The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has issued a fresh safety advisory after continuing importation of counterfeit Botox vials into Australia, underscoring ongoing risks from falsified medicines purchased online.
Published on 27 January 2026, the advisory notes that the regulator is still encountering counterfeit products despite an earlier alert in July 2025. The fraudulent vials were designed to resemble a genuine Botox-branded product manufactured by Allergan, an AbbVie company, but AbbVie has confirmed that products bearing batch number C8478C4 are not authentic.
The TGA emphasised that the counterfeit items have not been assessed for quality, safety or efficacy and therefore pose a ‘significant public health and safety risk’ that makes them unsuitable for use. The advisory reiterated that these products were obtained from an overseas online seller rather than from an Australian pharmacy, and warned that packaging may be designed to look legitimate.
For consumers who already have these products, the TGA recommended taking any remaining vials to a local pharmacy for safe disposal. Suspected adverse events should be reported to the TGA, and the regulator is continuing to check batch numbers of potentially counterfeit products.
The TGA said it continues to check batch numbers of any products that may be subject to counterfeiting.
The Australian Border Force has been notified to seize and destroy any counterfeit Botox products intercepted at the border, as part of ongoing efforts to protect public health.
