As time marches on more and more of the world looks towards legalising cannabis. As we learn more about the medicinal advances in weed as well as understanding that legalising reduces crime, allows for quality control and taxation, more of the world’s governments are seeing the light. Today we are not only going to have a look through which parts of the planet have legalised but which have decriminalised and which are heading towards possible legalisation in 2021.
USA
Currently, cannabis is legal in 15 states, 2 territories in the District of Columbia. However, at a federal level, it is still very much not legal though a decriminalisation bill was passed in the federal government at the end of last year. Cannabis is fully legal for medical and recreational use in the following states:
- Washington
- Oregon
- Nevada
- California
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Colorado
- Illinois
- Michigan
- New York
- Maine
- Vermont
- Massachusetts
There are also several more states where it is legal for medicinal purposes, but overall the US is moving swiftly towards majority legalisation. A few states are looking like they may be moving towards legalisation this year, so watch that space.
Canada
The stunning country of Canada has had legal weed for quite a while now are were decency ahead of the curve. Canada was the second country to fully legalise marijuana. This included the cultivation, consumption, possession and distribution of products. Not only were they some of the first to legalise, but their cannabis industry and research into the economic, social and medical positives of weed are unrivalled. Of course, they still have restrictions in place when it comes to age, possession, promotion, serving sizes and any other issues which may cause legalisation to be unsafe. They also have a comprehensive public education programme to ensure that all citizens fully understand cannabis for its pros and its cons.
Spain
In Spain, the consumption of weed is legal in private spaces which include Cannabis Social Clubs is legal. However, the trafficking of cannabis is still very much illegal. This simply means that if you grow and smoke weed it must be privately and for private use, not for commercial use. There are over 700 Cannabis Social Clubs now in Spain where people can gather and smoke weed in what is technically designated a private space. As far as cannabis tourism is concerned we should remember that the definition of private space can be down to the discretion of the local police. If a tourist or group of tourists are making a nuisance of themselves while smoking it could still be possible for the police to decide that they are breaking the rules.
Georgia
Here of course I am referring to the Eastern European country rather than the American state. In Georgia, possession and consumption have been legal since mid-2018. However, much like some other legal countries, it is still illegal to sell and cultivate cannabis. Again consumption is only permitted in private spaces and never in the presence of minors. It is also legal for private citizens to grow a small amount of cannabis for their own use. Any large quantities of cannabis plants will usually be considered grown for distribution. This is a theme we see in a number of countries flirting with full legalisation to avoid any dangerous commercial growing.
South Africa
Cannabis in South Africa was decriminalised in 2018, meaning that as in many countries it is only for use in private spaces but does not have the comfort of being fully legal to consume. Anyone found consuming cannabis in a way that seems inappropriate can receive fines or prison time at the discretion of the authorities.
Who’s Next?
Mexico
This year, after a lot of effort and dealing with a variety of governmental issues, Mexico looks like it is on the verge of legalisation. This was meant to be decided in late 2019 but was postponed until last year. It was then pushed from April 2020 to December 2020 as a result of the Covid 19 outbreak. Eventually, a bill was passed through the senate that allows adults to carry up to 28 grams and to grow up to four plants. We are now just waiting for this bill to pass into law before Mexico officially becomes one of our legal weed countries. Right now it is looking like it will only be a few months until the law passes.
Luxembourg
Once again cannabis was due to be legalised in Luxembourg in 2020 but Covid 19 made sure that didn’t happen. Despite being so close to Amsterdam, argued to be the weed capital of the world, cannabis is still illegal in this beautiful part of Holland. They are planning to legalise the recreational use of cannabis with a two-year plan that was put into motion in 2019. The idea is to render the entire cannabis market legal, making it the first country in the EU to do so. Since that plan started in 2019 we can only hope that this will be the year for legalisation in Luxembourg.
Israel
Legalisation has been discussed in Isreal for a while and soon it will hopefully be legal for anyone over 21 to smoke weed. The bill was originally introduced last year with the parliament discussed both a bill to decriminalise and one to legalise. It will still be illegal to smoke in public spaces, but like a few other countries, private use will be permitted. The idea of legalising has come up before in Israel, so it is about time something concrete was done about it. A number of high up government officials and even the chairwoman of Blue and White MK of the Knesset’s Special Committee on Drug and Alcohol Use are firmly in favour of decriminalising and legalising cannabis as a form of substance control and ensuring the safety of their people when it comes to drug use.
The laws pertaining to cannabis are constantly changing, and it’s always a good idea to keep an eye out for alterations to the laws. Hopefully, someday soon we will all be permitted to grow our own plants in the privacy of our homes. Wouldn’t that be nice.
Remember: It is illegal to germinate cannabis seeds in many countries including the UK. It is our duty to inform you of this fact and to urge you to obey all of your local laws to the letter. The Vault only ever sells or sends out seeds for souvenir, collection or novelty purposes.
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