Medicines for a healthcare trip: supply, storage and a backup plan

Before a healthcare trip to Mexico or Costa Rica, check how you will carry your usual medicines, keep them in the required conditions and obtain professional help if your stay changes. A familiar brand name or a pharmacy advertisement does not establish that a medicine is permitted, equivalent or appropriate for you.

Check the route and the medicine

Ask the destination’s official authorities or embassy about your exact medicine and any documents or permission required. Check transit countries too, including places where you may pass through border control or collect and recheck luggage. Rules may differ for controlled substances, injectable medicines and medicines obtained abroad. Do not assume a general quantity limit applies to your medicine. Ask about your exact product and amount.

Keep the active ingredient, strength and formulation on your personal list. Ask your pharmacist to confirm the active ingredient, strength, formulation and usual instructions; do not substitute a product or change a dose yourself. Check permission to bring a locally purchased medicine back home separately with your home country’s official authorities.

Agree your supply and storage plan

• Tell your prescriber and pharmacist your intended dates and ask about a possible delay. Confirm refill arrangements and any insurer limits before departure. Give the treating clinic your current medicine list through its appropriate private channel and ask what medicines it may prescribe during or after treatment.
• Ask about timing across time zones and storage requirements. Obtain instructions for your actual medicine rather than using a general travel schedule.
• Keep medicines in their original labelled containers and carry prescription copies, a clinician’s letter and any permits required for your route. Documents do not replace destination-specific permission.
• Check airline rules for carry-on supplies and any equipment. For cold storage, ask how the required conditions will be maintained throughout the journey and at your accommodation, including power interruptions.

CDC advises carrying medicines in hand luggage and checking storage requirements. Canada’s travel guidance also recommends original containers and documentation identifying generic and trade names. Neither source is permission to import a specific product.

If your supply is lost or your stay changes

Before travelling, save a private contact route for your prescriber, pharmacist and local clinical service. Ask whom to contact if you cannot obtain a refill or the required storage conditions were interrupted. Seek professional advice about the next step; do not share someone else’s medicine or assume an advertised local product is equivalent.

Canada’s guidance advises against buying medicines abroad unless a healthcare professional recommends it. If a purchase becomes necessary, ask that professional how to use an appropriate pharmacy and confirm the product. Keep receipts and any required records privately. Do not post prescriptions, policy numbers or health details in public groups.

Keep one private planning record

Keep a private record of the medicine names, documents requested, professional storage instructions, responsible contacts and unanswered questions. Date the authority or professional reply and note the country or transit leg it covers. Reconfirm unresolved permissions if the itinerary or prescription changes; one country’s answer does not settle another country’s requirements.

For related logistics, use our room and transport questions and insurance questions.

Sources and scope

Government of Canada: travelling with medication · CDC: travelling abroad with medicine. Sources checked October 6, 2026. This page does not certify pharmacies or determine import permission, treatment or insurance coverage.