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Cannabis legalisation in Australia: where things stand

No Australian state or territory has a legal retail market for non-medical cannabis or CBD as of November 2026. Where the ACT, federal and state bills stand.

Facts checked 13 November 20266 min readHow we research

Cannabis has not been legalised for non-medical use in Australia. As of November 2026, no state or territory has a legal retail market for cannabis or for CBD. The ACT allows adults to possess and grow small amounts, a federal legalisation bill is not proceeding, and state-level bills and inquiries have not changed the law.12

Use Status as of November 2026
Medicinal cannabis, including CBD, on prescription Legal nationally through TGA pathways3
Personal possession and home growing of small amounts Legal under ACT law only1
Retail sale of non-medical cannabis Illegal everywhere
Sale of CBD without a prescription Not lawful. No over-the-counter product has been approved4
Hemp seed foods Legal since 12 November 2017, with strict THC and CBD limits5

Medicinal use is common. In the 2022 to 2023 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 3.0% of people aged 14 and over, about 700,000 people, said they had used cannabis for medical purposes in the past year. Only 22% of them always obtained it by prescription.6

What does the ACT law allow?

The Drugs of Dependence (Personal Cannabis Use) Amendment Act 2019 commenced on 31 January 2020.1 It allows adults in the ACT to possess a limited amount of cannabis and to grow a limited number of plants at home. The ACT Government says use by people under 18 is “still illegal and unsafe”, that cannabis must be stored out of reach of children, and that it is illegal to smoke it near children.7

We could not confirm the exact possession and plant limits by reading an official page directly, so we have not quoted them here. The Act itself is the authority.1

Three limits on the ACT law matter for CBD:

  • It did not set up any lawful retail supply. There are no licensed shops.
  • It did not change Commonwealth law, including the national scheduling of medicines and the import rules.
  • CBD oil therefore still needs a prescription in the ACT, as it does everywhere else.8

No official statement spells out that last point in those words. It follows from the fact that the ACT law deals with personal possession and cultivation, while CBD products are regulated as medicines under the Poisons Standard.8 See CBD in the ACT.

The ACT’s drug-driving law also still applies. The ACT Government says “Penalties apply for both prescription drugs and illicit drugs.”9 See CBD and driving.

What happened to the federal legalisation bill?

The Legalising Cannabis Bill 2023 was introduced in the Senate by the Greens on 10 August 2023. It was referred to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, which recommended in May 2024 “that the Senate not pass the Bill”. The bill’s status is “Not Proceeding”.2

We found no cannabis legalisation bill introduced in the federal Parliament in 2025 or in 2026 up to November.2

What have the states done?

New South Wales. An upper house inquiry into the regulation of cannabis tabled its final report on 20 June 2025. It recommended staged reform, starting with decriminalisation.10 The government declined to adopt this, according to a statement from the party that initiated the inquiry.11

Victoria. A parliamentary committee reported on a personal-use cannabis bill on 18 March 2025. The Victorian Government’s response did not support an ACT-style model.12

Western Australia. A private member’s bill, the Misuse of Drugs (Lawful Personal Use of Cannabis) Amendment Bill 2026, was tabled on 19 March 2026. It has not passed. This is reported by the member who introduced it.13

We found no legalisation measure that has passed in any other state or in the Northern Territory.

If cannabis were legalised, would CBD be easier to buy?

Not automatically. These are two separate legal systems.

Cannabis legalisation bills deal with criminal law: possession, growing and, in some models, licensed sale. CBD products sold for health purposes are therapeutic goods. They are controlled by the Poisons Standard and the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), whatever the criminal law says about the plant.8

The ACT shows this in practice. Personal cannabis use has been lawful there since 2020, and CBD oil is still a prescription medicine.

Medicines law already contains a separate mechanism for pharmacist-only CBD. Low-dose CBD has been a pharmacist-only (Schedule 3) substance since 2021, on the condition that a product is approved and registered. None has been.414 See over-the-counter CBD.

Is the regulation of CBD itself under review?

Yes, though nothing has been decided. The TGA consulted in 2025 on the oversight of unapproved medicinal cannabis. In that process, “some stakeholders called for consideration to be given to down-scheduling CBD”. The TGA told its scheduling committee on 18 March 2026 that reform options “may include a review of the current scheduling of cannabis, CBD and THC”.14

The TGA’s stated plan is staged: public awareness in the short term, considering scheduling and quality requirements in the medium term, and reform options for government decision in the long term.15 As of the latest documents we found (mid-2026), no reform had been decided. We could not confirm whether anything further was announced between July and November 2026.

Much of the review’s attention is on products high in THC, not on CBD. The TGA reported that Category 5 products, in which CBD is under 2% of the cannabinoids, made up “nearly half” of Special Access Scheme applications as at 31 July 2025.4

What about hemp?

Hemp law is moving separately from cannabis legalisation. A Senate inquiry into developing a hemp industry reported on 30 July 2026 with 14 recommendations, including a national definition of hemp as cannabis with under 1% total THC. We found no government response.16 This concerns farming and industrial uses. It would not, by itself, change the rules for CBD medicines. See industrial hemp in Australia.

What should readers take from this?

  • Headlines about cannabis legalisation, in Australia or overseas, do not change how CBD is regulated here.
  • As of November 2026 the only lawful route to a CBD medicine is a prescription. See how legal access to CBD works.
  • Laws in this area are changing. Key dates, including changes that have passed but are not yet in force, are on our timeline of CBD law.

Footnotes

  1. ACT Government. Drugs of Dependence (Personal Cannabis Use) Amendment Act 2019. https://www.legislation.act.gov.au/a/2019-34/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  2. Parliament of Australia. Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, Legalising Cannabis Bill 2023 report. https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Legal_and_Constitutional_Affairs/LegalisingCannabis/Report ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  3. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Medicinal cannabis access pathways. https://www.tga.gov.au/products/unapproved-therapeutic-goods/medicinal-cannabis/access-pathways ↩

  4. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Consultation paper: reviewing the safety and regulatory oversight of unapproved medicinal cannabis products, August 2025. https://consultations.tga.gov.au/medicines-regulation-division/test-soms/user_uploads/final---consultation-paper---medicinal-cannabis-review---august-2025.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  5. Food Standards Australia New Zealand. Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, Standard 1.4.4, compilation of 12 November 2017. https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2015L00416/2017-11-12/2017-11-12/text/original/epub/OEBPS/document_1/document_1.html ↩

  6. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. National Drug Strategy Household Survey 2022 to 2023: medical marijuana and cannabis. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/illicit-use-of-drugs/national-drug-strategy-household-survey-2022-2023/contents/detailed-findings/medical-marijuana-cannabis ↩

  7. ACT Government. Cannabis. https://www.act.gov.au/cannabis ↩

  8. Australian Government. Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard, October 2026) Instrument 2026. https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L01327/asmade/2026-09-30/text/original/pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. ACT Government. Drink and drug driving. https://www.cityservices.act.gov.au/roads-and-paths/road-safety/drink-and-drug-driving ↩

  10. Parliament of NSW. Report 66: impact of the regulatory framework for cannabis in New South Wales, 20 June 2025. https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/lcdocs/inquiries/3043/Report%2066%20-%20Impact%20of%20the%20regulatory%20framework%20for%20cannabis%20in%20NSW%20-%2020%20June%202025.pdf ↩

  11. Legalise Cannabis Party. NSW Government rejects cannabis overhaul but leaves door open for policy reform. https://www.legalisecannabis.org.au/nsw_govt_rejects_cannabis_overhaul_but_leaves_door_open_for_policy_reform ↩

  12. Victorian Government. Response to the Legal and Social Issues Committee inquiry into the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment Bill 2023. https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/4a9683/contentassets/206e9d68622f4a5eb6081eddb0e02746/victorian-government-response-to-the-lsic-inquiry-into-the-drugs-poisons-and-controlled-substances-amendment-bill-2023.pdf ↩

  13. Brian Walker MLC. Cannabis Bill 2026. https://www.brianwalkermlc.com.au/cannabis-bill-2026 ↩

  14. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Paper to the scheduling advisory committee, 18 March 2026, released as FOI 26-2886. https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-06/FOI%2026-2886.PDF ↩ ↩2

  15. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Update to the sector on the medicinal cannabis review, July 2026. https://www.tga.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-07/update-tga-sector.pdf ↩

  16. Parliament of Australia. Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee, Opportunities for the development of a hemp industry in Australia, report, 30 July 2026. https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Rural_and_Regional_Affairs_and_Transport/Hempindustry_48/Report ↩

Common questions

Is recreational cannabis legal in Australia?

No, with one partial exception. In the ACT, adults may possess and grow small amounts for personal use. Selling cannabis remains illegal everywhere, and no state or territory has legal retail sales.

Does the ACT law make CBD oil legal to buy in Canberra?

No. The ACT law covers personal possession and home growing of cannabis. It did not create any lawful retail supply, and CBD oil is still a prescription medicine under national scheduling.

Is Australia going to legalise cannabis?

There is no bill before the federal Parliament as of November 2026. The 2023 Greens bill is not proceeding, and state governments in NSW and Victoria have declined to adopt legalisation models recommended or examined by parliamentary committees.

Will CBD become freely available in Australia?

Nothing has been decided. The TGA has said reform options may include a review of the scheduling of cannabis, CBD and THC. Any change to over-the-counter access would come through medicines regulation, not through cannabis legalisation.

This page is general information, not medical or legal advice. Laws and evidence change; we show the date we last checked the facts at the top of every page. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.

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