Law · Last reviewed 2026-10-18

US federal law on LSD, LSA and the ergot alkaloids

Under US federal law, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is a Schedule I controlled substance (21 CFR 1308.11(d)(22), DEA code 7315), while lysergic acid (code 7300) and lysergic acid amide, also called LSA or ergine (code 7310), are in Schedule III (21 CFR 1308.13(c)(8) and (c)(9)). The ergot alkaloids ergonovine and ergotamine are not scheduled but are List I chemicals (21 CFR 1310.02(a)), and no morning glory or other plant species is named in these sections. ^{[1, 2, 3]}

Key takeaways

• LSD: Schedule I, 21 CFR 1308.11(d)(22), code 7315.
• Lysergic acid (7300) and lysergic acid amide (7310): Schedule III, 21 CFR 1308.13(c)(8) and (c)(9).
• Both schedules cover "any material, compound, mixture, or preparation" that contains any quantity of a listed substance, unless excepted.
• Ergonovine (8675) and ergotamine (8676) are List I chemicals under 21 CFR 1310.02(a), not scheduled drugs.
• The sections list substances; unlike peyote, no morning glory, Hawaiian baby woodrose or other seed is named. This page is not legal advice.

How federal drug control is organised

The Controlled Substances Act sorts drugs into five schedules, and the Drug Enforcement Administration publishes the lists in Part 1308 of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). Separate lists of chemicals used to make controlled substances, List I and List II, are in Part 1310. Each listed substance carries a four-digit DEA drug code. The entries below were read from the official electronic CFR on 18 October 2026. ^{[1, 2, 3]}

LSD was placed in Schedule I under the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which brought clinical research on it in the United States largely to an end. ^[4]

The listings, word for word

Paragraph (d) of Schedule I opens with the words: "Unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any material, compound, mixture, or preparation, which contains any quantity of the following hallucinogenic substances, or which contains any of its salts, isomers, and salts of isomers". ^[1]

In Schedule III, lysergic acid and lysergic acid amide sit in paragraph (c), whose heading is "Depressants", under similar wording: "Unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any material, compound, mixture, or preparation which contains any quantity of the following substances". ^[2] The heading reflects how the regulation is arranged, not a statement about ergine's pharmacology; chemically it is a close relative of LSD (see LSA and LSD compared).

What is not named

None of 21 CFR 1308.11, 1308.13 or 1310.02 names Ipomoea, Turbina, Argyreia, "morning glory" or any seed containing ergine. ^{[1, 2, 3]} The contrast with peyote is instructive: its Schedule I entry, 1308.11(d)(26), expressly covers "all parts of the plant presently classified botanically as Lophophora williamsii Lemaire, whether growing or not, the seeds thereof" and any extract or preparation of it. ^[1]

What the regulations do contain is the "any material, compound, mixture, or preparation which contains any quantity" wording quoted above. How that wording applies to a plant or seed that naturally contains a listed alkaloid is a question for prosecutors and courts on particular facts, not something these sections settle on their face, and we do not offer a view on it.

Ergometrine and ergotamine are prescription medicines (see ergometrine and ergot alkaloid pharmacology). Section 1310.02 designates them, with chemicals such as ephedrine and safrole, as "listed chemicals subject to the provisions of this part and parts 1309 and 1313", the parts of the DEA's rules covering records and reports (1310), registration of manufacturers, distributors, importers and exporters (1309) and importation and exportation (1313) of these chemicals; they are not placed in a drug schedule. ^{[3, 5]} Internationally, ergometrine, ergotamine and lysergic acid are in Table I of the 1988 UN Convention, among substances "frequently used in the illicit manufacture of narcotic drugs or psychotropic substances". ^[6]

The Federal Analogue Act

21 USC 802(32)(A) defines a "controlled substance analogue" as a substance whose chemical structure is "substantially similar" to that of a controlled substance in Schedule I or II and which has, or is represented or intended to have, a substantially similar or greater stimulant, depressant or hallucinogenic effect. ^[7] 21 USC 813(a) provides that an analogue, "to the extent intended for human consumption", is treated for the purposes of federal law as a Schedule I controlled substance. ^[8]

The definition excludes anything that is itself a controlled substance (802(32)(C)(i)). ^[7] Lysergic acid amide is already in Schedule III, so it is controlled in its own right rather than as an analogue of LSD. Other lysergamides that are not listed by name are where the analogue provisions can come into play. ^{[7, 2]}

Beyond federal law

States have their own controlled substance laws, which may list substances or plants that federal law does not, and the federal schedules change by rulemaking. For other countries' laws, see lysergamide law by country; for the full legal records database, see legal status. Nothing on this page is legal advice; for a question about your own situation, ask a lawyer licensed where you live.

Questions and answers

Is LSA a controlled substance in the United States?

Yes. Lysergic acid amide (LSA, ergine) is a Schedule III controlled substance under 21 CFR 1308.13(c)(9), DEA drug code 7310, as checked on 18 October 2026. ^[2]

What schedule is LSD in?

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is in Schedule I under 21 CFR 1308.11(d)(22), DEA drug code 7315, the most restrictive federal category. ^[1]

Are morning glory seeds named in federal drug law?

No. As of 18 October 2026, 21 CFR 1308.11, 1308.13 and 1310.02 do not name morning glory, Hawaiian baby woodrose or any seed species; they list lysergic acid amide itself in Schedule III, with wording covering any material containing it. How that applies to plants is a legal question this site does not answer. ^[2]

Why are ergotamine and ergonovine List I chemicals?

Ergotamine (code 8676) and ergonovine (code 8675) are designated List I chemicals in 21 CFR 1310.02(a), subject to the DEA's rules on listed chemicals rather than placed in a drug schedule; the 1988 UN Convention likewise lists them among substances frequently used in illicit drug manufacture. ^{[3, 6]}

References

1. 21 CFR 1308.11, Schedule I, paragraph (d)(22): lysergic acid diethylamide (DEA drug code 7315). Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, checked 18 October 2026. Official text
2. 21 CFR 1308.13, Schedule III, paragraphs (c)(8) lysergic acid (code 7300) and (c)(9) lysergic acid amide (code 7310). Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, checked 18 October 2026. Official text
3. 21 CFR 1310.02(a), List I chemicals: ergonovine and its salts, ergotamine and its salts. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, checked 18 October 2026. Official text
4. Nichols DE (2018). Dark classics in chemical neuroscience: lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). ACS Chemical Neuroscience 9(10):2331-2343. doi:10.1021/acschemneuro.8b00043 PubMed 29461039
5. Title 21 CFR, Chapter II, part headings: Part 1309 (Registration of Manufacturers, Distributors, Importers and Exporters of List I Chemicals), Part 1310 (Records and Reports of Listed Chemicals), Part 1313 (Importation and Exportation of List I and List II Chemicals). eCFR, checked 18 October 2026. Official text
6. United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, 1988, Article 12 and Annex, Table I. UNODC, checked 18 October 2026. Official text
7. 21 U.S.C. 802(32), definition of "controlled substance analogue". United States Code, 2023 edition, GovInfo (US Government Publishing Office), checked 18 October 2026. Official text
8. 21 U.S.C. 813, Treatment of controlled substance analogues. United States Code, 2023 edition, GovInfo (US Government Publishing Office), checked 18 October 2026. Official text

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