Cannabis legalization: what is known specifically about control, dispensing and cultivation

What are the main issues covered by the Cannabis Act?

Article 1 of the Cannabis Sales Act (CannG) concerns the creation of a new law for the controlled sale of cannabis. According to § 1 CannG, the aim of the law is to contribute to improved child, youth and health protection, to strengthen cannabis-related education and prevention and to curb the illegal market for cannabis. To protect consumers, the quality of cannabis should be controlled and the transfer of contaminated substances should be prevented.

This is to be implemented by the CannG, in particular through general regulations on health, child and youth protection and addiction prevention (Chapter 2 CannG). The draft law also contains special regulations on controlled private production (Chapter 3 Section 1 CannG), controlled joint production and sale in cultivation associations (Chapter 3 Section 2 CannG) and regarding cannabis for medical purposes (Chapter 4 CannG). Criminal penalties and fines are intended to ensure compliance with the provisions.

Articles 2-9 CannG relate to changes in various laws, in particular the Narcotics Act (BtMG). Medical cannabis is currently already legally regulated as a marketable narcotic and legal if the legal requirements are complied with.

What are the main changes resulting from the CannG in the field of medical cannabis?

The CannG prohibits cannabis with a THC content of more than 0.3 percent (ie plants, cannabis flowers and other plant parts, the secreted resin) as well as THC (the natural active substance group tetrahydrocannabinol in the plant and its naturally occurring isomers such as dronabinol as well as stereochemical variants ) removed from the scope of the BtMG and transferred to the CannG.

In the future, this will mean that medicinal cannabis can be classified as a medicinal product, but no longer as a narcotic. In practice, therefore, a prescription for the prescription of medicinal cannabis will no longer be necessary. As a result, prescriptions will be able to be redeemed for longer and cannabis would probably also be prescribable through e-prescriptions in the future. This is currently not possible for narcotics. In addition, § 5 Para. 2 CannG provides for an absolute ban on advertising cannabis. In contrast to the current legal situation due to the classification as a narcotic, in future a breach of this would only be punished as an administrative offense and would no longer constitute a criminal offence.

Apart from this, however, Chapter 4 CannG contains a number of legal provisions for medical cannabis, which largely correspond to those of the current legal situation (supply only by pharmacies on the basis of a prescription, necessary permits for import and export, recording and reporting obligations, etc.).

Who will be able to obtain cannabis in the future apart from medical cannabis and how exactly will this be handled?

Cannabis can be obtained from so-called cultivation associations (ie associations with legal capacity and registered in the register of associations based in Germany whose statutory purpose is exclusively the joint production and sale of cannabis for their own consumption to their members) for non-medical personal consumption. The prerequisite is membership in the cultivation association (only membership in one cultivation association is permitted), which in turn is reserved for people over the age of 18 who have their place of residence or habitual abode in Germany. The delivery is against payment and only permitted if the person making the donation and the member making the purchase are present in person. Ie the purchase for third parties as well as shipping and distance selling are prohibited. The amount is limited to 25 grams per day and up to 50 grams per month. In deviation from this, adolescents (18-21 years) may purchase a maximum of 30 grams per month and only with a maximum THC content of 10 percent. Cultivation associations are subject to strict regulations regarding control, documentation, security measures, etc.

What should be considered with regard to private self-cultivation?

The private cultivation of cannabis (ie the non-commercial production of a total of up to three female flowering plants per calendar year for the purpose of personal consumption) is permitted to persons aged 18 and over. Approved propagating material can only be purchased personally from cultivation associations (a maximum of seven seeds or five cuttings per month) or by adults from suppliers based outside Germany for the purpose of private cultivation. Adolescents may only acquire or obtain propagation material that, according to its biological properties, can have a maximum THC content of 10 percent in further development stages. In addition, special safety measures must be taken to protect children and young people, ie the plants and the harvested blossoms must be particularly protected from access by children and young people. If more than three female flowering plants per calendar year arise from the private cultivation of permitted propagating material, these must be destroyed.

Does this meet the goal of contributing to improved child, youth and health protection?

Since the present draft of the CannG is currently being coordinated by the ministries involved, it must first be awaited which changes may result from this and which precise regulations the draft law finally contains. The federal government will have to be measured by whether the CannG will actually contribute to improved child, youth and health protection in the future. However, only time will tell.

A few details remain unresolved. One issue is the exact pricing and, if any, implications of different prices and price ranges for cannabis flower between growers’ associations. The practical implementation of controls for the purpose of protecting children and young people in the private sector is still unclear. Also regarding. of health protection, it is questionable whether, in the future, patients who have been prescribed medicinal cannabis but are not reimbursed will still purchase the prescribed medicinal cannabis from a pharmacy by paying for themselves or whether they will resort to (possibly cheaper) cannabis from their cultivation association. The quality assurance of medical cannabis is very strictly regulated and even if the purchase from cultivation associations is only permitted for non-medical purposes, its quality is difficult and expensive to control. In such a case, the achievement of the goal of health protection would be at least doubtful.