Legality of cannabis

Legal status of cannabis possession for non-medical use

Legal
Illegal but decriminalized
Illegal but often unenforced
Illegal

See also countries that have legalized medical use of cannabis.

The legality of cannabis for medical and recreational

use varies by country, in terms of its possession,
distribution, and cultivation, and (in regards to
medical) how it can be consumed and what medical
conditions it can be used for. These policies in most
countries are regulated by the United Nations Single
Convention on Narcotic Drugs that was ratified in
1961, along with the 1971 Convention on
Psychotropic Substances and the 1988 Convention
against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances.[1][2]

The use of cannabis for recreational purposes is

prohibited in most countries; however, many have
adopted a policy of decriminalization to make simple
possession a non-criminal offense (often similar to a
minor traffic violation). Others have much more
severe penalties such as some Asian and Middle
Eastern countries where possession of even small
amounts is punished by imprisonment for several
years.[3] Countries that have legalized recreational
cannabis are Canada, Georgia, South Africa, and
Uruguay, plus eleven states and the District of
Columbia in the United States and the Australian
Capital Territory in Australia. Legality varies in these
countries and subnational jurisdictions when it
comes to commercial sale. A policy of limited
enforcement has also been adopted in many
countries, in particular Spain and the Netherlands
where the sale of cannabis is tolerated at licensed
establishments.[4][5]

Countries that have legalized the medical use of

cannabis include Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile,
Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Israel,
Italy, Jamaica, Lithuania, Luxembourg, North
Macedonia, Norway, the Netherlands, New Zealand,
Peru, Poland, Switzerland, and Thailand. Others
have more restrictive laws that only allow the use of
certain cannabis-derived pharmaceutical drugs,
such as Sativex, Marinol, or Epidiolex.[6] In the
United States, 33 states and the District of Columbia
have legalized the medical use of cannabis, but at
the federal level its use remains prohibited for any
purpose.[7]

By country

See also

References

Last edited 22 hours ago by Redsparta

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Cannabis in Uruguay

Timeline of cannabis law

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