on the advice of the Minister of Health given after consultation with such organisations or bodies as appear to the Minister to be representative of persons likely to be substantially affected by these regulations.

1	Title
2	Commencement
3	Principal regulations
4	Regulation 44BA amended (Restriction on prescribing gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues)
	Explanatory note
	Administrative Information

Regulations

1 Title

These regulations are the Medicines (Restriction on Prescribing Gonadotropin-releasing Hormone Analogues) Amendment Regulations (No 2) 2025.

2 Commencement

These regulations come into force on 19 December 2025.

3 Principal regulations

These regulations amend the Medicines Regulations 1984.

4 Regulation 44BA amended (Restriction on prescribing gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues)

In regulation 44BA(1), replace “for the treatment of a person” with “for the purpose of puberty suppression in a person who is a child or adolescent”.

Rachel Hayward,
Clerk of the Executive Council.

Explanatory note

This note is not part of the regulations but is intended to indicate their general effect.

These regulations, which come into force on 19 December 2025, amend the Medicines Regulations 1984.

The Medicines (Restriction on Prescribing Gonadotropin-releasing Hormone Analogues) Amendment Regulations 2025 restricted authorised prescribers prescribing prescription medicines that are gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogues. The prescription medicines may not be prescribed for the treatment of gender incongruence or gender dysphoria. This was not specifically limited to puberty suppression, and could also include adults undergoing transition. This was inadvertent.

These regulations clarify that the restriction applies only to prescribing for the purpose of suppressing puberty in children and adolescents with gender incongruence or gender dysphoria.

Issued under the authority of the Legislation Act 2019.

Date of notification in Gazette: 4 December 2025.

These regulations are administered by the Ministry of Health.

Medicines (Restriction on Prescribing Gonadotropin-releasing Hormone Analogues) Amendment Regulations (No 2) 2025