Is Marijuana Legal in Hong Kong?

Hong Kong has strict policies against marijuana and other drugs that are in line with other regions in Southeast Asia. Medicinal and recreational cannabis are illegal in Hong Kong under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance (DDO), which prohibits possessing, selling, transporting, and cultivating cannabis and its extracts.

The law maintains several “dangerous drugs” categories, including heroin, cocaine, and marijuana, and can penalize offenders with hefty fines and prison time. Until recently, the DDO only classified marijuana and cannabis sativa containing trace THC levels as illicit drugs.

However, as of February 2023, Hong Kong also regards cannabidiol CBD as a dangerous substance. The new rule reflects the law in mainland China, which banned CBD in 2022.

Medical Marijuana Laws in Hong Kong

Despite a long history of cannabis use in Chinese medicine, the Hong Kong government asserts that marijuana is not therapeutic. China and Hong Kong legally classify cannabis as a “dangerous drug” equivalent to heroin, opium, morphine, and cocaine.

Hong Kong officials say they are researching whether cannabis can be effective as a medicine. Still, the regulatory position remains that marijuana use, including medical, is illegal in all instances.

Until the recent ban, Hong Kong officials recognized that non-psychoactive cannabinoids, like CBD, could relieve pain and counteract the adverse side effects of certain medicines. Hong Kong even allowed the sale of CBD products, provided they contained zero traces of THC.

However, the Hong Kong government reversed its stance in February 2023, adding CBD to the list of “dangerous drugs.” In explaining the policy change, the Hong Kong government cited the following:

• The difficulty of isolating pure CBD oil from cannabis
• Possibility of contamination with THC during the production process
• The relative ease by which CBD can be converted to THC

What to Know About About Medical Cannabis in Hong Kong

Hong Kong does not allow medical cannabis, hemp, or CBD use in its region. Hong Kong residents cannot legally access the plant or products for any reason.

CBD Wasn’t Always Banned in Hong Kong

Until February 1, 2023, Hong Kong’s Dangerous Drug Ordinance did not list CBD as a dangerous drug. This meant that CBD products were legal to import, export, procure, supply, use, and manufacture, provided the products contained no THC. Any level of THC in a CBD product would be classified as illegal under the DDO.

Before the recent ban, a growing market had emerged for CBD products in Hong Kong. Hong Kong’s first CBD cafe, named Found, opened in 2020. Other cafes and specialty shops selling CBD-infused products soon followed and became popular, offering everything from CBD chocolate chip cookies, gummies, and beer to smoothies and coffee.

Hong Kong Residents Support CBD Use

Before the ban, people in Hong Kong enjoyed CBD for its many known benefits. CBD can help relieve stress and inflammation without the high associated with marijuana’s famously psychoactive cannabinoid, THC. Studies show CBD use has therapeutic value, particularly for people suffering from seizures and clinical anxiety.

CBD proponents also feared the consequences of outlawing a thriving market. In August 2022, the Bangkok Post reported that Hong Kong’s law would put people in jeopardy, forcing many businesses to close.

Fiachra Mullen, chief marketing officer at Altum International Ltd, which owns Hong Kong’s popular Found brand, said: “With a full ban for CBD in Hong Kong, we would be forced to shelve the Found brand as it exists today.”

However, Hong Kong authorities argued that CBD should not be legal, even for medicinal use. Narcotics officials who supported a proposed ban on CBD in the country say:

• The science behind CBD’s therapeutic qualities has not been authoritatively proven, and its use may have harmful side effects.
• Pure CBD is difficult to extract from cannabis plants; around a third of CBD products seized contained THC.

Despite the government’s concern about CBD and THC, people in Hong Kong support changing local laws to remove marijuana as a dangerous drug:

• Laurence Pak, founder of the campaign group Legalise Medical Marijuana in Hong Kong, said there was strong scientific evidence to support the medicinal use of cannabis.

• I​​n 1994, two top High Court judges said officials should decriminalize cannabis because the law does little to stem drug use.

Hong Kong’s Drug Penalties Are Severe

Hong Kong police do not take marijuana laws lightly. The DDO makes it a criminal offense to import, export, procure, supply, or manufacture cannabis and controlled cannabinoids like THC and CBD.

The maximum penalty for trafficking or manufacturing a dangerous drug is life imprisonment and a fine of HK$5 million ($638,000). Illicit possession, smoking, inhaling, ingesting, or injecting dangerous drugs carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment for seven years and a fine of HK$1 million ($128,000).

The DDO further makes it a criminal offense for people to have a pipe, equipment, or apparatus intended to smoke, inhale, ingest, or inject a dangerous drug. People with such equipment are subject to a fine of HK$10,000 and imprisonment for three years.

Can You Grow Cannabis in Hong Kong?

No, growing cannabis in Hong Kong is illegal. Section 9 of the Dangerous Drug Ordinance prohibits the cultivation of cannabis plants. However, an exception was added in 1994 for government chemists, so far as is necessary for their job.

Any person who cultivates any plant of the genus cannabis faces an HK $100,000 fine and 15 years in prison. Seizures of cannabis have been on the rise in Hong Kong, with officers targeting people who manufacture or grow the illicit plant. In recent years, police made their biggest seizure since at least 1990 during raids on two factory units operating as indoor marijuana farms.

The Bottom Line

Hong Kong classifies marijuana as a “dangerous drug,” making it illegal for personal and medical use. Hong Kong recently added CBD to its list of dangerous drugs, making CBD products illegal. The fines and prison sentences for importing, possessing, growing, or using “dangerous drugs” in Hong Kong are severe, in line with many countries in Southeast Asia.