A staff member arranges bongs at a cannabis shop after Thailand started banning the sale of cannabis to those without a prescription in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, June 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

 

Thailand's cannabis industry is facing a seismic shift as new regulations threaten to shut down around 12,000 cannabis flower shops. The country's Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (DTAM) has unveiled stringent rules requiring medical professionals to oversee cannabis sales, with these changes set to take effect by the year's end.

 

Dr Somruek Chungsaman, Director-General of the DTAM, announced these sweeping reforms on 30 June 2025. The upcoming departmental notification will introduce a stricter prescription form, demanding the presence of specific medical professionals from fields like General Medicine, Thai Traditional Medicine, Dentistry, and others. The professionals must register their licence numbers on all prescriptions.

 

Patient prescriptions must be detailed, including name, age, nationality, and diagnosis, and will be restricted to a 30-day supply. Initially, 15 conditions were specified, but these have been replaced by guidelines specific to each medical field. As it stands, only the Medical Council and Thai Traditional Medicine have established guidelines, leaving shops dependent on these practitioners for cannabis prescriptions.

 

A staff member prepares a flower bud of marijuana for a customer at a cannabis shop after Thailand started banning the sale of cannabis to those without a prescription in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, June 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)

 

Modern medical guidelines currently permit cannabis use for epilepsy, nausea and vomiting from cancer treatment, neuropathic pain, and muscle spasticity. Meanwhile, Thai Traditional Medicine includes symptoms such as headaches, nausea, appetite loss, and cancer-related pain.

 

Dr Somruek emphasised that compliance is crucial, with shops required to obtain proper operating licences and adhere strictly to medical guidelines. Smoking cannabis on-site will be banned, and sales will only occur with a valid prescription from a designated professional.

 

The industry is at a critical juncture. Shop owners must swiftly adapt, securing the necessary medical personnel and licences to navigate this regulatory landscape. Failure to comply could result in a massive wave of closures, reshaping the market entirely.

 

This regulatory overhaul not only impacts businesses but also affects patients and users, who will now require verified prescriptions for access. The changes signal the government's intent to tighten control over cannabis use, emphasising medical supervision and regulated distribution.

 

As the year progresses, the focus will be on how quickly shops can adjust to these regulations and what the broader implications will be for Thailand’s cannabis market. With significant hurdles ahead, stakeholders are scrambling to align with the new legal framework to avoid widespread shutdowns.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Nation 2025-07-01

 

 

Gonna be a lot of available retail space in Pattaya.  

19 minutes ago, jimmybcool said:

Gonna be a lot of available retail space in Pattaya.  

 

Space to be used for new coffee shops and the like.

I read awhile back that if they tried this then they would get a class action going to sue the Gov for losses. 

Hardly surprising, they should have gone down the decriminalizing road first.

 

I mean, weed is only partially legal in Jamaica of all places - Bob Marley is rolling in his grave. 

stringent rules requiring medical professionals to oversee cannabis sales, with these changes set to take effect by the year's end.

 

five months from now IF IF IF it actually happens...i plan to take a big puff and hold my breath.

Great news!

41 minutes ago, jimmybcool said:

Gonna be a lot of available retail space in Pattaya.  

 

We could certainly use some more Indian Restaurants, 7-11s, and massage shops in Pattaya...

The problem is that the Government legalized the cannabis a few years back, and now suddenly they want to turn it back. All businesses can't operate if what today is allowed tomorrow it is forbidden.. The Government must accept that they made a mistake first by too quickly legalize it and now to criminalize it again.. Make good regulation about how much the shops are allowed to have in stock, to who they can sell and how much and control that strictly.. instead of only medical use, and all that kind of stuff they want to do now.. Everybody knows it will not work.and in the meantime legalize the vaping too with similar regulations instead of pretending to forbid it.. too many people are vaping already, you can't turn back time

The government granted all these weed shops licences....So if they want to close them I think a payout of 1 million baht per shop would be in order...

12 minutes ago, ikke1959 said:

Everybody knows it will not work.and in the meantime legalize the vaping too with similar regulations instead of pretending to forbid it.. too many people are vaping already, you can't turn back time

 

Unwanted competition.

Is Thaksin behind this?

I went to my local shop yesterday. She had a 50% sale going on just to get rid of her product before shutting down. 

Ridiculous backward step taking billions of baht out of the economy.

44 minutes ago, ikke1959 said:

in the meantime legalize the vaping too with similar regulations instead of pretending to forbid it.. too many people are vaping already, you can't turn back time

Vapes widely available online. This is what will happen with dope. It's insane.

52 minutes ago, Gsxrnz said:

Hardly surprising, they should have gone down the decriminalizing road first.

 

I mean, weed is only partially legal in Jamaica of all places - Bob Marley is rolling in his grave. 

 

They had a terrible problem trying to get the lid on his coffin.

It kept Jamming.

 

 

soon there will be casinos everywhere.  everyone will be broke and not high.  Then we will all complain.  Then they will close them all down.  Then we will complain the country is losing out on revenue.  

 

 

This is a brilliant idea, it's going to put loads of people out of work to start with, business is down in them shops to start with, then all the landlords will not be to pleased loads of empty shops again, 

8 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

 

 

soon there will be casinos everywhere.  everyone will be broke and not high.  Then we will all complain.  Then they will close them all down.  Then we will complain the country is losing out on revenue.  

 

 

I certainly won't complain because those scenarios have no effect on my life whatsoever, but thanks for your concern.

1 hour ago, redwood1 said:

 

We could certainly use some more Indian Restaurants, 7-11s, and massage shops in Pattaya...

 

Don't forget bubble tea shops.

 

But why so much effort to stop the sale of marijuana to the average Joe, who isn’t hurting anyone but just wants a bit of release in life? Rarely touch the stuff but it’s obviously doing some good if it’s going to be indicated for medical issues. Whereas tobacco is bad bad bad and you can buy that S everywhere. Yes, there’s the pressure from the grubby tobacco elites here, but if they put as much effort as they are here into sorting out the fumes from traffic and PITA exhaustless motorbikes, things would be a lot better all round for EVERYONE. Get your ducks in order, Thighland!

 

A few dumbfk bastards try to take it home, they embarrass Thailand in the international news

+

The Big 5 realise they've missed out, fixed that with a call that results in a 60% cull of the competition, instant mj monopoly.

=

everyone out of the pool!

 

 

_{...maybe, who knows, I'm only an expert in Bird Law}

 

 

2 hours ago, jimmybcool said:

Gonna be a lot of available retail space in Pattaya.  

There always is, especially at this time of year!

1 hour ago, Bagwain said:

I read awhile back that if they tried this then they would get a class action going to sue the Gov for losses. 

When it was legalized.... that was for medicinal purposes but the Thai's took the piss and the mess we have now is the result.

 

should make it illegal again and throw the smelly stoners in jail.

30 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

When it was legalized.... that was for medicinal purposes but the Thai's took the piss and the mess we have now is the result.

 

should make it illegal again and throw the smelly stoners in jail.

and let the drunk people continue to be drunk and die on the roads, kill other people on the roads, cause domestic violence, fight etc. and the cigarette smokers to keep on smoking, destroying their bodies. Ridiculous post from someone that obviously would believe everything depicted in ....

 

 

Just now, dinsdale said:

and let the drunk people continue to be drunk and die on the roads, kill other people on the roads, cause domestic violence, fight etc. and the cigarette smokers to keep on smoking destroying their bodies. Ridiculous post from someone that obviously would believe everything depicted in ....

 

 

 

Stoners are dead <deleted>s... end of.

1 hour ago, dinsdale said:

Ridiculous backward step taking billions of baht out of the economy.

 

At least decent tourists will be able to visit Thailand again

1 hour ago, ikke1959 said:

The problem is that the Government legalized the cannabis a few years back, and now suddenly they want to turn it back. All businesses can't operate if what today is allowed tomorrow it is forbidden.. The Government must accept that they made a mistake first by too quickly legalize it and now to criminalize it again.. Make good regulation about how much the shops are allowed to have in stock, to who they can sell and how much and control that strictly.. instead of only medical use, and all that kind of stuff they want to do now.. Everybody knows it will not work.and in the meantime legalize the vaping too with similar regulations instead of pretending to forbid it.. too many people are vaping already, you can't turn back time

The corrupt want heir illegal money flows back.  I bet they are lobbying furiously for as strict illegality or at least highly onerous rules, forcing most users back into the criminal world to get their weed.  

7 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

 

Stoners are dead <deleted>s... end of.

You are of course entitled to your opinion albeit an ignorant one. 

7 minutes ago, henryford1958 said:

 

At least decent tourists will be able to visit Thailand again

Thais also buy and smoke dope and have been for a very long time. The difference of late is that they didn't have to get it through criminal channels. This is what it will now go back to. Do you think this is a positive thing? People will continue to smoke dope. This cannot be stopped.