Has Thailand's Cannabis and Hemp Act passed?

No. As of July 2026, the Cannabis and Hemp Act (พ.ร.บ. กัญชา กัญชง) has not passed into law. It cleared an earlier reading but stalled and never completed its remaining parliamentary stages. The Ministry of Public Health ran a formal public consultation from 22 April to 21 May 2026, and the draft is now in a pre-parliament phase. Until it passes, ministerial regulations and existing law govern cannabis in Thailand.

What governs cannabis in Thailand while the Act is unpassed?

A patchwork of instruments governs in the interim: Ministry of Public Health notifications, ministerial regulations issued in 2025 and 2026, the Protection and Promotion of Thai Traditional Medicine Knowledge Act B.E. 2542 (which classifies cannabis flower as a controlled herb), and the Narcotics Code (which still covers cannabis extracts above 0.2% THC). There is no single unified cannabis statute in force.

When will the Cannabis and Hemp Act become law?

No firm date exists. Officials have signalled a target of passage before the end of 2026, but the timeline is uncertain and has slipped before. The bill still has to complete its remaining parliamentary readings after the April to May 2026 consultation. Treat any specific date as provisional until parliament acts.

Will the Act change the current rules for operators?

Likely yes. If passed, the Act would supersede the current ministerial regulations and is expected to set statutory penalty levels, ownership rules, and export pathways in primary legislation rather than in ministerial notifications. Until then, operators must comply with the existing regulations, not with the draft bill's provisions.

Why does the unpassed Act matter to my cannabis business?

Because the rules you must follow today come from ministerial regulations that can change quickly and that the Act may replace. Planning a licence, a lease, or an investment on the assumption that the draft Act's terms will become law is risky. Build to the regulations in force now, and track the bill so you are ready to adjust when it moves.

Cannabis & Hemp Act Tracker: Where Thailand’s Law Stands (2026)

As of 8 July 2026, Thailand still has no standalone cannabis law in force. The Cannabis and Hemp Act (พ.ร.บ. กัญชา กัญชง) would be Thailand’s first dedicated cannabis statute, but it has not passed. It cleared an earlier parliamentary reading, then stalled, and never completed its remaining stages. Until it does, cannabis in Thailand is governed by a patchwork of ministerial regulations and existing law. This is the page to bookmark and check before you make any licensing, leasing, or investment decision.

This tracker explains exactly where the bill sits, how it got here, what governs in the meantime, and what should change if and when it passes. For the wider legal picture, see our Thailand cannabis law hub.

Status at a Glance

Item	Current status (July 2026)
Standalone Cannabis and Hemp Act	Not passed; no unified statute in force
Stage	Post public consultation, pre-parliament
Public consultation	Held 22 April to 21 May 2026 (Ministry of Public Health)
Governing framework meanwhile	Ministerial regulations, MoPH notifications, Traditional Medicine Act, Narcotics Code
Stated passage target	Before end of 2026 (uncertain, has slipped before)
What passage would do	Supersede current ministerial regulations; set statutory penalties, ownership, and export rules

The Short Answer

There is no Cannabis and Hemp Act yet. The bill is real and active, but it is a draft, not law. The rules that bind operators and consumers today come from ministerial regulations and from two older statutes, not from this Act. Anyone telling you that the Act’s provisions are “the law” is describing a proposal, not the current legal position.

Where the Bill Sits Right Now

The draft Act completed a formal public consultation run by the Ministry of Public Health from 22 April to 21 May 2026. After a consultation, a Thai bill still has to move through its remaining parliamentary readings before it can be enacted and published in the Royal Gazette. That has not happened.

Officials have indicated they would like passage before the end of 2026. Treat that as an aspiration, not a commitment. Thailand has signalled a move to a comprehensive cannabis statute more than once since 2022 without completing it, so the safe planning assumption is that the current regulatory framework remains in force for the foreseeable future.

Timeline: How Thailand Got Here

Understanding the sequence matters, because each step left a regulation that is still doing the work the Act was meant to do.

2018 to February 2019 — Medical legalisation

An amendment to the Narcotic Act legalised cannabis for medical and research purposes, the first major liberalisation and the legal foundation everything since has built on.

January to June 2022 — Decriminalisation

In January 2022 the Narcotics Control Board approved removing cannabis and hemp from the Category 5 narcotics list. On 9 June 2022 that removal took formal effect, making Thailand the first Asian country to decriminalise cannabis. No standalone Act followed to fill the gap.

2022 to 2024 — The grey-market boom

More than 18,000 shops opened under fragmented and largely unenforced rules. With no dedicated statute, oversight was thin. The government began signalling a return to a medical-only model as early as January 2024.

26 June 2025 — Recriminalisation to medical-only

The Ministry of Public Health reclassified cannabis flower as a controlled herb and required a prescription for purchase. Recreational sale and advertising were banned. This is the pivot that created today’s compliance regime. For what “controlled herb” actually means in practice, see our controlled herb framework guide.

December 2025 to January 2026 — Clinic-standard rules

Tighter operational rules took effect: a certified practitioner on-site during all operating hours, plus odour, smoke, and storage controls.

March to April 2026 — Extract regulation and clinic conversion

A ministerial regulation on cannabis and hemp extracts (Category 5 narcotics) was published on 26 March 2026 and took effect 26 April 2026, limiting extracts to four purposes. In April the government also announced a policy to convert remaining dispensaries into regulated medical establishments over a three-year transition.

30 April 2026 — Ministerial Regulation No. 2 B.E. 2569

Published in the Royal Gazette (Vol. 143, Part 28 ก), this regulation set the current licensing criteria for study, research, export, sale, and processing of controlled herbs, including cannabis flower.

22 April to 21 May 2026 — Public consultation on the Act

The Ministry of Public Health ran its formal consultation on the draft Cannabis and Hemp Act. This is the most recent concrete step and the reason the bill is back in the news.

What Governs Cannabis While the Act Is Unpassed

In the absence of the Act, four sources of law do the governing. Operators must comply with all of them, not with the draft bill.

Ministry of Public Health notifications — including the notification that designates cannabis flower a controlled herb.
Ministerial regulations (2025 to 2026) — clinic standards, the extract regulation, and Ministerial Regulation No. 2 B.E. 2569.
Protection and Promotion of Thai Traditional Medicine Knowledge Act B.E. 2542 (1999) — the statute under which cannabis flower is classified and licensed as a controlled herb.
The Narcotics Code (formerly the Narcotic Act B.E. 2522) — still governs cannabis and hemp extracts above 0.2% THC as Category 5 narcotics.

This is a hybrid framework, and it is genuinely more complex than a single statute would be. The two-track split, flower under traditional-medicine law and high-THC extract under narcotics law, is the single most misunderstood point, and it is where compliance mistakes happen.

What Should Change If the Act Passes

If parliament passes the Cannabis and Hemp Act, it is expected to:

Supersede the current ministerial regulations with a single primary statute.
Set penalty levels in law rather than in ministerial notifications.
Establish clearer ownership rules and export pathways.
Provide a more stable, harder-to-change legal foundation than the current regulation-by-notification approach.

None of this is guaranteed until the final text is enacted. Draft provisions can and do change between consultation and passage. Do not build a business plan on the current draft wording.

Why This Matters to Operators

The practical takeaway for anyone running or planning a cannabis business in Thailand is straightforward:

Comply with the regulations in force today, not with the draft Act. The rules that can shut you down come from the current ministerial framework.
Do not assume the draft’s terms will become law. Fees, ownership limits, and licence types in the bill may change before passage.
Watch this space. When the Act moves, licence conditions and penalties may shift, and you will need to adjust quickly.

For the compliance obligations that apply right now, see our business and licensing guidance. For how penalties are structured under the current framework, see our Thailand cannabis penalties guide.

What We Could Not Independently Confirm

In the interest of honesty on a fast-moving legal topic, note the following. The exact reading history and current bill number of the draft Act could not be pinned to a primary parliamentary record at the time of writing. The end-of-2026 passage target is a stated intention, not a fixed legislative date. This page will be updated as the bill progresses. It is general information, not legal advice; confirm your specific position with a qualified Thai legal professional before acting.

Cannabis & Hemp Act Tracker (2026): Where the Law Stands