reasonable steps to avoid diversion of the nitrous oxide to unlawful use.
Medsafe has already been engaging with importers and has begun assessing early applications.
Importers can get in touch with Medsafe by emailing [email protected].
