The Cannabis Act regulates the production, possession, distribution and sale of cannabis in Canada. The objectives of the Act are to prevent youth access to cannabis, protect public health and safety, and reduce criminal activity and the burden on the criminal justice system.
Each province and territory is responsible for developing its own regulations for sales and distribution of cannabis, and can add additional restrictions to the federal legislation, such as increasing the age of access. In addition, individual municipalities can pass bylaws to regulate the use of cannabis locally.
For more information, see our interactive map tool providing a Summary of Provincial and Territorial Cannabis Regulations. The first page displays cannabis regulations by province, while the second page features the full regulatory details. This tool will be updated regularly.
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Interactive Map of Provincial and Territorial Cannabis Regulations
For publications that helped inform these regulations, refer to Clearing the Smoke on Cannabis: Cannabis Use and Driving, Cannabis and Driving: Questions and Answers for Policymaking, Cannabis Regulatory Approaches and Cannabis Regulation: Lessons Learned in Colorado and Washington State. CCSA has also presented briefs and testimony on Bill C-45 and C-46 to the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs and the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology.
CCSA has published briefs to support evidence-based decisions and actions for cannabis policy and practice: Cannabis Legalization: Year One Observations and Composition of Boards Overseeing Retail Cannabis Sales and Wholesale Distribution across Canada.