Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health recently proposed a new bill to regulate the use of cannabis, restricting it to health and medical purposes only. This approach to the cannabis industry is more lenient compared to the re-criminalization plans proposed in May under former Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin. In particular, the new bill allows the use of cannabis and its extracts for medical treatment, research by state agencies, herbal remedies, food items, and cosmetics. Furthermore, the legislation has omitted a previous clause that explicitly bans the recreational use of cannabis, thus effectively ruling out plans to re-classify the plant as a “narcotic” under Thailand’s narcotics law. Nevertheless, the legal repercussions for those who fail to abide remain steep. Under the new bill, anyone who consumes cannabis and its extracts outside of permitted use in the bill can be fined up to 60,000 THB (over 1,800 USD), and sellers for use not permitted by the bill can face a maximum one-year jail term or 100,000 baht in fines, or both.
In its efforts to regulate the cannabis industry, the bill also outlines licensing rules for growers, suppliers, and related businesses. The licensing regulation details the cultivation, production, import, export, sale, and marketing of the plant. This concerns the industry of over 9,400 cannabis dispensaries nationwide, especially following the country’s decriminalization of recreational use in 2022. To enforce the new regulations, a new “Cannabis and Hemp Committee” will be formed. The Ministry is seeking public comments until September 30 before submitting to the cabinet, where it is expected to go through more changes. Under the current law, products of cannabis and its extract must not exceed 0.2% tetrahydrocannabinol in content.
