Cannabis laws of Canada by province or territory

Although the federal government passed the Cannabis Act, also known as Bill C-45, Cannabis in Canada remains illegal for recreational use until the Act comes into force. Police and prosecution services in all Canadian jurisdictions are currently capable of pursuing criminal charges for cannabis (legal term marijuana) possession and for marketing without a license issued by Health Canada.^[1][2][3]

Summary

Although the Cannabis Act will allow for legal use of cannabis, provinces and territories will be allowed to enact restrictions and regulations regarding sale, distribution, and use of cannabis.

Province	Minimum age for use	Residents can grow at home for personal use only	Home storage limit (grams)	Plants per household	Allows use in public	Will be sold by private retailers (under provincial government oversight)	Will be sold by public and private retailers (under provincial government oversight)	Will be sold by government run retail locations	Physical stores	Online sales	Mail order	Possession limit (grams)
Alberta	18	Yes[4]	No possession limits in private residences.[5]	4. Renters and condo-dwellers may be restricted by rental agreements or condominium bylaws.[6]	Only where tobacco may be smoked.[5]	Yes	Yes	Yes	250 expected by the end of 2018.[7][8] Stores would have to be physically separate from stores that sell alcohol, tobacco or pharmaceuticals. Stores would not be allowed to sell anything but cannabis and cannabis-related products.[9]	Online sales will be run by the province[10]	Yes[11]	Up to 30 per person[4]
British Columbia	19	Yes		4	There is a ban on smoking or vaping cannabis in playgrounds, schools, and other public areas used by kids. Can be mostly used where tobacco is smoked.		Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Manitoba	19	No Yes with a medical license[12]		None[5]	No[13]	Yes			Yes, 30 locations in a first phase.[13]
New Brunswick	19		None[13]	4[5]	No[5]				20 cannabis stores will be open in October 2018.[5]	Yes[5]
Newfoundland and Labrador	19	Yes			No	Yes	Yes[5]		Yes[5]	Yes[5]
Northwest Territories	19			4[5]	Yes, on trails, highways, streets, roads and in parks when they are not in use for public events.[5]				Yes, in privately-run liquor stores[5]	Government-operated online sales[5]
Nova Scotia	19	Yes[9]		4[9]				Yes[5]	Yes[5]	Yes[5]		Up to 30 per person[9]
Nunavut	19	Yes	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD	TBD	No	No	Yes
Ontario	19	Yes, you will be able to grow up to four plants per residence (not per person).[14] However, if you live in a multi-unit building like an apartment or condo, whether you can grow cannabis or smoke it on the premises depends on your building’s rules or lease agreement. Landlord can refuse to rent to a tenant if they want to grow pot on the premises.[15]		4[5]	Yes, anywhere tobacco can be smoked.[16][17][18] Private residences – this does not include residences that are also workplaces (e.g. long-term care and/or retirement homes) Many outdoor public places (e.g. sidewalks, parks) Designated guest rooms in hotels, motels and inns Residential vehicles and boats that meet certain criteria (e.g. have permanent sleeping accommodations and cooking facilities, and are parked or anchored) Scientific research and testing facilities (if the cannabis use is for scientific research and testing purposes) Controlled areas in: long-term care homes certain retirement homes residential hospices provincially-funded supportive housing designated psychiatric facilities or veterans’ facilities[14]	Yes[19][20][21][22][23]	Yes[24][25][26][27][28]	Yes[29][30][31][32][33]	150[9] will be in operation by 2020.[5] The province plans 40 stores by October 2018 with the first 4 being located in Toronto, Kingston, Guelph and Thunder Bay.[34] followed by 14 other cities including Brampton, Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Mississauga, Ottawa, Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Thunder Bay, Toronto, Vaughan and Windsor.[35]	Yes		Up to 30 grams per person[36]
Prince Edward Island	19	Yes		4[13]	No					Yes[9]
Quebec	18	No	150	Not permitted[13]	Yes, anywhere tobacco can be smoked.[37]			yes[9]	15 by October 17, 2018[9]	Yes		Up to 30 per person and up to 150 per home
Saskatchewan	19	Yes		4[38]	No[13]	Yes	Yes[13]		Yes	Yes
Yukon	19	Yes	4[5]	4[9]	No			Yes (At least one)	At least one cannabis store to be opened in Whitehorse in October. Private retailers may be allowed in the future.[5]	Yes		Up to 30 per person

Alberta

Bill 26 was introduced in November, 2017 and will make cannabis consumption legal for persons 18 years of age and older.^[39] The bill received royal assent on December 15, 2017.^[40] Under the bill, private retailers may sell cannabis to the public, but online sales are reserved to the provincial government.^[41] As early as mid 2017, 45,000 citizens had provided input to Calgary city government for regulations on retail establishments and 60 stakeholders wanted to be part of post-draft regulation process.^[42]

The minimum age to use cannabis will be 18 (the federal minimum) which Alberta shares with Quebec, with all other provinces setting the age at 19. Alberta will also allow public smoking of cannabis, to fall under the same restrictions as public smoking of tobacco.^[43]

British Columbia

After public consultation, British Columbia released a provincial regulatory framework for the sale and use of cannabis. The framework proposes the minimum age to possess, purchase and consume cannabis will be 19 years old, which is the same age to buy alcohol. There will a government-run wholesale distribution model, although private and publicly run retail stores will operate. Cannabis will be allowed to consume in any public area where vaping and smoking is permitted, however, if the area is frequented by children, cannabis will be banned. Drug impaired driving will continue to be illegal.^[44]

Manitoba

In December 2017, Manitoba introduced the Safe and Responsible Retailing of Cannabis Act, detailing their intent for legal commerce. The age for use is set at 19, and communities will be allowed to opt-out of cannabis sales by plebiscite. Home-growing of cannabis will be prohibited. Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries will source all cannabis to retailers, where it will be sold in private-sector stores.^[45]

New Brunswick

In 2017 the provincial government announced that crown-run New Brunswick Liquor Corporation would take charge of opening up to 20 cannabis stores in the province.^[46]

Proposed new laws in the province include limiting adults to carrying 30 grams of cannabis (with no limit inside the home), and requiring that cannabis in the home be stored in a locked container or room. Smoking cannabis will be banned in public places.^[47]

Newfoundland and Labrador

In contrast with other Atlantic provinces, NL will allow cannabis to be sold by licensed private retailers, though distribution and regulation will be run by the province's crown corporation Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corporation. The purchase age will be set at 19.^[48]

Northwest Territories

NWT will set the legal age for cannabis use at 19. Smoking will be allowed on private property, and public smoking will be "restricted in certain areas".^[49] The Northwest Territories Liquor Commission will manage all import and distribution of cannabis, through retail outlets and by-mail. Similar to alcohol regulations, communities will be able to hold plebiscites to opt-out of cannabis sales in their jurisdiction.^[50]

Nova Scotia

Cannabis will be sold alongside alcohol at current stores run by the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation. The age of purchase is set at 19.^[51]

Nunavut

Due to delays caused by the October 30th territorial election in 2017, Nunavut will be the last territory to announce its legal cannabis framework.^[52]

Ontario

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario would be the sole vendor but not through the 651 stores that sell alcoholic beverages.^[53][54] Instead, a new subsidiary called the Ontario Cannabis Retail Corporation (OCRC)^[55] will initially open 40 outlets branded as the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) in 2018;^[56] by July 2019, there should be 80 OCS outlets. Ontario Cannabis Retail Corp. will handle online cannabis sales and wholesale distribution to private retailers. The product will also be marketed through online sales, with online and in-store platforms developed for OCS by Shopify.^[56][57]

In Ontario, there will be 29 stores by July 2018. Cities include: ^{[58] [59]}

Prince Edward Island

In December 2017, PEI announced preliminary regulations for the 2018 federal legalisation of cannabis. Per the plan, the Prince Edward Island Liquor Control Commission will administer all cannabis shops, which will be standalone stores, and the purchasing age will be fixed at age 19.^[60]

A public survey was held in August and September 2017, asking residents their opinions on legal age, commerce, etc. The survey received over 3,000 responses.^[61]

Quebec

The Société québécoise du cannabis will be the only legal entity to transport or sell cannabis at the retail level. In contrast to the common age minimum of 19 in most provinces, in Quebec the age limit will be 18. Also home-growing will not be permitted.^[62]

Saskatchewan

In March 2018, the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority released its framework for distribution, sale and use of cannabis. This framework includes setting the minimum age for non-medicinal cannabis consumption at 19 years of age. Legislation is being considered to prohibit the possession by a minor. Consuming cannabis in public spaces will be prohibited and drug-impaired driving will continue to be illegal. The province will adopt the federal minimum standards around home production, including a limit of four plants per household.^[63]

Yukon

For Yukon's proposed framework, the territory plans to have one government-owned physical store in the main city of Whitehorse, and online sales to reach more distant communities. The minimum age for cannabis use will be 19.^[64]

Canadian Indian reserves

While various First Nations communities have differing approaches to the prospect of a legal cannabis economy, First Nations leaders have called for more local control of the cannabis economy on their reserves.^[65]

See also

• Legal history of cannabis in Canada
• Cannabis in Canada
• Legality of cannabis by U.S. jurisdiction
• Legality of cannabis by country

References