Thailand Will Soon Require ID Cards for Cannabis buds, and Govt Databases Will Keep Track Of Sales

(CTN News) – Soon, Thai citizens will have to provide their ID cards to buy cannabis blossoms. The Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine Department state that the ID and sales data would be added to a government database (DTAM).

The purchasers’ ID must be inserted into a “device” connected to the government system by registered merchants, who must also enter information about the quantity of cannabis bought.

The license of any vendors who don’t submit reports would be canceled, according to the director-general of the department, Dr. Thongchai Lertwilairattanapong.

Once the legislation is published in the Royal Gazette, it will take effect.

It’s unclear now if buying marijuana flowers would require foreigners to provide their ID or passports.

To assist travelers in navigating Thailand’s bizarre marijuana rules and avoid difficulties, the Ministry of Public Health released a handbook titled “10 Things Tourists Need To Know About Cannabis in Thailand” for international visitors.

The instructions made no mention of the need for foreigners to provide identification when buying cannabis buds.

Officials in charge of public health have emphasized time and time again that the decriminalization of the plant in Thailand on June 9, 2022, was done so to promote its medicinal applications and open up business prospects for the Thai people.

But given that there is barely any regulation to control its use, it is difficult to imagine that health professionals are shocked by the surge of cannabis usage for recreational purposes in Thailand.

There are restrictions in place to prevent the former Category 5 drug from being misused, such as the prohibition on selling cannabis to anybody under the age of 20, pregnant women, or nursing mothers.

In Thailand, marijuana is a “restricted herb” with limitations. Cannabis cannot be sold online or via vending machines, and it is not permitted to advertise the sale of cannabis flowers.

More than 7,000 stores have applied for authorization to sell marijuana flowers thus far. Last month, the Ministry of Public Health said it would let more than 5,000 authorized merchants countrywide sell cannabis buds.

According to the ministry, information on sellers and purchasers will be sent to the International Narcotics Control Board to control cannabis consumption.