Is Thailand making marijuana illegal again? Well, yes and no

also it is important to note that nothing has been made official yet. Despite the rather lawless appearance of a lot of what takes place in Thailand, they do have a due process as far as laws are concerned and just because some high-ranking politicians promise something, such as even Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin stating that it would be remade illegal by the end of 2024. He faced some opposition as far as this "promise" was concerned from many other members of Parliament as well as the Deputy Prime Minister who said he would vote against recriminalizing the drug and this is an important ally as far as weed enthusiasts are concerned because not only is he the 2nd in command in the nation but also sits on the Narcotics Control Board.

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Marijuana was decriminalized for recreational use in 2022 in Thailand, and this was a moment of great celebration for a lot of people, including myself. I don't even smoke outside of a puff every now and then at a party so the legalization really didn't change my life at all. I celebrated the forward-thinking policy change because it has never made sense to me that alcohol consumption is basically encouraged, yet something that a lot of people consider to be far less harmful, was kept illegal to the point where you could go to jail just for having a different method of unwinding in your life. It is also a fantastic way for the country to make money and that has been proven considering the industry is estimated to be worth about $1.2 billion in Thailand.

Before everyone jumps for joy about things "staying the same" just know that this is unlikely to be the case. Some politicians shouted so loud and in a widespread way that they feel, I guess, obligated to continue their battle for recriminalization of the plant. Therefore, a compromise of sorts is likely to happen before the end of the year.

While nobody can know what is going to happen I know a few people who own dispensaries, and the information that they are getting is that the industry is likely to get additional regulation that makes it just slightly more difficult for someone to obtain weed if they want it. Some proposals include that it will only be available to people who have a medical "need" for it but if you know anything about this country or perhaps any country in the world that tried this route, what ends up happening is that almost anything can be determined to be a medical "need" for availability of the product.

The shop owners that I know are already planning to partner with nearby medical clinics to get the necessary permit for a person to be able to buy marijuana. The reasons for needing it could vary, but for the most part the doctors are going to be very friendly to the industry and will approve anyone that comes in there seeking a card or permit to do so. I can say this with relative certainty because in the past, work-permits needed a physical to be signed off by a physician. These clinics would take down your ID card or passport details, you would pay the 100 Baht for the piece of paper, and then your physical would be done. You never actually have a doctor so much as talk to you. I have had to go through this process 5 times since living and working here and it is just the norm. The crazy thing about this process continuing the way that it does is that the Labor Department as well as Immigration have to be very aware of the fact that an actual physical never takes place, yet they keep this hurdle of paperwork in place anyway. I am quite certain that given the amount of money that is involved in the mary-jane industry here, that the approval process will end up being exactly the same.

What will likely end up happening is that you will need to get a medical card before you can buy weed legally and this will consist of you simply walking into a clinic and doing the same thing I did for all of my physicals. It's stupid and a bit of a joke amongst us locals, but that is just the way that this country works.

The bad news for tourists looking to get high when the visit will just be that they have to make a stop at a doctor's office for a few minutes before they can make their purchase. If I had to guess, weed shops are going to relocate to be very near a doctor's office, or vice versa. Doctors are held in very high regard in this and most other countries, so their process of issuing permits for just about anything is never questioned. Will there be a few doctors out there that are opposed to issuing the permits? Absolutely. But the dispensaries are going to know who is friendly towards them before the legislation even goes into effect.

Basically, recreational marijuana is here to stay in Thailand but just like a lot of other things that happen in the Land of Smiles, the process of obtaining it will just have a couple of additional stupid hoops to jump through.