Peptides & EU law — country by country.
The legal status of research peptides in Europe depends on the country, the substance, and the claimed use. Most information online is written from a US perspective. This guide covers the EU specifically.
The EU baseline
The EU does not have a single unified law for "research chemicals." The relevant frameworks are the EU Medicinal Products Directive (2001/83/EC), national narcotics laws, and the Falsified Medicines Directive. The "research use only" label does not grant immunity — if a substance meets the definition of a medicinal product and is sold for human use, it may be regulated regardless of labelling.
Research peptides not listed on the Opiumwet can be sold for research use. Most GHRPs and recovery peptides are unscheduled. GHB analogues are explicitly scheduled.
Belgian law (Wet op de Geneesmiddelen) regulates medicinal products. Research peptides without pharmaceutical analogues are generally unscheduled. GLP-1 analogues may attract scrutiny.
Germany's AMG is broadly interpreted. A substance meeting the functional definition of a medicinal product may be regulated even without marketing authorisation. Seek specialist advice.
French law (Code de la Santé Publique) regulates medicinal products strictly. Enforcement is primarily targeted at sales with therapeutic claims.
Spain's Ley del Medicamento does not explicitly schedule most research peptides. Several EU vendors on PeptideCompare are based in Spain.
Poland has a relatively light regulatory touch. Several PeptideCompare vendors are Poland-based. Research peptides are unscheduled absent a specific narcotic listing.
WADA — an entirely separate question
EU legal status and WADA status are separate. A compound can be legal to purchase as a research chemical in Belgium and simultaneously prohibited in all tested sport. WADA S0 covers all unapproved pharmaceuticals — which is essentially every research peptide. If you are subject to anti-doping testing, treat all research peptides as prohibited by default.
Only EU vendors — by design
PeptideCompare only lists vendors with verifiable EU registrations. Every vendor, COA-verified.