Here Is What Tourist Must Know About Weed in Thailand Under New 2024 Proposals
Just 18 months after Thailand opened the floodgates by legalizing marijuana, the country’s new conservative government is trying to shut them down.
Neon plant signs are a common sight in busy tourist areas of Bangkok, and shops are everywhere. Hundreds of food and beverage vendors advertise marijuana products.
But this may change with new strategies to regulate marijuana use and limit its use for medical purposes.
Reason Behind Changing The Cannabis Rule So Soon in Thailand
Thailand welcomed new leaders in September, following elections last May. The government’s health committee, led by the Pheu Thai Party, has called for a crackdown on cannabis, which has been poorly regulated since it was legalised.
The Pheu Thai Party has announced a campaign to ban recreational marijuana use, saying it carries health risks and could lead to drug addiction among young people.
The former military government’s health minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, who oversaw cannabis laws, has been promoted to another ministry. He is the leader of the Bhumjaithai Party, which is part of the new coalition government.
Supporting the legalization of marijuana in 2022, he said it would ease overcrowding in Thai prisons and help revive the rural economy.
More than 3,000 people imprisoned on marijuana charges were released that day following the legalization of marijuana. The country’s plant industry is worth 28 billion baht (728 million euros) per year and is expected to reach 336 billion baht (8.7 billion euros) by 2030.
But Anutin has since told CNN that he has never supported recreational use. He said marijuana focuses on health and drug use.
Since the legalization of marijuana, more than 1.1 million Thais have registered to apply for a marijuana cultivation license and more than 6,000 weed clinics have popped up across the country. There is a lot of bad governance in the country.
This has also led to a boom in the cannabis industry, and many people worry that it will be difficult for this business to exist.
Punishment For Using Cannabis in Thailand
Before Thailand legalized marijuana in June 2022, the united states had some of the maximum restrictive legal guidelines within the global.
Possession of cannabis may want to land you in prison for up to fifteen years, inclusive of Bang Kwang Central Prison – grimy, crowded Hotel named “Bangkok Hilton” after an Australian television series described the irony of the Bangkok Hilton. “This is also a prime obstacle for travelers.
The government is currently expecting public touch upon a invoice that might ban leisure marijuana use and reclassify it as managed marijuana.
Fine for leisure deplete to 60,000 baht (€1,560) first-rate and as much as twelve months in prison. A quality of up to 100,000 baht (€2,six hundred) is also proposed for advertising or marketing leisure marijuana.
Unauthorized cultivation, 1 to a few years in prison or 20,000 to three hundred,000 baht (520 to 520 euro 7,780)
Rules for retail and domestic cultivation of cannabis are uncertain.
Public comments at the bill could be frequent later this month.
The draft nonetheless desires to be authorized via the government earlier than being offered to the Thai House of Representatives.
Can tourists still smoke weed in Thailand?
Marijuana stores in Bangkok and someplace else stay open as Thailand awaits the outcomes of the changes.
However, some legal guidelines have been installed place to limit the use of marijuana. Smoking or vaping is against the law in public regions. “Public nuisance” (e.G. Due to the smell of the plant) will result in a nice of 25,000 baht (€650).
The definition of what constitutes “concern” is vague and can without difficulty be used by the police. Police in Bangkok are recognised to clamp down and crack down on vacationers who break the regulation.
Chemicals containing more than 0.2% THC are nevertheless prison as narcotics, but some stores sell stronger ones, that can motive troubles for customers except they have clinical approval.
The audience turned into also reminded that marijuana is still unlawful in neighboring countries and could no longer be transported across borders. Singapore has a number of the strictest laws in the international and can arrest citizens who use capsules overseas just as they could at domestic.
