Pattaya Cannabis Scene After 2025

Last updated October 2026.

Pattaya’s cannabis scene has changed a great deal since the 2025 rules. This article takes a factual look at what licensed dispensaries must now do, why there are fewer shops, and what may come next.

At a glance

After 9 June 2022, dispensaries spread quickly across Pattaya.
Since 26 June 2025, cannabis flower has been a controlled herb, supplied only on prescription.
More than 7,000 shops nationwide did not seek renewal of licences that expired in 2025.
Inspections now focus on major cities and tourist destinations.
A draft Cannabis Control Bill would limit cannabis to medical use, but it is not yet law.

From open shelves to prescriptions

How things looked before June 2025

On 9 June 2022, cannabis was removed from Thailand’s Category 5 narcotics list. Dispensaries then spread rapidly across the country, particularly in Bangkok and in tourist areas. Pattaya moved quickly too: Pattaya Mail described dispensaries opening across the city “like convenience stores”, with tourists and locals buying flower freely. When the prescription rule arrived in mid-2025, local reporting described confusion among owners and customers about what a prescription required and who could issue one, and some shops began to close.

What the 2025 rules changed

A Ministry of Public Health notification that came into force on 26 June 2025 classified cannabis flower as a controlled herb, and our guide to how access to cannabis in Pattaya works explains what this means for customers. For shops in Pattaya, the key changes were:

Prescriptions: licensed shops may only supply flower to people with a prescription from a Thai-licensed practitioner, covering no more than 30 days.
No smoking on site: shops may not sell cannabis for smoking on their premises.
No online sales or advertising: sales through electronic channels and vending machines are banned, as is advertising in any channel.
Traceable supply: flower must come from a GACP-certified Thai farm.
Restricted locations: sales are banned at temples, dormitories, public parks, zoos and amusement parks.

Two columns showing what the June 2025 controlled herb rules require, such as a prescription and GACP-certified supply, and what they ban, such as smoking on the premises, online sales and advertising. — Sources: Bangkok Biznews; Thai Law Online.

Fewer shops, more enforcement

Fewer shops

Official figures are published for Thailand as a whole rather than for Pattaya, but they show the scale of the change. At the end of December 2025, there were 18,433 cannabis establishments nationwide. Of the 8,636 licences that expired during 2025, only 1,339 renewal applications were filed, meaning more than 7,000 shops did not seek renewal. A further 4,587 licences were due to expire in 2026 and 5,210 in 2027.

In September 2026, the Public Health Minister said more than 10,000 shop and cultivation locations had been recorded in the government’s tracking system, covering over 95% of sites. The minister added that operations outside the system may be presumed to be illegal.

Inspections and enforcement

Enforcement has increased steadily. By late May 2026, the Ministry of Public Health reported 9,158 establishments inspected nationwide, 2,149 licences suspended, 418 licences revoked and 394 offenders prosecuted. In August 2026, the ministry reported inspections of more than 1,300 establishments, and it has said inspections will focus on major cities and tourist destinations. Pattaya City officials are among the local authorities that can inspect shops, seize products and pursue prosecutions, alongside provincial governors and district chiefs.

National figures on Thailand's cannabis shops: licence renewals in 2025 and inspections, suspensions, revocations and prosecutions by late May 2026. — Sources: Asia News Network; Thairath Online; The Star.

In June 2026, the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine (DTAM) published penalty guidelines for licensed shops. Selling without a prescription can bring a 90-day suspension. Selling without a prescription to people under 20, students, or pregnant or breastfeeding women, allowing smoking on the premises, or selling online can lead to revocation.

What licensed shops look like now

The shops that remain operate very differently from the 2022 to 2024 period. For a closer look at what happens inside a shop on Pattaya 3rd Road, see our guide to visiting a cannabis dispensary in Pattaya. The main requirements are:

Premises and status: since April 2026, shops applying for or renewing a licence must own or lawfully occupy their premises, have proper storage, and hold a qualifying status such as a medical facility, pharmacy or herbal product business.
Trained staff: at least one DTAM-trained staff member must be present during opening hours, and premises need an effective odour and smoke elimination system.
Licence stickers: provincial public health offices are issuing licensed shops with colour-coded stickers showing their licence expiry year and an eight-digit establishment code. Red stickers mark licences expiring on 31 December 2026, yellow 2027 and green 2028.
Checking a shop: customers can check a shop on DTAM’s MC-GIS map or the Mor Prom app.

Visitors, and what comes next

Leaving Thailand

Another change affects visitors leaving Pattaya. Since 17 June 2026, the Customs Department has fined people caught trying to take cannabis out of Thailand 30,000 baht per kilogram, on top of confiscation. Between October 2025 and June 2026, Thai authorities recorded 3,309 cannabis cases, most of them attempted exports. A Thai prescription does not allow cannabis to leave the country.

The draft Cannabis Control Bill

On 22 September 2026, the Cabinet approved a draft Cannabis Control Bill that would limit cannabis strictly to medical use. Under the draft, shops that are not medical facilities would have to become one, with a doctor on the premises, before they can renew their licences. The Public Health Minister estimated that more than half of current shops would need to make that change.

The bill now goes to the House of Representatives, and it is not yet law. With licences expiring in waves through 2028, the way Pattaya’s licensed shops operate is likely to keep changing as each one comes up for renewal.

Key takeaways

If you have questions about how the rules work in Pattaya today, you are welcome to visit our store on Pattaya 3rd Road or contact the CannaBuri team. We are happy to explain.

This article is general information, not legal or medical advice.

Pattaya’s Cannabis Scene After the 2025 Rules

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