Hub · Peptides and Australian Law: Schedule Status of Every Research Peptide
What Schedule 4 and Appendix D mean for research peptides
Schedule 4 of the Poisons Standard, Australia's national list that sorts medicines and poisons, is headed 'Prescription only medicines and prescription animal remedies', and Appendix D, clause 5 (a numbered table placed after the lists) names poisons that 'must not be possessed by a person without authority'. In F2026L01327, the October 2026 edition, the two lists are separate, and some research peptides (short chains of amino acids, the building blocks of proteins) sit on both (checked 1 October 2026).
Think about the last time a cold blocked your nose. Some remedies sat within reach on a shelf, and others only came across the counter once the pharmacist had seen a prescription, a doctor's written order. Australia sorts substances in a similar spirit, on a national list, and the Peptides and Australian Law page reads that list peptide by peptide.
This page zooms in on two labels from the list. It says what Schedule 4 and Appendix D each mean, quotes the clause each time, and sets the two side by side in a table. Nothing here is legal advice, and nothing here says what a person may lawfully do. The Western Australian law page adds the state layer.
Key facts
| Document read | Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard—October 2026) Instrument 2026 |
|---|---|
| Register ID | F2026L01327 |
| Made | 28 September 2026 |
| In force from | 1 October 2026 |
| Date read | 1 October 2026, legislation.gov.au |
| Schedule 4 heading | Prescription only medicines and prescription animal remedies |
| Appendix D clause read | Clause 5, a table of 41 numbered rows |
| Catalogue peptides in both lists | 4 |
| Held, no status stated | 2 catalogue compounds |
| Not covered | Later editions and blended products |
What does Schedule 4 mean?
Schedule 4 is one of the numbered lists in the Poisons Standard, and its heading in the October 2026 edition reads 'Prescription only medicines and prescription animal remedies'. A schedule is a list that sorts named substances by how tightly the instrument, the legal document that holds the lists, controls them. Section 12(3), a numbered rule in the instrument's main text, ranks the schedules from most to least restrictive as 9, 10, 8, 4, 7, 3, 2, 6 and 5, which puts Schedule 4 fourth from the top. A Schedule 4 entry is a classification, a sorting label, and says nothing about any person's own situation (Federal Register of Legislation, F2026L01327, checked on 1 October 2026).
Read the heading plainly: 'prescription only' says the list is about medicines that come with a prescription. The schedule works through named entries, and one entry can name a single substance or a named group of related substances.
Section 11 lists exceptions to Part 2, the instrument's 'controls on substances'. This page does not work through them, so a scheduled name is always read together with them (F2026L01327, section 11).
What is Appendix D in the Poisons Standard?
Appendix D is a set of tables placed after the schedules in the Poisons Standard, and clause 5 of it is the table this page reads, because its heading says possession without authority is illegal. The clause's introduction says the table 'specifies poisons' that a person may not hold 'without authority', and gives 'possession other than in accordance with a legal prescription' as an example. A clause is a numbered part of an appendix, and an item is a numbered row in its table. In F2026L01327, clause 5 has 41 items (read on 1 October 2026).
The clause 5 table has two columns, Item and Poison. Each row is a number and a poison's name, and no row describes a product, a use or a person.
'Without authority' is the instrument's own wording, and its example, a legal prescription, shows that authority can exist. This page does not work out who has authority in any case.
Which research peptides appear in both lists?
Four research peptides named in the Form Laboratories catalogue appear in both Schedule 4 and Appendix D, clause 5 of F2026L01327, the October 2026 edition (checked 1 October 2026, world time, UTC). They are BPC-157 (a fragment of a protein from stomach juice; Sikirić et al., 1993) at item 5, CJC-1295 (a lab-made copy of growth-hormone-releasing hormone, a body signal; Teichman et al., 2006) at item 7, ipamorelin (a small peptide that prompted growth hormone release in cell and animal studies; Raun et al., 1998) at item 25, and TB-500 at item 38. Each of the four Schedule 4 entries starts with a # marker, such as '# BPC-157.'.
TB-500 is a research-peptide name listed apart from thymosin beta 4, a separate name with entries of its own. The CJC-1295 entry carries a CAS number, a registry number that identifies one chemical: '# CJC-1295 (CAS No. 863288-34-0).'. The instrument never uses the catalogue label 'No DAC', so whether that form falls under the entry is left open. Guides: BPC-157, CJC-1295 with ipamorelin and TB-500.
Tirzepatide (a peptide with a fatty acid attached that switches on two gut-hormone receptors, docking sites on cells for body signals; Coskun et al., 2018) is the contrast. Its Schedule 4 entry reads 'TIRZEPATIDE.' with no # marker, and clause 5 has no tirzepatide item.
How do Schedule 4 and Appendix D differ?
Schedule 4 and Appendix D, clause 5 answer different questions about a named substance. Schedule 4 places the substance in a list headed for prescription only medicines. Appendix D, clause 5 puts a poison's name in a numbered table headed for possession without authority. A name can sit in one list and not the other, and the October 2026 edition shows it: tirzepatide has a Schedule 4 entry and no clause 5 item. Each list has its own wording and place in the instrument (F2026L01327, read on 1 October 2026).
The table after these sections sets the two side by side, one question per row, with the part of the instrument that says so in the last column.
Does a missing entry mean a substance is allowed?
No. A missing entry in Schedule 4 or Appendix D, clause 5 settles nothing about permission, because section 7 widens what a name can reach. Section 7 of F2026L01327 says that, unless the contrary intention appears, a reference to a substance includes 'every … derivative of the substance' and 'a preparation or admixture containing any proportion of the substance'. A derivative is a substance made by changing the original, and an admixture is a mixture. Section 12(1) adds that a preparation holding two or more poisons follows each schedule that applies to them (Federal Register of Legislation, checked on 1 October 2026).
The 1 October 2026 search found no individual entry for five other compounds in the Form Laboratories catalogue, which the hub page names. That finding is not a statement that any of them is lawful, approved or free to possess, and this page draws no group-heading conclusion for any compound.
What changes between editions of the Poisons Standard?
Item numbers can change between editions of the Poisons Standard while an entry stays the same. TB-500 sat at item 35 of Appendix D, clause 5 in the June 2026 edition, F2026L00633, and sits at item 38 in the October 2026 edition, with its entry text unchanged (read on 1 October 2026). Section 4(1) of the October instrument repeals (cancels) the June instrument, and section 2 starts the October instrument on 1 October 2026. BPC-157, CJC-1295 and ipamorelin kept items 5, 7 and 25 across the two editions.
Tirzepatide's Appendix L entry, in a table of additional warning statements for certain human medicines, moved from item 40 to item 41 the same way (F2026L01327).
Evidence limits
What can this page not tell you?
Schedule 4 and Appendix D are read here from one dated reading of one document, and the reading shows what the lists contain, not what any person may do. The text comes from the Federal Register of Legislation, F2026L01327 (the October 2026 edition), checked on 1 October 2026. Later editions may differ and are outside this reading. Import rules, sport rules and state and territory laws sit outside it. GHK-Cu (the copper form of a peptide called GHK) and tesamorelin (a peptide) come from the Form Laboratories catalogue record and are held, so the page states no status for either. Blended products are not covered.
The Reader's guide and the Index that come with the Poisons Standard are not part of the instrument (section 5), so this page reads the entries themselves and not the Index.
Comparison
Schedule 4 and Appendix D, clause 5 compared clause by clause in F2026L01327, read 1 October 2026.
| Point of comparison | Schedule 4 | Appendix D, clause 5 | Where the instrument says so |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heading | 'Prescription only medicines and prescription animal remedies' | 'Poisons for which possession without authority is illegal' | The heading of each part |
| Form of the list | Named entries, each its own line | A table of numbered items with two columns, Item and Poison | Schedule 4; Appendix D, clause 5 |
| Plain reading | A classification: the name belongs to the prescription only list | Poisons a person may not hold without authority; a legal prescription is the instrument's example | Schedule 4 heading; Appendix D, clause 5 introduction |
| Place in the ranking | Fourth, from most to least restrictive | Not ranked, because section 12(3) lists schedules only | Section 12(3) |
| BPC-157 | '# BPC-157.' | Item 5 | Schedule 4; clause 5 table |
| CJC-1295 | '# CJC-1295 (CAS No. 863288-34-0).' | Item 7 | Schedule 4; clause 5 table |
| Ipamorelin | '# IPAMORELIN.' | Item 25 | Schedule 4; clause 5 table |
| TB-500 | '# TB-500.' | Item 38 | Schedule 4; clause 5 table |
| Tirzepatide | 'TIRZEPATIDE.', no # marker | No item | Schedule 4; clause 5 table |
| What a missing name shows | Nothing about permission | Nothing about permission | Section 7 |
| Change from June 2026 | Entry text for the four peptides unchanged | Item numbers can move: TB-500 went from item 35 to item 38 | Sections 2 and 4 |
FAQ
What does Schedule 4 mean in Australia?
Schedule 4 is the Poisons Standard list under the heading 'Prescription only medicines and prescription animal remedies'. The October 2026 edition, F2026L01327, names BPC-157, CJC-1295, ipamorelin, TB-500 and tirzepatide in it. A Schedule 4 entry classifies a substance and decides nothing about any person's situation.
What does Appendix D, clause 5 list?
Appendix D, clause 5 is a numbered table of 41 poisons whose possession without authority the instrument's heading calls illegal. BPC-157 sits at item 5 and TB-500 at item 38 in F2026L01327.
Is every Schedule 4 peptide also in Appendix D?
No. Tirzepatide has a Schedule 4 entry written without a # marker and has no Appendix D, clause 5 item. BPC-157, CJC-1295, ipamorelin and TB-500 have both.
Why do Appendix D item numbers change?
Each edition of the Poisons Standard is a new instrument, and its tables are renumbered when entries move. TB-500 moved from item 35 to item 38 between the June 2026 and October 2026 editions while its entry text stayed the same, so a number should always carry its edition.
Part of
Peptides and Australian Law: Schedule Status of Every Research PeptideAustralian law has no single answer for research peptides (short chains of amino acids, the building blocks of proteins), because scheduling, the national sorting of substances by control level in the Poisons Standard, works one named substance at a time. In the October 2026 edition, read on 1 October 2026, the peptides BPC-157, CJC-1295, ipamorelin and TB-500 each sit in Schedule 4 (prescription-only medicines) and Appendix D (poisons whose possession without authority is illegal).
Citations
4 sourcesSikirić P et al. Journal of Physiology-Paris. 1993;87(5):313-327.
doi:10.1016/0928-4257(93)90038-UTeichman SL et al. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 2006;91(3):799-805.
doi:10.1210/jc.2005-1536Raun K et al. European Journal of Endocrinology. 1998;139(5):552-561.
doi:10.1530/eje.0.1390552Coskun T et al. Molecular Metabolism. 2018;18:3-14.
doi:10.1016/j.molmet.2018.09.009
Form Laboratories supplies research-use-only reference material. This article is an educational summary of published third-party literature. It is not medical advice, not a use instruction, and research material is not for human or animal use.