Legal Status of Marijuana in the Philippines (Updated as of 30 May 2025)
1. Constitutional and International Framework
| Source | Key Points |
|---|---|
| 1987 Constitution, Art. II § 15 & § 11 | Declares the State’s duty to protect public health and promote the people’s right to a healthy ecology—used to justify strict narcotics controls. |
| UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961) – ratified 14 May 1967 | Obliges the Philippines to treat cannabis as a Schedule I controlled substance, restricted to scientific and very limited medical use. |
| UN Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (1988) – ratified 7 Jun 1993 | Mandates criminalization of possession, cultivation, trafficking, and conspiracy in relation to cannabis. |
2. Primary Statute: Republic Act No. 9165
“Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002”
| Section | Provision | Practical Effect |
|---|---|---|
| § 3(o) | Defines “Marijuana” to include every form—plant, resin, extract, and derivatives such as THC and CBD when sourced from the plant. | |
| § 11 | Possession. Penalty tiers depend on quantity: —≥500 g plant material or ≥10 g hash/resin → life imprisonment to death (death penalty now re-clusion perpetua after RA 9346) + ₱500k–₱10 M fine. —<500 data-preserve-html-node="true" g to 300 g → re-clusion temporal. —<300 data-preserve-html-node="true" g → prisión correccional to prisión mayor. |
|
| § 5 | Sale, trading, delivery, distribution, dispatch or transport—regardless of quantity → life imprisonment to death. | |
| § 16 | Cultivation—any amount, including for personal or religious use → life imprisonment to death and land forfeiture. | |
| § 15 | Use/consumption (positive drug test), first offense → 6-month mandatory rehab; subsequent offense → prisión correccional (6 mo 1 day–6 yrs). | |
| § 21 (as amended by RA 10640, 2014) | Chain-of-custody rules for seized drugs; deviations excusable on “justifiable grounds,” but non-compliance still a favorite defense. | |
| § 81 | Empowers the Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) to schedule, de-schedule, and set policy; Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) is exclusive lead enforcer. |
3. Implementing Regulations & Agencies
- Dangerous Drugs Board Regulations – annual manuals fix laboratory thresholds, chain-of-custody forms, and accreditation of testing centers.
- Department of Health – FDA “Compassionate Special Permit” (CSP) – Allows importation of unregistered cannabis-based medicines for specific patients upon physician application; strictly case-by-case, quantities tightly limited, no domestic dispensing.
- Bureau of Customs – interdiction at ports; zero-tolerance for hemp seed or CBD cosmetics unless CSP-covered.
- Local Government & Barangay Anti-Drug Councils – administer mandatory drug-testing ordinances and community rehabilitation.
4. Jurisprudence Snapshot
| Case | G.R. No. | Holding |
|---|---|---|
| People v. Dado (2017) | 22314 | A warrantless arrest and seizure of 1 kg marijuana upheld; “plain-view” doctrine plus prior surveillance satisfied probable cause. |
| People v. Malana (2021) | 25696 | Acquittal where police failed to sign inventory in presence of elected official; strict reading of § 21 unless prosecution proves justifiable ground. |
| People v. Que (2023, En Banc) | 25405 | Confirmed that deviations in chain-of-custody may be excused if integrity and evidentiary value are preserved by testimony and contemporaneous photographs. |
No Supreme Court decision has recognized a constitutional right to possess or cultivate marijuana.
5. Medical-Cannabis Legislative Efforts
| Congress | Bill No. | Title | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17th (2016-19) | HB 6517 | “Philippine Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act” | Approved at committee; died on floor. |
| 18th (2019-22) | HB 4477 / SB 230 | Similar framework; proposed Medical Cannabis Compassionate Center (MCCC) licensing | No plenary vote. |
| 19th (2022-25) | HB 7640 (Reps. Padiernos, et al.) | Allows physician-directed access; Cites WHO rescheduling | Pending Second Reading in House as of May 2025. |
Core proposal features (common to all iterations):
- Rescheduling cannabis within RA 9165 from Schedule I to Schedule II.
- Creation of an MCC Commission under DOH to license cultivation sites, dispensaries, and research labs.
- Prescription-only access for enumerated conditions (epilepsy, cancer-related pain, multiple sclerosis, etc.).
- No blanket legalization of adult/recreational use.
6. Hemp & CBD
Cannabis sativa L. varieties with ≤0.3 % THC (“industrial hemp”) remain illegal to cultivate or import. DDB has repeatedly rejected petitions to carve out an exception, citing enforcement difficulties and treaty obligations.
CBD Isolates: Only synthetic or hemp-derived products with verifiable THC-free certificates may be registered as food or cosmetics under the FDA Act (RA 9711); if sourced from cannabis, they are deemed “dangerous drugs” and return to RA 9165 controls.
7. Penalties Recap (Simplified)
| Offense | Quantity | Imprisonment | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Possession | ≥500 g flower / ≥10 g resin | Reclusion perpetua (40 yrs) | ₱ 500 k – ₱ 10 M |
| <500 data-preserve-html-node="true" g – 300 g | Reclusion temporal (12 yrs 1 day – 20 yrs) | ₱ 400 k – ₱ 500 k | |
| <300 data-preserve-html-node="true" g | Prisión mayor to prisión correccional | ₱ 30 k – ₱ 400 k | |
| Sale/Trafficking | Any | Reclusion perpetua | ₱ 500 k – ₱ 10 M |
| Cultivation | Any | Reclusion perpetua | ₱ 500 k – ₱ 10 M |
| Use (1st offense) | – | 6 mo govt-facilitated rehab | – |
| Use (2nd offense) | – | Prisión correccional | ₱ 10 k – ₱ 50 k |
Death penalty was abolished in 2006 (RA 9346); courts now impose reclusion perpetua.
8. Enforcement Trends (2019-2024)
- Average of 1,100 cannabis-related arrests annually (PDEA data).
- Indoor grows in urban areas increasing; large-scale plantations still concentrated in Cordillera region (Benguet, Kalinga).
- Seizure values: ₱ 1.9 B in 2024—highest on record—largely due to intercepted mail-order THC-vape cartridges.
- “Operation Green Pearl” (2023) marked first multi-agency eradication using drones and satellite mapping.
9. Practical Access to Medical Cannabis (Current Reality)
- Compassionate Special Permit (CSP) – ~620 active permits nationwide (May 2025); mostly for pediatric refractory epilepsy (Epidiolex®) and palliative oncology (nabiximols).
- Cost Barrier – Imported FDA-approved products average ₱ 10,000–₱ 20,000 per 100 mL bottle; not covered by PhilHealth nor most HMOs.
- No Domestic Cultivation – All CSP-approved products are imported; Philippine Pharmacopeia lists no cannabis monograph.
10. Prospects & Policy Debates
| Argument for Reform | Counter-Argument |
|---|---|
| Human-rights framing: patients’ right to health & compassionate care. | Treaty obligations; fear of “gateway” normalization. |
| Potential ₱ 28 B domestic hemp industry (DA 2023 concept paper). | Law-enforcement cost of distinguishing hemp from high-THC cannabis. |
| De-criminalization could ease congestion of 335% in provincial jails. | DOJ & PDEA cite 60 % drug-case conviction rate; deterrence value seen as high. |
Outlook (2025-2028): Incremental medical-only legalization remains plausible, but full adult-use regulation faces steep opposition from the DDB, PDEA, and influential Catholic and evangelical blocs. Future reform will likely hinge on:
- Passage of HB 7640 or its Senate counterpart in the 19th Congress,
- Implementation guidelines balancing treaty compliance, and
- Demonstrated efficacy of current CSP programme to assuage diversion fears.
11. Key Takeaways
- Total prohibition on cultivation, possession, sale, and recreational use persists under RA 9165; penalties are among the harshest in Southeast Asia.
- Medical access exists only through the FDA’s Compassionate Special Permit—a narrow, import-only pathway.
- Legislative momentum for a controlled medical-cannabis framework continues but has not yet crossed the finish line.
- Industrial hemp and over-the-counter CBD remain illegal unless synthetic or proven THC-free and FDA-registered.
- Enforcement trends show rising sophistication (tech-assisted eradication, mail-interdiction), even as the debate on human-rights-oriented drug policy intensifies.
This article is for legal information only and does not substitute for formal legal advice. Laws evolve; practitioners should verify the latest issuances from the Official Gazette, the Dangerous Drugs Board, and the Supreme Court before acting.