Paraguay: Market and legal data analysis of the cannabis sector

31st October 2023: Paraguay: Member of parliament Alejandro Aguilera, from the ruling party National Republican Association, has submitted a bill to the parliament seeking to further develop the conditions of the import, production, storage, distribution and sale of hemp-derived products and extracts. The bill would consolidate a framework that is already in place, which is currently quite fragmented and unclear.
13th December 2022: Paraguay: A public Senate hearing was held yesterday on a bill to establish a regulatory framework for the cultivation, manufacture, sale and use of cannabis and its derivatives.
18th November 2022: Paraguay: A group of senators of the Guasú Front (Frente Guasú), part of the opposition coalition, presented a bill yesterday (17th November) to regulate cultivation, processing and sale of cannabis for medicinal purposes and to declare it of national interest. Paraguay already has a regulatory framework for medicinal cannabis, although it has also been argued that its implementation faces obstacles that make it difficult for patients to access medicinal cannabis.
30th September 2022: Paraguay: Last week, the National Health Surveillance Directorate (Dinavisa) issued Resolution 309/2022, which substitutes Ministry of Health Resolution 433/2019 to update the conditions, requirements and procedure for obtaining a licence to produce medicinal cannabis. The new resolution does not introduce significant changes, with the exception of the period to apply for a licence. The new application period is the first five working days of each month, instead of a specified period of time which, for example, was from 28th March to 26th April in 2022.
23rd September 2022: Paraguay: Members of the Senate Committee for the Prevention and Fight Against Drug Trafficking and Related Crimes held a meeting on 21st September with authorities from the National Programme for the Study and Scientific Research of the Medicinal Use of the Cannabis Plant and its Derivatives (PROINCUMEC), the institution in charge of investigating and making medical cannabis available in the country. During the meeting, current obstacles to the implementation of Law 6007/2017 on medicinal cannabis and its implementing decrees were discussed with the aim of improving the availability of medicinal cannabis in Paraguay.
12th September 2022: Paraguay: Last week the Ministry of Health issued Decree 7761/2022, wherein the maximum number of companies allowed to be granted a licence to produce medicinal cannabis has been uncapped. The former cap, set out by Decree 6519/2021, was established at 13 companies.
27th July 2022: Paraguay: A First International Conference on Industrial Cannabis was held yesterday in the Bicameral Chamber of the National Congress, bringing together experts and legislators with the aim of setting up a work group to ease the path to growing and preparing cannabis-derived medicinal products. The group was given a maximum 60 days to prepare proposed regulation. Currently, medical cannabis cannot be prepared by individuals but only by companies.
8th June 2022: Paraguay: On 6th June, the Commission on Prevention, Fight against Drug Trafficking and Related Crimes of the Senate debated a bill proposed in June 2021 seeking to unify all the (currently dispersed) rules on the procedures and requirements to obtain licences for the importation, cultivation, industrialisation and sale of hemp and hemp-derived products. The bill would envisage a different licence depending on the activity pursued – i.e. cultivation, processing, sale, etc.
8th June 2022: Paraguay: The National Health Surveillance Directorate (DINAVISA) stated on 4th June that only patients suffering from refractory epilepsy or multiple sclerosis are eligible to be registered with the National Programme for the Study and Scientific Research of the Medicinal Use of the Cannabis Plant and its Derivatives (PROINCUMEC). There are currently 103 patients and ten doctors registered with the programme. The programme seeks to provide medicinal cannabis for free to those patients registered.
27th May 2022: Paraguay: The Interinstitutional Commission on Industrial Hemp (COINCA) told CBD-Intel that the licence to process the hemp plant in order to obtain non-psychoactive cannabinoids must be applied for according to the requirements set out in Resolution of the Ministry of Agriculture 155/2022. For the sale of hemp-derived products, in addition to complying with the requirements envisaged in Resolution of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce 1595/19, the interested party will be required to inform the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and the COINCA every month on the volume of hemp-derived products sold.
10th May 2022: Paraguay: The National Health Surveillance Authority (DINAVISA) confirmed today to CBD-Intel that hemp extracts cannot be used in cosmetics. Despite the fact that cannabis extracts are regarded as narcotics in Paraguay, the country has an extensive regulatory framework whereby certain exceptions are made for controlled hemp production and industrialisation, as well as for medicinal cannabis. CBD-Intel is currently working on a regulatory report for Paraguay, which will be available in the near future.
31st March 2022: Paraguay: The National Health Surveillance Agency (DINAVISA) recently issued Resolution 50/2022 to open a new period to apply for licences to cultivate and process cannabis, which will run from 28th March to 26th April.

LATEST ALERTS

Cannabis and cannabinoids in Paraguay

Near miss in Colombia could have been Latin America’s cannabis breakthrough

Colombia ready to lead Latin America into a more cannabis-friendly future

Paraguay: CBD and cannabis regulation, May 2022

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of CBD, October

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of recreational cannabis

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of medical cannabis

Sign up to our newsletter

LATEST ALERTS

Cannabis and cannabinoids in Paraguay

Near miss in Colombia could have been Latin America’s cannabis breakthrough

Colombia ready to lead Latin America into a more cannabis-friendly future

Paraguay: CBD and cannabis regulation, May 2022

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of CBD, October

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of recreational cannabis

Regulatory tracker: current global regulation of medical cannabis

Sign up to our newsletter

Start your FREE trial