The amended Drugs Act came into force today, introducing the death penalty for drug trafficking.
The act allows for the death penalty to be handed out for drug trafficking and smuggling drugs into the country.
As per the act, the death penalty can only be imposed after certain conditions are met, and is approved unanimously by the Supreme Court bench. If a unanimous verdict for the death penalty is not reached, a life sentence will be imposed, as was already being practised.
However, life sentence for drug traffickers are no longer capped at 25 years, but are extended until death.
Parliament passed the bill of amendments on December 3, 2025.
Three days after this, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu ratified the bill on December 6, with the act to come into effect three months from then.
Drugs and quantities which carry death penalty:
- Drugs brought into Maldives being over 350g of cannabis
- Drugs brought into Maldives being over 250g of diamorphine
- Drugs brought into Maldives being a type under Category 1 other than cannabis or diamorphine, and exceeding 100g
The act further states that the death penalty will apply if the drugs were brought in while the person was entering the country.
As per the bill, if the sentence is passed on a person, then a superior court must review the case referring to case details and legal factors.
The death penalty can only be implemented when the Supreme Court bench hearing the case unanimously reaches a verdict in favour of implementation, the bill states.
If the Supreme Court does not reach a unanimous verdict in favour of death penalty implementation, then the accused will face a life sentence, along with a fine between MVR 100,000 and MVR 10,000,000.
While until now, a life sentence was defined as 25 years, the new law removes this cap for sentences under the Drugs Act. Instead, such life sentences will mean imprisonment until death, with no eligibility for parole or pardons. Additionally, the State cannot enter plea bargains in relation to such cases.
Currently, Singapore enforces death penalty for drug trafficking. If Maldives implements this law, it will become the second South Asian country to implement the death penalty for drug related offences. Sri Lanka also has death penalty for drug trafficking included in its law, but the country has an unofficial moratorium on its implementation.
