Adults in Luxembourg will in future be allowed to keep up to four cannabis plants in their home and garden.

Several government ministers announced this on Friday.

This makes the Grand Duchy the first European state to legalize both the cultivation and consumption of cannabis.

The aim is to fight against drug crime.

Johanna Christner

Editor in the section “Germany and the World”.

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In addition, according to the Luxembourg government, the trade in cannabis seeds will also be allowed, without any regulation regarding the number of seeds or their content of the psychoactive substance tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

This legalizes the purchase of seeds in stores, from imports or in online stores.

Whether home gardeners set up their up to four plants in the living room or in the garden is up to them.

However, the regulation applies per household and not per person.

The consumption and possession of cannabis in public remains prohibited, and with the exception of seeds, no trade in cannabis products is permitted.

However, the use and possession of cannabis in public places is now punished differently than before: Anyone carrying up to three grams of the herbal drug will not commit a crime in the future, but an offense.

Such a person does not appear in a person's criminal record.

In addition, a lower fine than before is to be expected: While the fine ranged from 251 to 2500 euros, it should be reduced to between 25 and 500 euros. 

The measures are part of a bill to be presented in early 2022.

Comprehensive plans for a national production chain and state-regulated sales have so far been delayed by the corona pandemic.

Luxembourg is not the first country to take the step of legal cultivation, but follows Canada, Uruguay and eleven states in the USA.