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New York Post
9 hours ago
- Health
- New York Post
Thailand banning cannabis sales without a prescription 3 years after decriminalization
Thailand is further tightening control of cannabis by banning sales of the plant to those without prescriptions. Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis in 2022, in a move that boosted Thailand's tourism and farming, and spawned thousands of shops. But the country has faced public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. 5 Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis in 2022. REUTERS 5 The country has faced public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. AFP via Getty Images Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin signed an order Monday that bans shops from selling cannabis to customers without a prescription. It also seeks to reclassify cannabis buds as a controlled herb. Phanurat Lukboon, secretary-general of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, said Wednesday that his agency is ready to study and implement the change in regulations. The order did not detail any punishment for the violation. It will take effect when it is published in the Royal Gazette, although it was unclear when that would happen. The ruling Pheu Thai Party previously promised to criminalize the drug again, but faced strong resistance from its former partner in the coalition government, the Bhumjaithai Party, which supported the decriminalization. Bhumjaithai quit the coalition last week over a leaked phone call between Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. 5 Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin signed an order Monday that bans shops from selling cannabis to customers without a prescription. AP Somsak told reporters Tuesday that he would like to relist cannabis as a narcotic in the future. The move came after officials last month revealed that cannabis smuggling cases involving tourists had soared in recent months. Phanurat said that a study done by his agency last year found the number of people addicted to cannabis had spiked significantly after it was decriminalized. 5 It will take effect when it is published in the Royal Gazette, although it was unclear when that would happen. REUTERS 5 Somsak told reporters Tuesday that he would like to relist cannabis as a narcotic in the future. REUTERS Government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsab said in a statement Tuesday that the government ordered the Health Ministry to tighten control on sales of cannabis because 'many shops opened to sell cannabis both for recreational and medical purposes, allowing easy access for children and general people, which contradicts the government's purpose to crack down on drugs.' A group of cannabis advocates said Wednesday that the change in regulations was politically motivated. The group said they will rally at the Health Ministry next month to oppose the change and the attempt to make it a criminal offense again to consume or sell cannabis.
NDTV
11 hours ago
- Health
- NDTV
Thai Cannabis Shops Face Uncertainty As Government Plans Stricter Rules
Thai cannabis store owners and activists on Thursday hit out at new government plans to tighten the rules on selling the drug by requiring a doctor's approval, three years after it was decriminalised. The kingdom was the first country in Southeast Asia to decriminalise the drug when it removed cannabis from the list of banned narcotics in June 2022. The intention was to allow sales for medical rather than recreational use, but the move led to hundreds of cannabis "dispensaries" springing up around the country, particularly in Bangkok. While the relaxation has proved popular with some tourists, there are concerns that the trade is under-regulated. Health Minister Somsak Thepsuthin signed an order late on Tuesday requiring an on-site doctor to approve sales for medical reasons. The rule would only come into force once it is published in the official Royal Gazette. It is not clear when this would happen. Thanatat Chotiwong, a long-time cannabis activist and store owner, said it was "not fair" to suddenly change the rules on a sector that was now well established. "This is a fully-fledged industry -- not just growers selling flowers. There are lighting suppliers, construction crews, farmers, soil and fertiliser developers, and serious R&D," he told AFP. "Some of us have invested tens of millions of baht in greenhouses and infrastructure. Then suddenly, the government steps in to shut it all down." Thanatat urged the government instead to "implement proper taxation and regulation -- so this revenue can be returned to society in a meaningful way." 'Too few doctors' The government has made several previous announcements of plans to restrict cannabis, including legislation moved in February last year, but none has come to fruition. The new rules would mean cannabis could only be sold to customers for medical reasons, under the supervision of licensed professionals such as medical doctors, traditional Thai medicine doctors, folk healers or dentists. "It's going to work like this: customers come in, say what symptoms they have, and the doctor decides how many grams of cannabis is appropriate and which strain to prescribe," Kajkanit Sakdisubha, owner of The Dispensary cannabis shop in Bangkok, told AFP. "The choice is no longer up to the customer -- it's not like going to a restaurant and pick your favorite dish from a menu anymore." And he warned that many of the shops that had sprouted since decriminalisation would not be able to adapt to the changes. "The reality is there are too few doctors available. I believe that many entrepreneurs knew regulations were coming, but no one knew when," he said. While waiting for the rules to come into force, The Dispensary is halting cannabis sales as a precaution, store manager Bukoree Make said. "Customers themselves are unsure whether what they're doing is legal. I've been receiving a lot of calls," Poramat Jaikla, the lead seller or "budtender", told AFP. The cannabis move comes as the government led by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's Pheu Thai party is hanging by a thread after losing its main coalition partner, Bhumjaithai. Though conservative, the Bhumjaithai party has long supported more liberal laws on cannabis. The party quit the coalition this month in a row over a leaked phone call between Paetongtarn and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen.
Indian Express
12 hours ago
- Health
- Indian Express
3 years after decriminalization, Thailand bans cannabis sales without prescription
Thailand is further tightening control of cannabis by banning sales of the plant to those without prescriptions. Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalize cannabis in 2022, in a move that boosted Thailand's tourism and farming, and spawned thousands of shops. But the country has faced public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin signed an order Monday that bans shops from selling cannabis to customers without a prescription. It also seeks to reclassify cannabis buds as a controlled herb. Phanurat Lukboon, secretary-general of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, said Wednesday that his agency is ready to study and implement the change in regulations. The order will take effect when it is published in the Royal Gazette, although it was unclear when that would happen. The ruling Pheu Thai Party previously promised to criminalize the drug again, but faced strong resistance from its former partner in the coalition government, the Bhumjaithai Party, which supported the decriminalization. Bhumjaithai quit the coalition last week over a leaked phone call between Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. Somsak told reporters Tuesday that he would like to relist cannabis as a narcotic in the future. The move came after officials last month revealed that cannabis smuggling cases involving tourists had soared in recent months. Phanurat said that a study done by his agency last year found the number of people addicted to cannabis had spiked significantly after it was decriminalized. Government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsab said in a statement Tuesday that the government ordered the Health Ministry to tighten control on sales of cannabis because 'many shops opened to sell cannabis both for recreational and medical purposes, allowing easy access for children and general people, which contradicts the government's purpose to crack down on drugs.' A group of cannabis advocates said Wednesday that the change in regulations was politically motivated. The group said they will rally at the Health Ministry next month to oppose the change and the attempt to make it a criminal offense again to consume or sell cannabis.
Mint
16 hours ago
- Health
- Mint
Thailand makes U-turn on cannabis 3 years after decriminalisation, bans sale without prescription
Thailand is further tightening control of cannabis by banning sales of the plant to those without prescriptions. Thailand became the first country in Asia to decriminalise cannabis in 2022, in a move that boosted Thailand's tourism and farming, and spawned thousands of shops. But the country has faced public backlash over allegations that under-regulation has made the drug available to children and caused addiction. Health Minister Somsak Thepsutin signed an order Monday that bans shops from selling cannabis to customers without a prescription. It also seeks to reclassify cannabis buds as a controlled herb. Phanurat Lukboon, secretary-general of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, said on Wednesday that his agency is ready to study and implement the change in regulations. The order will take effect when it is published in the Royal Gazette, although it was unclear when that would happen. The ruling Pheu Thai Party previously promised to criminalise the drug again, but faced strong resistance from its former partner in the coalition government, the Bhumjaithai Party, which supported the decriminalisation. Bhumjaithai quit the coalition last week over a leaked phone call between Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra and former Cambodian leader Hun Sen. Somsak told reporters Tuesday that he would like to relist cannabis as a narcotic in the future. The move came after officials last month revealed that cannabis smuggling cases involving tourists had soared in recent months. Phanurat said that a study done by his agency last year found the number of people addicted to cannabis had spiked significantly after it was decriminalised. Government spokesperson Jirayu Houngsab said in a statement Tuesday that the government ordered the Health Ministry to tighten control on sales of cannabis because 'many shops opened to sell cannabis both for recreational and medical purposes, allowing easy access for children and general people, which contradicts the government's purpose to crack down on drugs'. A group of cannabis advocates said Wednesday that the change in regulations was politically motivated. The group said they will rally at the Health Ministry next month to oppose the change and the attempt to make it a criminal offense again to consume or sell cannabis. Disclaimer: This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed. Key Takeaways Thailand's cannabis regulations are tightening due to rising addiction rates. The government aims to balance public health concerns with tourism and economic benefits. Political motivations are driving the debate over cannabis regulation in Thailand.
Time Out
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Time Out
Thailand kills the high on recreational weed
Those jasmine scented cannabis cafes, street cool parlours and puff bar sanctuaries that bloomed post 2022 just received their death warrant overnight. On 25 June 2025, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's cabinet delivered the final blow when Minister Somsak Thepsutin's signature hit the Royal Gazette, officially ending the 2022 liberalisation that had pulled cannabis from narcotics lists. Now the billion-dollar lifeline that once throbbed through Bangkok's backstreets and neon arteries bleeds slow and tourism now bleeds out under the weight of this regulation amounts to aesthetic assassination. Cannabis flowers now carry the 'controlled herb' label. That means if you want to research, grow, trade or export, there's a licensing tango to navigate under the Traditional Medicine Wisdom Act – source tracking, timestamps, quantities and monthly data drop offs. Public sales can be said to be extinct. No vending machine shelves, no online herb dispensaries, no ads allowed, everything's off limits. Though Bangkok's dispensaries are finding loopholes in white coats, they might soon be playing the game with pharmacists on the payroll. Now only licensed medical doctors, Thai traditional healers and Chinese medicine practitioners can prescribe it and only in measurable doses for up to 30 days at a time. Soon scoring a joint in Thailand will mean navigating the same bureaucratic maze as getting antibiotics. The hope is to shift cannabis from a vacation thrill to clinical calm, from party accessory to medical necessity. The activists called it: this industry has always been hostage to backdoor deals not supply and demand. Their push for cannabis freedom normalised teen access and rising addiction rates became the very ammunition used against the decision. While regulators sterilise the vibe in the name of protecting minors and cutting smuggling routes, it does affect Thailand's most intoxicating export. The internet's loudest question right now: will Thailand's cannabis renaissance revive itself, or is this the moment the high finally crashes flat, silent, done?
