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Countries Where Recreational Cannabis is Legal
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In 2024, Germany became the third European Union country to legalize cannabis for personal use, following Malta and Luxembourg.
Here, we map the countries where recreational cannabis use is allowed as of April 2024, based on data from Wikipedia.
Limited to Few Countries
In total, only nine countries have legalized recreational cannabis use nationwide. However, just a few of them have licensed sales.
CountryEffective dateLicensed sales since
UruguayDecember 2013July 2017
Georgia30 July 2018Never authorized
South Africa18 September 2018Never authorized
Canada17 October 201817 October 2018
Mexico28 June 2021Never authorized
Malta14 December 2021Never authorized
Thailand9 June 20229 June 2022
Luxembourg21 July 2023Never authorized
Germany1 April 2024Never authorized
U.S.Varies by stateVaries by state
AustraliaVaries by jurisdictionNever authorized
At the federal level, cannabis is still considered an illegal substance in the United States. That said, individual states do have the right to determine their laws around cannabis sales and usage. Currently, cannabis is allowed in 24 states, 3 territories, and the District of Columbia.
Interestingly, the oldest legal text concerning cannabis dates back to the 1600s—when the colony of Virginia required every farm to grow and produce hemp.
Since then, cannabis use was fairly widespread until the 1930s when the Marihuana Tax Act was enforced, prohibiting marijuana federally but still technically allowing for medical use.
Today, the U.S. cannabis market is a $30 billion business. By the end of the decade, that number is expected to be anywhere from $58 billion to as much as $72 billion.
Similar to the U.S., Australia does not allow the use at the national level, but cannabis can be used legally in the Australian Capital Territory, which includes the capital Canberra.
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