Thai government to reclassify marijuana as a narcotic, require permits for use

• Thailand plans to reclassify cannabis as a narcotic drug and issue licenses only for medical and research purposes.
• Prime Minister Sureta Tabisin recently announced a shift in policy, aiming to recriminalize cannabis by the end of the year.
• The new regulations will ban recreational use of cannabis and require a license for cultivation, export and possession.

Thailand plans to reclassify cannabis as a drug and issue permits only to those who cultivate and use it for medical and research purposes, Health Minister Somsak Thepstin said on social media on Thursday.

The comments follow a surprising policy reversal this month by Prime Minister Suretta Tabişin, who promised to re-criminalise cannabis by the end of the year, after it was decriminalised in 2022.

Mr Somsak said the new regulations would prohibit recreational use and require a permit for anyone growing, exporting or possessing it for medical or research purposes, but the details of the permitting process were still being worked out. .

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“The permit system must not impose an undue burden on the public,” he said in a Facebook post, adding that there would be a grace period for people to adjust.

Cannabis advocacy groups say the move undermines business confidence, as thousands of cannabis cafes and dispensaries will spring up after legalization and the industry is expected to be worth up to $1.2 billion by 2025. They are protesting against Sletta’s move.

Thailand has a long tradition of using marijuana to relieve pain and fatigue, and it is also used in traditional medicines and recipes.

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The Southeast Asian country was the first to legalize cannabis for research and medical use in 2018, and two years ago removed the plant from the country’s narcotics list, allowing people to cultivate, sell and consume it.