In June 2022, Thailand took the cannabis plant off its narcotics list. Extracts above 0.2% THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the main intoxicating compound) stayed controlled. Cannabis also became a âcontrolled herbâ under Thailandâs traditional medicine Act of B.E. 2542 (1999). No cannabis Act was ever passed. So ministers could change the rules with a new notification, and in June 2025 they did. This part explains what changed from June 2025 to today.
Thai law uses Buddhist Era (B.E.) years. To get the Western year, subtract 543. For example, B.E. 2568 is 2025.
Translatorâs note: This article covers Thai law only. If you live in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia or elsewhere in Southeast Asia, see Cannabis Laws Across Asia and Key Global Markets â 2026 Update for your country.
This is Part 2. Part 1: Thailand's Cannabis Rules, 2022 to 2026: From the Narcotics List to Controlled Herb (Part 1 of 2)
Who the sources are
- Tilleke & Gibbins, Herrera & Partners and Silk Legal: law firms based in Bangkok, Thailand, that publish English summaries of the June 2025 rules. Tilleke & Gibbins also has offices elsewhere in Southeast Asia.
- FOSR Law (Formichella & Sritawat): a Bangkok-based law firm that has described how the rules are being enforced and tightened.
- Wikipedia: the online encyclopedia, used for background.
- Hfocus (hfocus.org): a Thai news website on the health system, which reported on the public consultation for the draft Act.
- Thai PBS: Thailandâs public broadcaster.
- An unnamed explainer: an English-language website on Thai cannabis rules, up to date as of July 2026. The original article does not name it. Where it is the only source for a figure, that figure is marked as unconfirmed.
- The Royal Gazette (āļĢāļēāļāļāļīāļāļāļēāļāļļāđāļāļāļĐāļē): the official government publication where a rule must be printed before it takes effect. The Thai text of the June 2025 notification was read directly there.
1. June 2025: Flower Becomes Prescription-Only
One notification, three English names
Three law firms give it three English names:
- âNotification on Controlled Herbs (Cannabis) 2025â (Tilleke & Gibbins)
- âMinisterial Announcement on Controlled Herbal Medicine (Cannabis), B.E. 2568â (Herrera & Partners)
- No formal name at all (Silk Legal, which says it was issued under the 1999 traditional medicine Act)
All three describe a notification, not an Act. The Thai title is āļāļĢāļ°āļāļēāļĻāļāļĢāļ°āļāļĢāļ§āļāļŠāļēāļāļēāļĢāļāļŠāļļāļ āđāļĢāļ·āđāļāļ āļŠāļĄāļļāļāđāļāļĢāļāļ§āļāļāļļāļĄ (āļāļąāļāļāļē) āļ.āļĻ. 2568. There is no official English name. This article calls it âthe June 2025 notificationâ.
The dates, taken from the Royal Gazette
- Signed: 23 June 2025, by the Minister of Public Health.
- Published: 25 June 2025, in the Royal Gazette, Vol. 142, Special Part 229 āļ (Ngor).
- In force: 26 June 2025. Clause 1, the first numbered clause of the notification, starts it the day after publication.
These are three separate moments. That is why summaries that give only one date disagree with each other. Silk Legal gives 24 June, and Tilleke & Gibbins gives 26 June as an âissue dateâ. Each source has mixed up one of these moments with another. Herrera & Partners heads one section âMedical Prescription Requirement Effective 1 July 2025â. No other source used here gives that date, so treat it as unconfirmed.
What to do: In licence files, contracts and staff training, use 26 June 2025 as the date the notification took effect. If a document gives 1 July 2025 for the prescription requirement, note that only Herrera & Partners gives that date.
The prescription: form, format and who may write it
According to Tilleke & Gibbins, a sale is lawful only when the buyer âduly presents a cannabis prescription issued by one of seven recognized professional practitioners.â Tilleke & Gibbins says doctors should issue it on paper, on the official PT 33 form. The notification does not mention teleconsultation, but policymakers reportedly see a prescription sent by chat, social media or email as non-compliant. A medical doctor should work in a clinic or hospital to issue it.
The form is called PT 33 (āļ .āļ.33) by Tilleke & Gibbins and âPhor.Thor.33â by Silk Legal. Herrera & Partners describes it as âthe official template issued by DTAMâ. DTAM is the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (āļāļĢāļĄāļāļēāļĢāđāļāļāļĒāđāđāļāļāđāļāļĒāđāļĨāļ°āļāļēāļĢāđāļāļāļĒāđāļāļēāļāđāļĨāļ·āļāļ).
The seven groups of practitioners allowed to prescribe are:
- Medical doctors
- Thai traditional medicine doctors
- Applied Thai traditional medicine doctors
- Folk healers
- Chinese medicine practitioners
- Pharmacists
- Dentists
Wikipediaâs shorter summary leaves out folk healers and applied Thai traditional medicine doctors.
Quantity and duration
Tilleke & Gibbins and Herrera & Partners both say a prescription covers at most 30 days. Tilleke & Gibbins adds that each prescription can be used only once, with no refills. The prescriber can specify the strain or product type, the dose and the duration.
The unnamed explainer also mentions a limit of 30 grams per month. None of the law-firm sources mentions a weight limit, so treat this figure as unconfirmed.
Flower must come from certified farms
According to Tilleke & Gibbins, flower that is sold or exported must come from a site certified under Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP). GACP is a standard for how medicinal plants are grown, harvested and handled.
Tilleke & Gibbins gives these details:
- A certificate is valid for one to three years.
- The site is under annual surveillance.
- Inspectors check soil, water, pesticides, hygiene and how the crop is handled after harvest.
- The farm must keep seed-to-sale records: a paper trail for each batch, from seed or clone to final sale.
Silk Legal calls the same requirement âGood Agricultural and Harvesting Practices (GAP)â. Herrera & Partners does not name a scheme. The Tilleke & Gibbins wording matches a term from a European Medicines Agency guideline. That agency regulates medicines in the European Union, and the guideline covers the raw plant material used to make herbal medicines. It is still unclear whether Thailandâs scheme is that EU standard or a Thai version of it.
Translatorâs note: If you plan to sell flower legally, start keeping records as an auditor would read them, even before you apply. Try it on one small batch first. For that batch, record the seed or clone source, every input with its date and amount, harvest weight, drying and storage conditions, and the buyer. That shows you where your records have gaps before a real audit finds them. Pesticides deserve special care. Use only products registered with the Department of Agriculture (āļāļĢāļĄāļ§āļīāļāļēāļāļēāļĢāđāļāļĐāļāļĢ), and use them as the label says. See What You May Legally Spray Under Thai GACP.
Records, inspection and penalties
According to Tilleke & Gibbins, dispensaries must keep every prescription for at least one year. They must show prescriptions to DTAM or the police when asked. A failure to check a buyerâs identity can lead to licence suspension. Prescribers must keep their diagnostic evidence so that prescriptions can be cross-checked.
The penalties differ by source:
- Tilleke & Gibbins: up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 20,000 baht for a dispensary that does not comply.
- Herrera & Partners: up to one year in prison, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both. Herrera & Partners adds that false reporting may lead to charges of forging documents, with up to three years in prison, a fine of up to 60,000 baht, or both.
- The unnamed explainer: applies the same figures to selling without a licence under the traditional medicine Act.
- Silk Legal: gives no penalty figures.
Translatorâs note: The penalty in section 78 of the 1999 traditional medicine Act is up to one year in prison, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both. This matches the Herrera & Partners wording.
2. What the June 2025 Notification Did Not Do
- It did not put cannabis back on the narcotics list. Silk Legal says cannabis has ânot yet been returned to the narcotics listâ. Tilleke & Gibbins describes control through prescriptions, not a ban. Wikipedia says recreational use âtechnically remained decriminalized.â
- It did not cover the whole plant. According to Herrera & Partners, it controls flowers only. Other parts, such as leaves and stems, remain general herbal medicine.
- It did not move the 0.2% line. Wikipediaâs entry on the legality of cannabis says products over 0.2% âwere legal before 2025â and ânow require a prescriptionâ.
- It did not create a cannabis Act. It is a notification. Just as in 2022, there is still no cannabis Act.
- It did not cancel existing licences. FOSR Law says those licences stayed valid for the time being. Renewal became âthe compliance bottleneckâ, because retail-style shops âmay not qualify as clinics.â
Wikipedia records that Somsak Thepsuthin, then Minister of Public Health, âpledged to push for further restrictions and a possible reclassificationâ of cannabis as a narcotic. A pledge does not change the law. Only a new instrument would.
3. Early 2026: Two Ministerial Regulations
Two new instruments came into force in early 2026. They are separate from the June 2025 notification. Both are ministerial regulations (āļāļāļāļĢāļ°āļāļĢāļ§āļ), not notifications (āļāļĢāļ°āļāļēāļĻ). A ministerial regulation is a different type of legal instrument, with different legal weight. For a fuller explanation, see Thailandâs Two Ministerial Regulations of B.E. 2569.
Ministerial Regulation on Cannabis or Hemp Extracts B.E. 2569. It was published in the Royal Gazette on 26 March 2026 and took effect on 26 April 2026. It covers licences to produce cannabis or hemp extracts above 0.2% THC by weight. Only three kinds of applicant can hold such a licence:
- Thai juristic persons (registered companies and other legal entities) that are not âforeignâ under the Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542
- Government bodies and agencies
- The Thai Red Cross Society
A company in which foreigners hold half or more of the shares counts as âforeignâ under that Act, so it does not qualify.
Ministerial Regulation on Controlled Herbs (No. 2) B.E. 2569. It took effect on 30 April 2026. It tightens the licence conditions for cannabis flower, on top of the requirements set by the June 2025 notification.
Both regulations are in force. Neither one is the draft Cannabis Control Act (formerly the draft Cannabis and Hemp Act), which has still not passed.
Translatorâs note: Some investors and partners from Vietnam and elsewhere in the region hold shares in Thai companies. If your company has foreign shareholders and plans to make extracts above 0.2% THC, ask a Thai lawyer to check whether it counts as âforeignâ under the Foreign Business Act. Do this before you buy equipment or sign a lease.
4. Timeline
| Date | Instrument or event | Source |
|---|---|---|
| B.E. 2477 (Wikipedia: 1935; the usual conversion gives 1934) | Cannabis Act makes the plant a crime | Wikipedia |
| B.E. 2522 (1979) | Narcotics Act makes it a crime again | Wikipedia |
| 2018 | Medical cannabis allowed with a prescription | Wikipedia |
| Dec 2021 | Narcotics Code B.E. 2564 takes effect and replaces the 1979 Act | Nishimura & Asahi (law firm) |
| 8â9 Feb 2022 | Category 5 narcotics list notification issued, then published | Nishimura & Asahi |
| 8 Jun 2022 | House agrees in principle to draft Cannabis and Hemp Act, 373 votes to 7 | Thai PBS |
| About 9 Jun 2022 | Removal from narcotics list takes effect, 120 days after publication | Nishimura & Asahi |
| 14â15 Jun 2022 | Nuisance notification on smoke and odour | Nishimura & Asahi |
| 16 Jun 2022 | Controlled-herb notification under the 1999 traditional medicine Act | Nishimura & Asahi |
| 2022 to 2024 | Rules set by ministerial instruments, no cannabis Act | FOSR Law |
| 23 Jun 2025 | June 2025 notification signed | Herrera & Partners; Silk Legal |
| 25 Jun 2025 | Published in the Royal Gazette, Vol. 142, Special Part 229 āļ | Royal Gazette |
| 26 Jun 2025 | In force, the day after publication (Clause 1) | Royal Gazette |
| 1 Jul 2025 | Prescription requirement starts, according to one law firm (not confirmed elsewhere) | Herrera & Partners |
| Sep 2025 | Anutin Charnvirakul, a Thai politician, becomes prime minister | Wikipedia |
| Dec 2025 | Further tightening reported as approved | FOSR Law |
| 26 Mar 2026 | Ministerial Regulation on Cannabis or Hemp Extracts B.E. 2569 published | Royal Gazette |
| 26 Apr 2026 | Ministerial Regulation on Cannabis or Hemp Extracts B.E. 2569 takes effect | Royal Gazette |
| 30 Apr 2026 | Ministerial Regulation on Controlled Herbs (No. 2) B.E. 2569 takes effect | Royal Gazette |
| 22 Apr to 1 Jul 2026 | Draft Cannabis Control Act (formerly the Cannabis and Hemp Act): public consultation in two phases (22 Apr to 21 May and 2 Jun to 1 Jul), followed by a short catch-up round | Hfocus |
| 22 Sep 2026 | Cabinet approves the draft and sends it to the House; not yet law | Thai PBS |
5. Where Things Stand in 2026
| Question | Answer | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Is cannabis a narcotic again? | No | Settled |
| Is flower prescription-only? | Yes | Settled |
| Is a cannabis Act in force? | No | Settled |
| What governs flower sales? | A ministerial notification | Settled |
| When did the 2025 notification take effect? | 26 June 2025 | Settled by the Royal Gazette |
| What is its formal name? | āļāļĢāļ°āļāļēāļĻāļāļĢāļ°āļāļĢāļ§āļāļŠāļēāļāļēāļĢāļāļŠāļļāļ āđāļĢāļ·āđāļāļ āļŠāļĄāļļāļāđāļāļĢāļāļ§āļāļāļļāļĄ (āļāļąāļāļāļē) āļ.āļĻ. 2568 | Settled in Thai; no official English name |
| Is there a weight limit on possession? | Only one source says so | Unconfirmed |
| The two B.E. 2569 ministerial regulations | Licensing for extracts and for flower; in force | Confirmed |
| Draft Cannabis Control Act (formerly the Cannabis and Hemp Act) | Approved by Cabinet on 22 Sep 2026; waiting for the House | Drafted, not law |
| Reclassification as a narcotic | A pledge only | Announced, not law |
FOSR Law adds that from December 2025, the rules moved towards a medical-clinic model. Shops report sales through point-of-sale systems so that products can be traced. Use on the premises is limited to supervised patients. Formulations are controlled. FOSR Law does not name the instrument behind these changes. So this paragraph describes what FOSR Law reports, but it cannot be cited as law.
6. What This Means for Each Group of Readers
Patients
What changed: You need a paper prescription from one of the seven practitioner groups. It covers up to 30 days and cannot be refilled.
What to check: Is your prescriber based in a clinic or hospital? Is your form current?
What to do: Before each visit to a dispensary, check that your PT 33 is on paper and has not expired. Check what it says about the strain or product, the dose and the duration.
Home growers
What changed: Since 2022, growing has been based on registering your plants. None of the sources used here says home growing was banned in 2025.
What to check: Is your registration on record? Has your province added its own conditions?
What to do: Keep a printed copy of your registration with your grow records. Ask your provincial public health office (āļŠāļģāļāļąāļāļāļēāļāļŠāļēāļāļēāļĢāļāļŠāļļāļāļāļąāļāļŦāļ§āļąāļ) or your local authority whether your province has added conditions. Do not sell flower without a licence. Selling needs both a licence and a buyer with a PT 33 prescription.
Farms
What changed: You now need GACP certification and seed-to-sale records before you can sell or export flower.
What to check: Is your certification current? Are your audit records complete?
What to do: Run your own practice audit every few months, using the inspectorsâ list: soil, water, pesticides, hygiene, post-harvest handling and seed-to-sale records. Check that every pesticide in your store is registered with the Department of Agriculture and is used as the label says. This lets you find and fix gaps before the annual surveillance audit does.
Shops and dispensaries
What changed: You must check prescriptions, keep them for one year and show them on demand. Advertising is banned.
What to check: Can your premises and staff meet a clinic standard when your licence comes up for renewal?
What to do: Write down your renewal date. List what your shop lacks compared with a clinic, such as an on-site prescriber or a consultation room. Ask the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (DTAM), which approves cannabis flower licences under the 2026 regulation, what it will check at renewal. For more detail, see Running a Cannabis Dispensary in Thailand Without Losing Your License and The Blank Prescription Problem.
Visitors
What changed: Flower may be sold only on a Thai PT 33 prescription. Smoking in public is a nuisance offence. Taking cannabis out of the country is prohibited.
What to check: Are you relying on information from 2022 that no longer applies?
What to do: Read Tourist Must Know: Cannabis Rules for Visitors to Thailand before you travel. Do not pack any cannabis product when you leave Thailand.
7. Tell Us What You See Where You Are
These rules are written in notifications, and different places enforce them differently. This community includes patients, growers and shops in many provinces, and each of you may meet a different version of the same rule. Please post below this topic and tell us:
- how prescription checks are done at the counter;
- what GACP auditors ask for;
- whether your province has added conditions on using cannabis in public;
- whether licence renewals are judged against the clinic standard or the old retail standard.
The Royal Gazette text gives the title, dates and parent law of the June 2025 notification, and they are recorded above. The Gazette cannot show how the rule is applied at your counter. That is the part only you can report.
References
- Royal Gazette (āļĢāļēāļāļāļīāļāļāļēāļāļļāđāļāļāļĐāļē), Vol. 142, Special Part 229 āļ, 25 June 2025: Notification of the Ministry of Public Health Re: Controlled Herbs (Cannabis), B.E. 2568.
- Tilleke & Gibbins, summary of the June 2025 controlled-herb notification.
- Herrera & Partners, summary of the June 2025 controlled-herb notification.
- Silk Legal, summary of Thai cannabis rules.
- FOSR Law, summary of Thai cannabis rules and of the December 2025 tightening.
- Wikipedia, entries on cannabis in Thailand and on the legality of cannabis.
- Nishimura & Asahi, legal note on Thai cannabis rules (2022).
- Hfocus, report on the public consultation for the draft Cannabis Control Act (2026).
- Thai PBS, report on Cabinet approval of the draft Cannabis Control Act (22 September 2026).
- Unnamed English-language explainer on Thai cannabis rules (current to July 2026).
This article is part of the Asiannabis Community educational series on cannabis law and safety. It is general information, not legal advice. The rules have changed many times, so check the current position before you act. Content is for educational purposes within jurisdictions where cannabis is legally permitted.