{"id":19644,"date":"2025-07-12T17:48:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-12T16:48:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/?p=19644"},"modified":"2025-07-12T17:48:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-12T16:48:15","slug":"thailand-to-ban-recreational-cannabis-three-years-after-decriminalisation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/2025\/07\/thailand-to-ban-recreational-cannabis-three-years-after-decriminalisation\/","title":{"rendered":"Thailand to ban recreational cannabis three years after decriminalisation"},"content":{"rendered":"

itvx news – Tuesday 24 June 2025<\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Cannabis activists and entrepreneurs, hold cannabis plant as they march to Government House in Bangkok, Thailand in 2024.Credit:\u00a0AP<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\nThailand\u00a0is moving to pass new legislation banning cannabis for recreational use in a major reversal, three years after the country became the first in Asia to decriminalise the drug, local media reports.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

On Tuesday, Public Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin said he had signed an announcement limiting cannabis to medical use only, Bangkok news site Khaosod confirmed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under the changes, people wishing to purchase cannabis must have a doctor’s prescription and a medical certificate indicating their illness.<\/span><\/p>\n

Operators selling the drug will need to have a doctor present at the shop to renew or apply for a license to sell.<\/span><\/p>\n

Somsak also said that in the future, cannabis will return to being considered a narcotic.<\/span><\/p>\n

It is not clear when the regulation will take effect or when it will be re-listed.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nBanged up abroad: How many Brits are being arrested over alleged drug smuggling?<\/span><\/p>\n

Thailand to crack down on cannabis after smuggling cases involving UK tourists<\/span><\/p>\n

Is cannabis legal in Thailand?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Medical marijuana has been legal in Thailand since 2018, but decriminalisation in 2022 took things a step further, making it no longer a crime to grow and trade marijuana and hemp products, or to use any parts of the plant to treat illnesses.<\/span><\/p>\n

It was a rarity in the region where many countries give long jail terms and even death sentences for people convicted of marijuana possession, consumption or trafficking.<\/span><\/p>\n

Smoking marijuana in public remained illegal even under the relaxed laws.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nSubscribe free to\u00a0our weekly newsletter\u00a0for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning.<\/span><\/p>\n

\nWhat happened when cannabis was decriminalised?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The relaxed laws saw a lucrative cannabis industry catering to locals and foreigners alike boom across the Southeast Asian nation, with thousands of cannabis dispensaries sprouting up across Thailand, as well as other cannabis-themed businesses like weed cafes and hemp spas, and beauty treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cities like Chiang Mai and the capital Bangkok have even held weed festivals, and decriminalisation has been a major draw for tourists.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pro-legislation advocates have argued that the cannabis boom across Thailand has helped many Thais, from farmers to small business owners and workers behind the counter.<\/span><\/p>\n

Critics say the decriminalisation was rushed through, causing confusion about the regulations.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year, a new conservative government vowed to tighten the rules around the drug\u00a0after a string of alleged smuggling cases\u00a0involving tourists.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hundreds of British citizens are currently detained across the world, accused of narcotics smuggling offences.<\/span><\/p>\n

Prisoners Abroad – a charity assisting Britons who are arrested and detained overseas – told ITV News it is currently supporting 431 people around the globe who are facing drugs charges.<\/span><\/p>\n

This includes\u00a022 people in Thailand.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Source:\u00a0 https:\/\/www.itv.com\/news\/2025-06-24\/thailand-to-ban-recreational-cannabis-three-years-after-decriminalisation<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

itvx news – Tuesday 24 June 2025 Cannabis activists and entrepreneurs, hold cannabis plant as they march to Government House in Bangkok, Thailand in 2024.Credit:\u00a0AP Thailand\u00a0is moving to pass new legislation banning cannabis for recreational use in a major reversal, three years after the country became the first in Asia to decriminalise the drug, local […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,32,129,68,12,60,20,40,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19644","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cannabis-marijuana","category-crime-violence-prison","category-culture","category-drug-use-various-effects","category-legal-sector","category-marijuana-and-medicine","category-others","category-prevention-research","category-treatment-addiction"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19644","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19644"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19644\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19644"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19644"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19644"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}