Is AOD-9604 legal in Australia? What the official records say

Is AOD-9604 listed in the Australian Poisons Standard?

Yes. The Poisons Standard is Australia's national list that sorts medicines and poisons into groups called schedules. Schedule 4 is the group for prescription-only medicines. The October 2026 version, F2026L01327, gives AOD-9604 its own Schedule 4 entry, as read on 16 October 2026. The entry carries the CAS number 221231-10-3. A CAS number is a unique code for one chemical substance, a bit like a barcode. The same document lists somatropin, which is human growth hormone, as a separate entry. So the two entries are distinct.

The full name of the document is the Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard—October 2026) Instrument 2026.

A Schedule 4 entry records how a substance is classed for supply. It does not mean a medicine containing the substance is approved. Approval is a separate decision, recorded on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG). What Schedule 4 and Appendix D mean explains both terms.

What is Appendix D, and where does AOD-9604 appear in it?

Appendix D is a part of the Poisons Standard titled Additional controls on possession or supply of poisons included in Schedule 4 or 8. In plain terms, it adds extra controls for some Schedule 4 or 8 substances. It is split into clauses, and each clause has a table of poisons. AOD-9604 is item 3 in the table in clause 5. The same table names BPC-157 and CJC-1295, among other substances. What this means in a particular State or Territory is a legal question that this page does not answer. Read the wording of the clause in the document itself.

The Poisons Standard is a national list, and each State and Territory applies it through its own laws. The TGA says those laws may add more controls on the sale, supply and possession of unapproved peptide products. Read the document itself, and ask a lawyer about a specific situation.

Is AOD-9604 approved by the TGA?

No approved product containing AOD-9604 was confirmed for this page. The TGA texts read on 16 October 2026 do not name AOD-9604. They say unapproved peptide products have not been assessed by the TGA for safety, quality or effectiveness. They also say labels such as research use only do not make supply lawful, do not change a product's regulatory status, and do not permit importation. The ARTG, the national register of approved products, has its own search for named products. This page did not verify an exact product there. An unknown result is not proof that no product exists.

You can search the register on the TGA's ARTG page. A search there answers the question for one named product, while this page records published statements.

The TGA's 7 May 2026 warning adds that vials with poor or unclear labels will not be released under the Personal Importation Scheme. That warning does not name AOD-9604.

Is AOD-9604 banned in sport?

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) keeps the list of substances banned in sport. Its 2026 Prohibited List names AOD-9604 at section S2.2.3, as an example of a growth hormone fragment. Everything in class S2 is prohibited at all times, both in and out of competition. The list marks all S2 substances as non-specified, a category term that the list itself defines. The same line names hGH 176-191 as a separate example. The list has been in force since 1 January 2026. Athletes should ask their anti-doping organisation about any substance. This page records the list and does not decide any athlete's status.

Labs can test for AOD-9604. A 2015 study built a urine test for the peptide and noted its prohibited status. A 2013 paper reported that AOD-9604 does not affect the WADA growth hormone isoform immunoassay, one of WADA's tests for growth hormone. Do peptides show up on drug tests explains the general picture.

What is the FDA status of AOD-9604?

The FDA is the US medicines regulator. One FDA page covers bulk drug substances that may present significant safety risks. It lists AOD-9604 in its table of substances nominated for compounding and then withdrawn by the people who nominated them. Compounding is when a pharmacy makes up a drug for a patient. The FDA says compounded drugs containing AOD-9604 may carry a significant immunogenicity risk, meaning an immune reaction, for certain ways of giving the drug. It also says it has found no, or only limited, safety information. A withdrawn nomination is not an approval. FDA records do not govern Australian law.

The FDA text sits here because people often read it beside the Australian records. A withdrawn nomination also does not put AOD-9604 on the FDA's list of substances that may be compounded. The side-effects page explains what the FDA safety wording does and does not say.

Evidence limits

What do these records not settle?

Legal status also says nothing about whether the peptide works or is safe. The human evidence is in the study findings, and the safety record is on the side-effects page. Both are thin.