This page is about CBD oil (cannabidiol) in Tasmania, not the Hobart city centre. CBD is a prescription-only medicine in Tasmania, as it is nationwide. What makes Tasmania unique is its driving law: it is the only Australian jurisdiction where having THC in your system is not a presence offence if the medicine was lawfully prescribed and dispensed. Driving while impaired is still an offence.
What is different in Tasmania
- A medical defence to the drug-driving presence offence, in section 6A(2) of the Road Safety (Alcohol and Drugs) Act 1970.1
- A per-patient state authorisation for Schedule 8 products, but none for CBD-only Schedule 4 medicines.2
- A subsidy pathway limited to medicines prescribed by public hospital specialists in narrow cases.3
The driving defence
What the Act says
Section 6A(1) makes it an offence to drive with a prescribed illicit drug in your system. Section 6A(2) then says:
“A person does not commit an offence against subsection (1) if the prescribed illicit drug was obtained and administered in accordance with the Poisons Act 1971.”1
The Tasmanian Department of Health explains it this way: “Driving with any detectable amount of THC in your system is an offence in Tasmania … unless the product was obtained and administered in accordance with the Poisons Act 1971, including being lawfully prescribed and dispensed.”3
What the defence does not cover
- Impairment. “A person who drives a vehicle while under the influence of a drug to the extent that the person is incapable of having proper control of the vehicle is guilty of an offence (even if the drug is prescribed).”3 That offence is in section 4 of the same Act.1
- Cannabis that was not prescribed. The defence depends on lawful supply under the Poisons Act.
- Other states. The defence is Tasmanian law. Crossing Bass Strait puts a driver under another state’s rules; see CBD and driving.
Where the defence does not apply, first-offence penalties for the presence offence are a fine of 2 to 10 penalty units, disqualification for 3 to 12 months and up to three months in prison.1
The Department’s general advice remains cautious: “It is recommended that patients do not drive whilst being treated with medicinal cannabis.”3
The open question about interstate prescriptions
Some Tasmanian patients may have a prescriber based in another state, for example through telehealth. One third-party source reports that the defence may require a Tasmanian-authorised prescriber and Tasmanian dispensing, so that some mainland prescriptions would not qualify.4 We have not been able to verify that from the Act, a court decision or a government page. The Department’s wording quoted above refers only to the product being “lawfully prescribed and dispensed” in accordance with the Poisons Act.
A Schedule 8 prescription in Tasmania needs a state authorisation for each patient (see below). Anyone relying on this defence can ask their prescriber whether the Tasmanian authorisation is in place, and check with the Department of Health or a lawyer.
CBD-only medicines
We found no official Tasmanian statement dealing specifically with CBD-only medicines and driving. The presence offence concerns prescribed illicit drugs, and the Department’s driving advice talks about THC.3 The impairment offence applies to any drug.
Is CBD oil legal in Tasmania?
Yes, on prescription. Tasmania adopts the national Poisons Standard,5 which places cannabidiol in Schedule 4 (prescription only) where CBD is 98% or more of the cannabinoids in the product.6 No pharmacist-only (Schedule 3) CBD product has been registered, so nothing can be bought over the counter.7 Products with more than 2% other cannabinoids are Schedule 8 controlled drugs.6
The Department also states that Tasmanians “cannot legally produce their own cannabis for medicinal or recreational use”, and that personal import of medicinal cannabis is not permitted except through the traveller’s exemption.3
How prescribing works in Tasmania
A registered medical practitioner or nurse practitioner can prescribe an unregistered medicinal cannabis product if they believe it is clinically appropriate and have “all required Commonwealth approvals and State authorisations”. There is no list of eligible conditions.2
| Product | Commonwealth approval (TGA) | Tasmanian authorisation (Poisons Act s 59E) |
|---|---|---|
| Unregistered Schedule 4 CBD medicine | Required | Not required |
| Registered Schedule 4 CBD medicine | Not required | Not required |
| Unregistered Schedule 8 product | Required | Required, for each patient |
| Registered Schedule 8 product | Not required | Required, for each patient |
Source: Tasmanian Department of Health.2
So for a CBD-only medicine, a Tasmanian prescriber follows the same national process as anywhere else. See how the TGA regulates CBD.
An older Therapeutic Goods Administration page says Tasmania has “additional requirements for cannabidiol products which apply, even when in Schedule 4”.8 The Tasmanian Department of Health’s own pages, updated 2 March 2026, say no authorisation is required for Schedule 4.2 We have followed the Tasmanian source as the more recent and more direct one.
Pharmacies, cost and subsidy
A valid prescription “may be legally dispensed at any pharmacy in Tasmania”, though some pharmacies may not stock the product or may choose not to dispense it.3 Unregistered products are not on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, and the Tasmanian Government does not regulate their price.3
There is a pathway for subsidised access where the medicine is prescribed by a Tasmanian Health Service specialist and needs to be accessed through an acute public hospital. Applications are assessed on effectiveness, safety and cost-effectiveness, and other accepted treatments must have been tried or be inappropriate.3 See does the PBS, Medicare or health insurance cover CBD?
Visitors
“Interstate visitors lawfully prescribed and dispensed a medicinal cannabis product in their home state can travel with that product in Tasmania.”3 See travelling with CBD.
Hemp in Tasmania
Industrial hemp is grown under licence under the Industrial Hemp Act 2015. The THC limit for the crop is 1%, and a 2024 amendment left that limit unchanged.9 Hemp seed foods have been legal to sell across Australia since 12 November 2017 and may contain no more than 75 mg/kg of CBD.10 See industrial hemp in Australia.
What we could not confirm for Tasmania
- Whether the driving defence covers medicines prescribed by an interstate prescriber or dispensed outside Tasmania.
- Any official statement on driving while taking a CBD-only medicine.
- Which cannabis medicines Tasmania’s prescription monitoring system records.
Footnotes
-
Tasmanian Legislation. Road Safety (Alcohol and Drugs) Act 1970. https://www.legislation.tas.gov.au/view/whole/html/inforce/current/act-1970-077 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
-
Tasmanian Department of Health. Information about medicinal cannabis for prescribers in Tasmania, updated 2 March 2026. https://www.health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/medicines-and-poisons-regulation/medicinal-cannabis/information-about-medicinal-cannabis-prescribers-tasmania ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4
-
Tasmanian Department of Health. Medicinal cannabis information for patients and the general public, updated 2 March 2026. https://www.health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/medicines-and-poisons-regulation/medicinal-cannabis/medicinal-cannabis-information-patients-and-general-public ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10
-
Third-party driving-law guide, not verified against a primary source. https://www.canidrive.com.au/tas/ ↩
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Tasmanian Department of Health. Regulatory framework for medicinal cannabis. https://www.health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/medicines-and-poisons-regulation/medicinal-cannabis/regulatory-framework-medicinal-cannabis ↩
-
Australian Government. Therapeutic Goods (Poisons Standard, October 2026) Instrument 2026. https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L01327/asmade/2026-09-30/text/original/pdf ↩ ↩2
-
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 ↩
-
Therapeutic Goods Administration. Medicinal cannabis: importation and the traveller’s exemption, updated 29 January 2025 (read from an archived copy). https://www.tga.gov.au/resources/explore-topic/medicinal-cannabis-hub/medicinal-cannabis-information-patients/medicinal-cannabis-importation-and-travellers-exemption ↩
-
Tasmanian Legislation. Industrial Hemp Amendment Act 2024. https://www.legislation.tas.gov.au/view/whole/html/asmade/act-2024-022 ↩
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Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, Standard 1.4.4 (compilation in force 12 November 2017). https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2015L00416/2017-11-12/2017-11-12/text/original/epub/OEBPS/document_1/document_1.html ↩
Common questions
Is CBD oil legal in Tasmania?
Yes, with a prescription. Cannabidiol is a Schedule 4 prescription-only medicine under the national Poisons Standard, which Tasmania adopts. The Department of Health says a valid prescription for medicinal cannabis may be dispensed at any pharmacy in Tasmania, though a pharmacy may not stock the product.
Why is Tasmania different on driving?
Tasmania's drug-driving law says a person does not commit the presence offence if the drug was obtained and administered in accordance with the Poisons Act 1971. No other state or territory had an equivalent defence in force as of November 2026. Driving while impaired remains an offence.
Can a GP prescribe CBD in Tasmania?
The Department of Health says a registered medical practitioner or nurse practitioner can prescribe an unregistered medicinal cannabis product if it is clinically appropriate and the required approvals are in place. For a Schedule 4 CBD medicine, that means Commonwealth approval only. No Tasmanian authorisation is required.
Does an interstate telehealth prescription count for the Tasmanian driving defence?
We could not confirm this. The Act requires the drug to be obtained and administered in accordance with the Tasmanian Poisons Act 1971. One third-party source suggests prescriptions from outside Tasmania may not qualify, but we have not verified that. Ask the Tasmanian Department of Health or a lawyer before relying on the defence.
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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