Brazil regulates online medicine sales

In early August 2026, Brazil’s health regulator Anvisa lifted a ban on selling medicines through the Shopee e-commerce platform. The new rules, published on 6 August, permit only licensed pharmacies and drugstores to list medicines on Shopee, require a physically separated pharmacy area in supermarkets, and mandate a qualified pharmacist on duty. Inspections and the ability to block illegal listings were also stipulated.

A few days later, the pharmaceutical industry responded to the regulatory shift. Hypera Pharma secured price approval from the drug-price regulator CMED for its injectable semaglutide product Semavy, enabling commercial distribution by the end of September. Simultaneously, major trade groups petitioned Anvisa for technical clarification on how the new Resolution-RE No. 3.056/2026 will be applied in practice, seeking regulatory certainty and patient-safety safeguards.

On 7 August, Anvisa formally revoked the 2022 restriction, confirming that Shopee may list medicines only when offered by licensed pharmacies, in line with Law No. 15.357 signed in March 2026. This decision follows similar regulatory movements regarding other digital players like Mercado Livre and allows pharmacies to operate within supermarkets. Shopee called the decision a “positive advance” and pledged to ensure deliveries originate from pharmacy counters, are sealed and traceable. The regulator warned it will remove non-compliant advertisements and keep special-control medicines subject to additional dispensing rules.

Following the revocation, several pharmaceutical industry associations—including Abafarma, Abcfarma, Abradilan, Abrafarma, and Febrafar—formally requested technical clarifications from Anvisa. These entities are seeking specific guidance regarding the regulatory, operational, and sanitary limits for digital marketplaces, technology intermediaries, and logistics operators to ensure compliance with existing sanitary standards.