Cannabis law in France

France has one of the strictest cannabis laws in Western Europe. Using, growing or selling cannabis that contains THC is a criminal offence. At the same time, hemp varieties with no more than 0.3% THC, and CBD products made from them, can be grown by farmers and sold legally. Medical cannabis was tested in a national experiment that has now ended, and a permanent scheme is not yet in place.

Use and possession

Illicit use of any narcotic, cannabis included, is an offence under article L3421-1 of the Public Health Code. The maximum penalty is one year in prison and a fine of 3,750 euros [1]. The penalty rises to five years and 75,000 euros when the offence is committed by someone carrying out a public service role or working for a transport company [3]. The law does not distinguish between cannabis and other drugs.

Since the RIPOST law of 18 August 2026, police can close a case of use involving small quantities with a fixed fine (amende forfaitaire délictuelle) of 500 euros, up from 200 euros. It falls to 400 euros if paid within 15 days and rises to 1,000 euros if unpaid after 45 days [3] [4]. Paying the fine means admitting the facts. It ends the prosecution, but it is recorded on the criminal record [3]. According to the Ministry of the Interior, these fines now also appear on bulletin n°2 of the criminal record, which some employers and authorities can consult [4]. Large quantities and drugs such as heroin or crack go to court instead [3].

A court can also suspend the driving licence of a person convicted of use, even if they were not driving. The Ministry of the Interior says the suspension can last up to three years [4].

Public use

There is no place in France where using cannabis is tolerated. Use is an offence wherever it happens, and the fixed fine can be issued when someone is caught using [1] [3].

CBD and the 0.3% THC limit

The hemp framework is set by an order of 30 December 2021. It allows the cultivation, import, export and commercial use of Cannabis sativa L. varieties whose THC content does not exceed 0.3%, provided they are listed in the EU common catalogue or the French official catalogue of plant varieties [2]. Extracts and finished products must respect the same 0.3% limit, and products that exceed it are treated as narcotics [7].

The 2021 order originally banned the sale of raw hemp flowers and leaves to consumers. The Conseil d’État suspended that ban on 24 January 2022 [5] and annulled it on 29 December 2022, finding that a general and absolute ban was disproportionate [6]. CBD flowers within the 0.3% limit can therefore be sold. In an answer to a parliamentary question published on 28 April 2026, the government confirmed that CBD products meeting the 2021 order are exempt from the general ban on narcotics [7].

The same answer notes that the European Commission proposed in July 2025 to harmonise hemp rules across the EU, with the THC limit kept at 0.3% [7]. That proposal had not changed French law at the time of writing.

Home growing

Private individuals may not grow cannabis. Growing cannabis falls under the offence of illegal production in the Penal Code, which carries very heavy maximum penalties, even when the plants are for personal use. In practice, prosecutors often reclassify small personal grows under the possession offence, but the person can still end up with a drug trafficking conviction [12]. Hemp is no exception for individuals: only active farmers may grow hemp for its flowers and leaves, and the sale of hemp plants and the use of cuttings are prohibited [7].

Seeds

Farmers growing hemp must use certified seeds of varieties listed in the official catalogues [2] [7]. For other cannabis seeds, the picture is less clear in official texts. Drogues Info Service, the public drug information service, states that the narcotics ban applies to cannabis seeds as well as other parts of the plant, including when they are sold online [13]. That answer dates from 2014, before the current hemp order.

Driving

Driving after using cannabis is banned whatever the quantity consumed. The same rule applies to the adult accompanying a learner driver [10] [11]. Police can carry out roadside saliva tests even without an accident or offence, and testing is compulsory after an accident causing death or injury [11]. Sécurité routière warns that a test can come back positive several hours, or even several days, after use [11].

According to Service-Public.fr, the penalty is up to three years in prison, a fine of 9,000 euros and the loss of 6 points, rising to five years and 15,000 euros when alcohol is also involved. Courts can suspend or cancel the licence and confiscate the vehicle [10]. Refusing the checks carries the same penalties as a positive test [10] [11].

Age rules for CBD

We could not confirm a specific minimum age for buying CBD in French law. A bill filed in the National Assembly on 15 September 2026 aims to give an explicit legal basis to a ban on selling CBD products to under-18s, which suggests the current rules are not clear [14]. A provision banning the sale of herbal smoking products to minors was also debated during the RIPOST bill [15]. We could not check against a consolidated official text whether it is now in force. This page will be updated when the position is confirmed.

Medical cannabis

France ran a national experiment with medical cannabis from March 2021. No new patients have been admitted since 27 March 2024, and the experiment ended on 31 December 2024 [8] [9]. A transition period lets patients who were already included continue their treatment. It will end three months after the Haute Autorité de santé publishes its opinion, which was still pending in September 2026 [9]. The government notified three draft texts for a permanent framework to the European Commission in March 2025. Under the 2024 social security financing law, cannabis-based medicines will need a five-year ANSM authorisation, with access limited to the last line of treatment and an initial hospital prescription [8]. At the time of writing, there is no route for new patients.

Where cannabis products can be bought legally

There is no legal way to buy cannabis containing more than 0.3% THC in France, for recreational or new medical use [1] [8]. Hemp-derived CBD products, flowers included, can be sold in ordinary retail as long as they come from authorised varieties and respect the 0.3% limit [2] [6] [7].