New Zealand has authorised two psychiatrists to prescribe pharmaceutical-grade MDMA as part of supervised treatment for adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), making it the second country after Australia to allow the treatment in clinical practice.
The approval was granted by New Zealand medicines regulator Medsafe on 4 September to two psychiatrists, Dr Gary Wynn in Wellington and Dr Tom Paterson in Auckland.
The authorisations allow the doctors to prescribe MDMA for eligible patients whose PTSD has not responded adequately to conventional treatment. Both psychiatrists have undergone Medsafe’s approval process, which required them to demonstrate relevant expertise and provide detailed plans for how treatment would be delivered.
The decision does not amount to a nationwide approval of MDMA as a medicine.
Instead, the authorisation applies specifically to the two psychiatrists. Any other clinician seeking to prescribe MDMA would need to obtain separate approval from Medsafe.
Treatment will take place in clinical settings
MDMA-assisted treatment in New Zealand will be delivered alongside psychotherapy rather than as a standalone medication.
Patients must be aged 18 or over and undergo a comprehensive clinical assessment before treatment is considered. Where treatment proceeds, MDMA will be administered under the supervision of an authorised psychiatrist as part of a wider treatment plan.
Patients will not be given MDMA to take home.
New Zealand’s Ministry of Health said the treatment would be delivered under approved therapeutic protocols, with prescribing decisions made on an individual basis and supported by informed consent.
The regulator has also stressed that the treatment is expected to be suitable for only a limited number of patients under the current arrangements.
The distinction between the treatment and recreational MDMA is also significant. The product being used is pharmaceutical-grade MDMA, manufactured to pharmaceutical standards and administered in a controlled clinical environment.
New Zealand follows Australia
The decision brings New Zealand into line with Australia, which became the first country to permit authorised psychiatrists to prescribe MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD in 2023.
Australia also permits authorised psychiatrists to prescribe psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression, although access to both treatments remains limited to approved clinicians and clinical settings.
New Zealand has been taking a similar case-by-case approach to psychedelic-assisted treatments. In 2025, Medsafe approved a psychiatrist to prescribe medicinal psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression.
The latest decision means New Zealand now has two approved psychiatrists for MDMA treatment and two approved clinicians for psilocybin treatment, according to the Ministry of Health.
MDMA remains an unapproved medicine in New Zealand
Despite the new authorisations, MDMA itself has not been approved as a medicine for general use in New Zealand.
The government has instead used the existing regulatory pathway that allows individual clinicians to seek permission to prescribe an otherwise unapproved medicine in specific circumstances.
Associate Health Minister David Seymour said the government wanted the medicines regulatory system to allow access to emerging treatments while maintaining safeguards around their use.
Medsafe said its decision involved consideration of the potential benefits of making an emerging treatment available alongside the need to protect patients from potential harm.
The move comes as research into MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD continues internationally. While clinical studies have reported reductions in PTSD symptoms, the treatment remains subject to ongoing research and regulatory scrutiny.
For now, New Zealand’s approach is deliberately narrow: access is limited to two psychiatrists, patients must meet eligibility requirements, and treatment must take place under direct clinical supervision.
The decision nevertheless marks a significant change in New Zealand’s approach to psychedelic-assisted treatment, moving MDMA from an option available primarily through research into tightly controlled clinical use for a limited group of patients with PTSD.
