3-MEC

3-MEC is controlled as an amphetamine analogue under Schedule I, item 19 of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Its structure, 2-(ethylamino)-1-(3-methylphenyl)propan-1-one, is the beta-keto, 3-methyl analogue of item 19's expressly listed N-ethylamphetamine. The Act defines an analogue as a substance with a substantially similar chemical structure. Health Canada states that almost all synthetic cathinones are controlled under Schedule I and identifies other N-ethyl cathinones under item 19.

The current annex to Decree 1130/2014 expressly lists 3-MEC, including its chemical identity, as a psychoactive substance prohibited from the consumer market. Decree 650/2026 replaced the annex as it stood in Decree 1101/2025 and entered into force on 10 July 2026. Under section 5(2) of the Narcotics Act, manufacture, import into Finland, storage, offering for sale, and transfer are prohibited, subject to statutory research and industrial-use exceptions. The cited provisions do not establish a general prohibition on possession or use and define this category separately from narcotic drugs, so the narrow canonical status is restricted_other.

As of 23 August 2026, the current consolidated Norwegian Narcotics Regulation expressly lists 3-MEC in Narkotikalisten, marks it ‘Forbudt etter § 5’, and identifies its chemical designation as 3-metyl-N-etylkatinon. Section 4 makes Narkotikalisten and its substance-specific provisions part of the regulation. Section 5 prohibits manufacture, acquisition, distribution, import, export, storage, possession, and use of listed narcotics that refer to § 5, subject to the regulation's stated exceptions. The consolidated instrument reports that it was last amended by FOR-2026-05-15-892 effective 1 June 2026. This recovery establishes the current status but does not claim an initial scheduling date for 3-MEC.

South Korea covers 3-MEC through the structural analogue provision in Annex 3, item 22 of the Narcotics Control Act Enforcement Decree, which places methcathinone and its analogues in the Article 2(3)(a) psychotropic-substance schedule. The 3-MEC structure, 2-(ethylamino)-1-(3-methylphenyl)propan-1-one, matches the provision's N-alkylamino, substituted-phenyl, alkyl, and oxygen positions, so it is controlled as a methcathinone analogue; the provision's exclusions for separately scheduled analogues and authorized medicines remain applicable.

3-MEC is not individually named in Anvisa's current schedule, but its N-ethyl 3-methyl cathinone structure falls within the generic synthetic-cathinone class in List F2(c). That class covers 2-aminopropan-1-one structures bearing a benzene ring, permits alkyl substitution on the ring and nitrogen, and is part of the list of psychotropic substances whose use is proscribed in Brazil. Portaria SVS/MS nº 344/1998 prohibits the production, manufacture, import, export, trade, and use of proscribed substances, apart from narrowly authorized medical or scientific research.

3-MEC is controlled in Poland as a group II-NPS cathinone derivative rather than through an individual entry in the statutory schedule. The Chief Sanitary Inspectorate's open list identifies 2-(ethylamino)-1-(3-methylphenyl)propan-1-one as 3-MEC (3-methylethcathinone) and classifies it as II-NPS, while Annex 3 part 3 covers cathinone derivatives with the corresponding ring alkyl and nitrogen alkyl substitutions. Article 62b of the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction penalizes possession of new psychoactive substances contrary to the Act.

3-MEC (3-methylethcathinone) is covered as an undesirable dependence-producing substance under Part III of Schedule 2 to the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act 140 of 1992. Part III lists cathinone and methcathinone and extends the list to all chemically related homologues that incorporate a similar structural fragment or exhibit similar pharmacodynamic properties; UNODC identifies 3-MEC as the synthetic cathinone 2-ethylamino-1-(3-methylphenyl)propan-1-one. Sections 4 and 5 prohibit unauthorized use, possession, and dealing, subject to the Act's medical and permit exceptions.

As of 23 August 2026, the current official consolidation of LVFS 2011:10 incorporates amendments through HSLF-FS 2026:26 and expressly names 3-MEC as 2-(etylamino)-1-(3-metylfenyl)propan-1-on. Its aligned classification is Swedish List I with no international-list designation. The regulation describes List I as substances that normally have no medical use. The current Ordinance (1992:1554) independently lists the same chemical name and abbreviation in Annex 1, and § 2 provides that Annex 1 substances are narcotics under the Narcotic Drugs Punishments Act. The Act (1992:860) on Control of Narcotic Drugs limits import, export, manufacture, offering for sale, transfer, and possession to specified authorized purposes and persons, while § 1 of the Narcotic Drugs Punishments Act criminalizes unauthorized handling, possession, and use. This establishes prohibited status subject to the statutory authorization exceptions; it does not establish an initial scheduling date for 3-MEC.

EUDA identifies 3-MEC as 2-(ethylamino)-1-(3-methylphenyl)propan-1-one within its cathinone framework. Turkish Penal Code Article 188 prohibits unauthorized manufacture, import, export, sale, supply, transport, storage, purchase, acceptance, and possession of narcotic or stimulant substances in the trafficking context. Law No. 7445 Article 17 expressly adds synthetic cathinones and their derivatives to Article 188(4)(a), making Article 188 penalties one half higher when the substance falls in that family; 3-MEC is covered by the family wording rather than named individually.