Cannabis and cannabinoids in Ukraine

News analysis

Global business and regulatory news covering the cannabis industry

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Alerts

Daily regulatory updates of legal changes in the cannabis sector, including monthly compilations

29th April 2024: Ukraine: The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution seeking to amend the List of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances and Precursors, media reports. It reschedules cannabis, cannabis resin, extracts and tinctures as well as THC (its following isomers and their stereochemical variants) from List 1 to List 2. It also excludes from List 2 psychotropic substances such as “dronabinol”, “nabilone” (a synthetic cannabinoid that mimics the effect of THC) and “nabiximols” (a standardised cannabis extract with the same content of THC and cannabidiol). In addition, it increases the permitted THC content for industrial hemp from 0.08% to 0.3%. This resolution was adopted to implement law 3528-IX (on medical cannabis), which will enter into force on 16th August 2024.
26th April 2024: Ukraine: The Ministry of Health has published for public discussion the draft order seeking to amend some of the ministry’s normative legal acts regarding the introduction of e-prescriptions for medicinal cannabis products, media reports. Comments and suggestions are accepted within 30 days in electronic form at: o.v.hritsenko@moz.gov.ua.
28th March 2024: Ukraine: The Ministry of Health has published for public discussion the draft resolution seeking to amend the List of Narcotic Drugs, Psychotropic Substances, and Precursors, media reports. It proposes to reschedule cannabis, cannabis resin, extracts, and tinctures, as well as THC (its following isomers and their stereochemical variants) from List 1 to List 2. It also proposes to exclude from List 2 such psychotropic substances as "dronabinol", "nabilone" (a synthetic cannabinoid that mimics the effect of THC), and "nabiximols" (a standardised cannabis extract with the same content of THC and cannabidiol). In addition, it proposes to increase the permitted THC content for industrial hemp from 0.08% to 0.3%. This draft resolution was developed to implement law 3528-IX (on medical cannabis), which will enter into force on 16th August 2024. Comments and suggestions are accepted within 30 days in written or electronic form to Kyiv, str. Hrushevskyi, 7, 01601; or moz@moz.gov.ua, a.m.shemet@moz.gov.ua.
15th February 2024: Ukraine: On Tuesday, 13th February, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed bill 7457 on the Regulation of Cannabis Plant Circulation for Medical and Industrial Purposes, and Scientific and Scientific-Technical Activities. The bill, in addition to legalising medical cannabis, would increase the maximum permissible content of THC for industrial hemp to 0.3% (currently 0.08%); however, in the first three years after entry into force, the maximum level will be 0.2%. The law will enter into force six months after its publication, which will be approximately in the middle of August 2024.
1st February 2024: Ukraine: First deputy minister of agrarian policy and food, Taras Vysotskyi, has said that the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food has started preparing a draft order on the creation of an e-register of industrial hemp producers and a separate draft government resolution on regulating hemp sampling in order to check the content of narcotic substances, media reports.
17th January 2024: Ukraine: Yesterday (16th January), the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) unblocked the signing of bill 7457 on medical cannabis, media reports. Members from the opposition "Batkivshchyna" faction had registered a draft resolution to block the decision of the Verkhovna Rada to adopt the bill, but it did not receive the minimum required number of votes. The bill can now be sent to the president for his signature.
8th January 2024: Ukraine: The parliament adopted bill 7457 on medical cannabis on 21st December 2023. Next, the bill should be signed by the president. If signed, it would enter into force three months after its official publication. However, members of parliament from the opposition Batkivshchyna faction registered a draft resolution to block the decision of the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) on adopting the bill in the second reading. According to the parliamentary regulations, the registration of this type of draft resolution means that the chair of the parliament cannot submit the bill to the president for signature until the parliament unblocks the Batkivshchyna's proposal. Parliament plans to meet as early as this month.
11th December 2023: Ukraine: Signatures have been collected in the parliament in order to launch a special procedure for consideration of bill 7457 on medical cannabis, media reports. If the majority approves the special procedure in the plenary, it will be possible to bypass a large number of amendments to the bill that have been recently submitted by the opposition and start its second reading.
23rd November 2023: Ukraine: Batkivshchyna, the small opposition party that opposes medical cannabis legalisation, has submitted dozens of amendments to bill 7457 that would legalise medical cannabis in the second reading, media reports. As reported, the party wants most of these amendments to be considered by the parliament session hall, which would drag out time and may prevent the law from passing.
6th November 2023: Ukraine: Last week, the parliamentary Committee on National Health, Medical Assistance and Medical Insurance reviewed technical changes and recommended adopting the final version of bill 7457 on the legalisation of medical cannabis in the second reading, media reports.
11th October 2023: Ukraine: The Verkhovna Rada’s (parliament) Committee on National Health, Medical Care and Health Insurance advises the adoption of bill 7457 on the legalisation of medical cannabis in the second reading, media reports.

Regulatory reports

Comprehensive legal reports outlining how the sector is regulated, interpretation of the laws and relevant bodies

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