President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has ratified the bill amending the Drugs Act, a move that introduces the death penalty for individuals involved in drug trafficking and marks one of the most sweeping punitive shifts in recent Maldivian legislation.

The decision follows the 20th People’s Majlis passing the bill on 3 December 2025, during the 28th sitting of its third session this year.

According to the government, the stated purpose of the bill is to halt drug trafficking and other forms of drug-related trade across the Maldives.

The administration argued that the amendments also provide the legal adjustments needed to reduce the possession and use of illicit drugs nationwide. Despite these claims, the scope and severity of the new measures signal a dramatic escalation in the state’s penal approach to drug policy.

The amendments introduce several structural changes to the existing law. They establish a system for controlling newly emerging narcotic substances not yet listed under the current legislation, expand the catalogue of drug-related offenses and penalties, and strengthen treatment and rehabilitation frameworks for individuals addicted to drugs. Even so, the bill’s central features center overwhelmingly on harsher punishments rather than treatment-based reforms.

Among the most consequential changes is the increased penalty for attempting to import or export, assisting in the import or export, or participating in any form in the import or export of substances listed in Schedule 1 of the law. This offense will now carry a mandatory 20-year prison sentence along with a fine ranging from MVR 75,000 to MVR 7,500,000.

The bill goes even further by significantly heightening the punishment for importing or exporting a Schedule 1 substance. Under the newly approved amendments, the death penalty may be imposed if specific conditions are met.

These conditions include the quantities of drugs imported: more than 350 grams of cannabis, more than 250 grams of diamorphine, or more than 100 grams of any other Schedule 1 substance aside from cannabis or diamorphine.

Another condition requires that the drugs must have been brought into the Maldives by the individual at the time of their entry into the country.

The legislation also sets a stringent procedural requirement for capital punishment cases. If a death sentence is issued, all legal aspects of the verdict and the circumstances surrounding the case must be reviewed by a higher court. Further, enforcement of the death penalty will only occur if a bench of Supreme Court justices issues a unanimous judgment.

The bill further specifies that any offense carrying a sentence of life imprisonment or the death penalty cannot be pardoned or commuted under any circumstances.

Further, it prohibits entering into plea agreements, as defined in the Criminal Procedure Act, with individuals accused of such offenses. Alongside these measures, the bill introduces several other new drug-related offenses, broadening the law’s punitive reach even further.

The law is scheduled to take effect three months after the date of its ratification and publication in the Government Gazette.