Dear Herb: Can I legally import cannabis from abroad?

There's lots of weed in the world, but importing it into Canada is a tall order

Posted: Last Modified:

Advertisement

Advertise with us

Dear Herb: Once things are legal here, will I be able to import cannabis from other countries? — Weed from Abroad

Read this article for free:


By clicking the button above, an account will be created and you will begin to receive some of our recommended newsletters. You may opt out of any newsletter by visiting your Email and Communication Preferences page or by clicking "unsubscribe" at the bottom of any email.

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $1.44 a week*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*Billed as $5.77 plus GST every four weeks. After 52 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/08/2018 (2985 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Dear Herb: Once things are legal here, will I be able to import cannabis from other countries? — Weed from Abroad

Dear Weed from Abroad: Perhaps you dream of bringing some true Colombian Gold to Canada, or Jamaican Lamb’s Bread? It’s a nice idea.

Herb answers your questions about legal consumption and growing, the law, etiquette — you name it, he'll look into it.
Herb answers your questions about legal consumption and growing, the law, etiquette — you name it, he'll look into it.

Unfortunately, the short answer is no, you will not be able to import cannabis from outside of Canada unless you meet some specific criteria.

The rules for importing and exporting cannabis from Canada are set out in the federal cannabis regulations, and are fairly extensive. To even think about importing cannabis legally, a company would first need to hold a federal licence to possess cannabis.

Then, that company would have to apply for a special import permit. They’d have to let the government know what kind of cannabis they’re importing, why it’s being imported, how much cannabis it is, how much THC and CBD it contains, plus specific details about where it’s coming from, where it’s going and how it’s getting there.

Related Articles

Dear Herb: Have you already answered my question?
Our advice columnist answers your cannabis-related questions.

Import permits for cannabis will only be issued if the cannabis in question is being imported for “medical or scientific purposes,” or for industrial hemp — so it doesn’t look like any cannabis companies will be importing “recreational” weed into Canada.

Importing (or exporting) foreign cannabis without both a licence and a permit would be illegal, and carries some hefty penalties under the federal Cannabis Act.

An individual such as yourself could face, at best, a fine of up to $5,000, up to six months in prison, or both. At worst, the maximum prison term is 14 years.

That all brings us back to the short answer: no, individuals won’t be able to legally bring foreign cannabis into Canada. If you feel the need to sample some exotic foreign weed, you’d be better off planning a cannabis tour abroad and going straight to the source.

Got a question about cannabis? Herb answers your questions about legal consumption and growing, the law, etiquette — you name it, he’ll look into it.

First, please check this list of questions already answered by Herb. Then, email dearherb@theleafnews.com, or to submit anonymously, fill out the form below.

Please include an email address if you’d like to be notified if Herb answers your question. 

(dearHerbForm)

Advertisement Advertise With Us

Report Error Submit a Tip

Advertisement

Learn more about Winnipeg Free Press Advertising solutions

More Stories

The front lawn of the headquarters of SNC Lavalin is seen Thursday, November 6, 2014 in Montreal. SNC-Lavalin Group Inc. is considering a lawsuit against Chile's state-owned copper mining company, which has terminated its contract with the construction giant. A spokesman for SNC-Lavalin tells The Canadian Press it is looking at all options to determine whether to take legal action. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson

SNC planned U.S. move if no deal: documents

Jordan Press and Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Preview

SNC planned U.S. move if no deal: documents

Jordan Press and Christopher Reynolds, The Canadian Press 5 minute read Thursday, Mar. 28, 2019

OTTAWA - SNC-Lavalin warned federal prosecutors last fall about a possible plan to split the company in two, move its offices to the United States and eliminate its Canadian workforce if it didn't get a deal to avoid criminal prosecution, newly obtained documents show.

The documents, part of a PowerPoint presentation obtained by The Canadian Press, describe something called "Plan B" — what Montreal-based SNC might have to do if it can't convince the government to grant a so-called remediation agreement to avoid criminal proceedings in a fraud and corruption case related to projects in Libya.

Under that plan, SNC would move its Montreal headquarters and corporate offices in Ontario and Quebec to the U.S. within a year, cutting its workforce to just 3,500 from 8,717, before eventually winding up its Canadian operations.

“The government of Canada needs to weigh the public interest impact of the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin," the presentation reads.

Read
Thursday, Mar. 28, 2019

Submit a news tip

1 minute read Monday, Mar. 16, 2026

Submit a news tip

DAVID LIPNOWSKI / THE CANADIAN PRESS “I do see this, actually, as calming the waters,” said Premier Heather Stefanson.

Provincial budget fails to chart new course

Editorial 4 minute read Preview

Provincial budget fails to chart new course

Editorial 4 minute read Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2022

If the 2022 Manitoba budget was intended to provide a lifeline for the Progressive Conservative government, it must surely be considered a failure.

Prior to the budget’s release, Premier Heather Stefanson and her government were teetering on the edge of the political abyss. Manitobans are profoundly unhappy with the government’s performance on most issues, including pandemic management. National polls show Ms. Stefanson is Canada’s least popular premier.

That political context made this budget a high-priority project for the Tories. It was, simply put, their best chance to shed the lingering burden left by former premier Brian Pallister, and rebuild the party brand under a new leader.

Unfortunately, Ms. Stefanson’s first budget remains shackled to the deeply flawed fiscal and political logic that defined the Pallister years. And no single budgetary measure embodies that failure more than the premier’s decision to continue cutting education property taxes.

Read
Wednesday, Apr. 13, 2022
BORIS MINKEVICH / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The Winnipeg Remand Centre is a pre-trial detention centre located at 141 Kennedy Street in downtown Winnipeg, across from the Law Courts building. It houses people waiting for court decisions on their charges or placement in correctional centres. It has a rated capacity of 281 males and 8 females. It is minimum, medium and maximum security facility. (info from webpage) April 21, 2017

Defunding police ‘illogical step’: Pallister

Carol Sanders 5 minute read Preview

Defunding police ‘illogical step’: Pallister

Carol Sanders 5 minute read Tuesday, Jun. 9, 2020

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister says he’s open to channelling justice funding to preventive programs, but questions whether defunding police is the best approach — warning there will always be criminals taking advantage of vulnerable people.

“I think the motivation that lies in frustrations of the actions of some police services — not necessarily here in Winnipeg exclusively, but elsewhere — is justifiable and understandable, and I get it,” Pallister said Tuesday, when asked to comment on the 30,000 signatures collected for a Justice 4 Black Lives Winnipeg petition calling for the abolition of the city police.

“But then moving to defunding police is, to me, an illogical step from that one. Don’t let your frustration lose your common sense... There’s a lot of people out there in vulnerable communities who depend on the police to protect them and make sure they’re safe from the action of criminals.”

There has been a widespread call to restructure police funding in the wake of George Floyd’s death May 25 in Minneapolis.

Read
Tuesday, Jun. 9, 2020

Has the political wind changed?

Gwynne Dyer 5 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

It has been quite a week. First we had “Lula” – Luiz Inácio da Silva (as nobody but his mother ever called him) – defying everybody’s expectations. After winding up two million votes behind his challenger, Flávio Bolsonaro, in the first round of the Brazilian presidential election, he made a “miraculous” comeback in the second.

It was like a man going into a revolving door behind you and coming out in front. At the end of the first round, Lula was two million votes behind; at the end of the second round on Oct. 25 he was four million votes ahead. So how did he win a fourth term without cheating?

That’s what Bolsonaro claims he did, having fled to the United States; Trump, Flávio’s mentor, hints at the same. But Lula’s victory was not miraculous. He only learned to read when he was 10, and at 80 he still refused to have a mobile phone. His team finally made him get one and use it.

He wouldn’t do social media videos, so they created a WhatsApp channel called Lula’s Army, and made him appear on it at least daily. The channel went from zero to 10.8 million viewers in two weeks, and Lula won.

Dear Herb: Can I legally import cannabis from abroad?

Dear Herb: Can I legally import cannabis from abroad?

3 minute read Preview

Dear Herb: Can I legally import cannabis from abroad?

3 minute read Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018

Dear Herb: Once things are legal here, will I be able to import cannabis from other countries? — Weed from Abroad

Dear Weed from Abroad: Perhaps you dream of bringing some true Colombian Gold to Canada, or Jamaican Lamb's Bread? It's a nice idea.

Unfortunately, the short answer is no, you will not be able to import cannabis from outside of Canada unless you meet some specific criteria.

The rules for importing and exporting cannabis from Canada are set out in the federal cannabis regulations, and are fairly extensive. To even think about importing cannabis legally, a company would first need to hold a federal licence to possess cannabis.

Read
Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018