The Medicines Authority has received the first application for the importation of the morning-after pill, this newspaper has learnt.

A spokesman for the Ministry for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties confirmed that the regulator – which handles the licensing of medicinal products – had recently received a request for the importation of the Levonelle 1500mcg tablet.

The pill contains the ingredient levonorgestrel, which is also found in the already-licensed contraceptive coil, and must be taken up to 72 hours after sexual intercourse. No information on the importer was forthcoming.

The application is the first step importers must take to obtain a licence by the watchdog.

For medicinal products to be placed on the market, they must first be granted the so-called marketing authorisation by the Medicines Authority. Though no importer had previously approached the regulator to start importing the pill, Civil Liberties Minister Helena Dalli told this newspaper last month a number of importers had expressed their intention to submit such an application.

Malta is the only country in the European Union that does not market the morning-after pill, an issue that recently made it to the national agenda following a judicial protest filed by the Women’s Right’s Foundation against the State.

Some 100 women of all ages backed the protest, which called for the licensing of the emergency contraceptive that can be used to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sexual intercourse and is effective if taken soon after.