One week away from the symbolic “420” celebration, Czech cannabis lovers might have a new reason to smile. The Czech Republic plans to introduce a new regulated cannabis market allowing the consumption of up to 5 grams of cannabis per day for recreational purposes, and to legalize its cultivation and distribution.
The newspaper Seznam Zpravy reports that under new government plans, consumers will have to register in a database, and growers and sellers will have to pay annual fees. According to the state drug policy coordinator, Jindřich Vobořil, and the Pirate Party, the proposal could earn the government about 2 billion Czech crowns (85 million euros) a year.
Legalization is still in draft form and will be debated in the Czech parliament this month. If approved, it could be implemented as early as next year.
Currently, possession of small amounts of cannabis is decriminalized in the Czech Republic, but smoking cannabis for recreational purposes remains technically illegal. Cannabis for medical use has been legal since 2013.
“The cannabis black market is growing across Europe. In the Czech Republic, it seems that we have reached its ceiling, and I don’t see many other options to prevent it from working, other than to take the request and send it to legal sellers” said the coordinator drug policy, Jindřich Vobořil
More money, more control
Besides generating revenue, Jindřich Vobořil explains that the purpose of a strictly controlled market is to increase consumer protection while ensuring the safety of the cannabis produced. The Czech government also wants to better control the amount of cannabis on the market.
The anti-drug coordinator claims that approximately one million people use illegal cannabis in various forms in the Czech Republic every year.
Taxes and licenses
Under its new plans, the government would generate money by imposing licensing fees and an excise tax similar to that applied to cigarettes. He would also make money from the legal export of cannabis to other European countries where it would be legal. Growing hemp on large plots of land would cost hundreds of thousands of crowns, and an independent shop wishing to sell cannabis would have to pay an annual tax, starting at around 50,000 Czech crowns (2,000 euros).
According to the draft regulation, cannabis would only be available in specialized stores. Mr. Vobořil also indicates that the government “is working to ban advertising of cannabis products on the market” and that each type of packaging would not contain any advertising or images.
A consumer register
Consumers wishing to buy cannabis in stores will have to register their details in a special register. They will only be able to buy a limited quantity of cannabis per month, in order to prevent them from reselling their legal cannabis.
