Under the authority of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Office of Diversion Control (OD) regulates the manufacture and distribution of controlled substances in the United States. This regulatory control is designed to prevent the diversion of legitimate pharmaceutical drugs into illegal channels and to ensure that there is a sufficient supply for legitimate medical uses.
The DEA’s CSOS program allows for secure electronic controlled substances orders without having to complete the supporting paper DEA Form 222. Using a technology called PKI, CSOS requires each individual purchaser to enroll with the DEA to acquire a CSOS digital certificate.
Using CSOS provides many benefits to our customers, including:
- Ordering Freedom: CSOS transactions are the only allowance for electronic ordering of Schedule I and II controlled substances, but may also be used for Schedule III-V substances. Additionally, CSOS has no line item limit for a single order.
- Faster Transactions: CSOS Certificates contain the same identification information as DEA Form 222, allowing for timely and accurate validation by the supplier. Faster transactions allow for just-in-time ordering and smaller inventories.
- Accurate Orders: CSOS reduces the number of ordering errors.
- Decreased Cost: Order accuracy and decreased paperwork result in a lower transaction cost.
How do I Sign Up?
Before you can use Letco’s CSOS to order Schedule II items, you must first obtain a CSOS Certificate from the DEA.
A CSOS Certificate is a digital identity issued by the DEA and is the digital equivalent of the identification information contained on a DEA Form 222.
Log onto the DEA’s e-commerce website and follow the on-screen instructions: http://www.deaecom.gov/applycert.html.
If you have additional questions or concerns, the DEA offers the following support, Mondays through Fridays from 8:00 AM through 8:00 PM (Eastern Time):
How Long Will it Take to Receive my CSOS Certificate?
You should receive your CSOS Certificate activation notice within thirty days of submitting your complete DEA application package. Incomplete, inaccurate, or invalid application packages will take longer to process and may be denied and returned by the DEA.
Application packages can take up to two weeks to be received by the DEA's CSOS Registration Authority, and then typically take seven to 10 business days to process. If the application is approved, you will receive an activation notice via one or more of the following methods:
- Postal mail: Allow seven to 10 business days for the Activation Notice to arrive; and/or
- E-mail: The DEA sends Activation Notices via email to applicants upon approval.
Electronic Signing of Schedule II Orders
Using special software built into this website and your electronic CSOS Certificate from the DEA, you can electronically ‘sign’ for your order. Also, if your order is placed by 5:00 PM Eastern Time, it will ship the same day.
Remote Certificate Store User Agreement
When signing an order in CSOS for the first time, you will be routed to the ‘Express 222 Remote Certificate Store’ Remote Certificate Wizard at and presented with a User Agreement. You must agree to the terms of the User Agreement before you can use CSOS by clicking the ‘I Agree’ button.
