If you’re here, you’re probably confused about Virginia’s cannabis laws. You may have heard that Virginia is a “recreational state,” but come to find out that there are no recreational dispensaries anywhere, as of 2024. We’re here to answer all of your questions, including what is legal and what’s not, and how you can still find the best cannabis in Virginia in 2024.
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What are Virginia’s cannabis laws in 2024?
Medically legal since 1979
Technically, medical cannabis has been legal in Virginia since 1979, when VA legislators passed a bill allowing doctors to recommend it to patients for Glaucoma and chemotherapy side effects. The first medical dispensary opened in 2020. Today, there are 5 medical processors in the state of Virginia, including 1 processor for each health district in the state, making them monopolies of that region.
Recreationally legal since 2021
Cannabis first became decriminalized in 2020, meaning people could no longer be arrested for simple possession. Soon after, in 2021, Virginia legislators legalized recreational cannabis, allowing cannabis users to grow their own, possess, and consume in private.
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So what’s legal and what’s not?
We’re just going to get this out of the way and mention that recreational dispensaries are unfortunately, not legal yet. But keep reading!
According to the Virginia Cannabis Control Authority, the regulatory and enforcement agency in charge of overseeing the medical and recreational cannabis programs in Virginia, here’s what you should know about cannabis in Virginia:
Legal in 2024
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- Adults over 21 may possess up to 1 ounce of Cannabis in public.
- Adults over 21 may consume cannabis in any private residences.
- Must have permission if you do not own the property.
- Adults over 21 may grow their own cannabis in a private residence.
- Must have permission if you do not own the property.
- Allowed up to 4 cannabis plants per household (not per person).
- Must be kept away from public’s sight.
- Must be kept away from people under the age of 21.
- Adults over 21 may share or gift up to 1 ounce of cannabis to one another.
- Gifting must not be made in conjunction with or contingent upon a sale of a product or service.
- Adults over 18 may receive a doctor’s certification to purchase cannabis from a medical dispensary within the state.
- Any minor may receive a doctor’s certification to use medical cannabis, but must have legal guardian purchase until they are of legal age.
- Must have a Virginia address.
- This certification is valid for 1 year and must be renewed yearly.
- Medical licenses from other states are not valid in Virginia.
Illegal in 2024
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- Sale/Distribution of cannabis is not legal (no recreational dispensaries)
- Public consumption is not legal.
- Public possession of over 1 ounce is not legal.
- Possession of over 1 pound in your private residence is not legal.
- Possession and/or consumption by people under 21 years of age (unless you have a doctors recommendation).
- Using cannabis in a motor vehicle, whether driving or passenger, is not legal.
- Crossing state lines is not legal, and becomes a federal offense.
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How do I get my cannabis then?
Well, there are currently 3 ways to get your cannabis in Virginia. 2 are legal, one is not.
Black Market Cannabis
This one, as you probably already know, is not legal; and while we are all for a free market where everyone is able to participate in the commerce of Cannabis, there are some major concerns to consider when purchasing from black market vendor. This cannabis is unregulated, so producers aren’t required to test for potency or contaminants. You run the risks of having a heavily underdosed or overdosed product, and consuming residual solvents, pesticides and microbiological contaminants such as bacteria and mold!
Medical Dispensaries
Unless you are a permanent Virginia resident and have gotten a doctor’s recommendation for medical cannabis, you won’t be allowed to shop at a medical dispensary in VA. Even if you have successfully jumped through these hoops, you are subject to the medical processor’s prices; because there is only a single producer in each health region, Virginia medical processors are known to price gouge since there is no competition for consumers to turn to for more affordable cannabis. Medical dispensaries are required to test all their products which is a start, but again, without competition, you are ultimately limited to their selection, whether the quality meets your standards or not.
Hemp Stores
Hemp stores are your federally legal source of quality cannabis in 2024. You can shop online and have the best cannabis shipped directly to your house! Allow us to explain!
Hemp and cannabis (when grown for cannabinoids like THC and CBD) are the same female plant. For a cannabis plant to legally be “hemp,” it must contain less than 0.3% Delta 9 THC on a dry weight basis. For this reason, many people believe they cannot get high from hemp derived THC, but in fact, you do not measure a cannabis edible’s potency by the percentage of THC, but rather by the milligrams of THCin the edible. We dive deeper into potency and dosing recommendations here. Since the 0.3% requirement is based on the weight of the finished cannabis product, you can easily meet the 0.3% threshold while having a significant amount of THC milligrams in an edible (that typically weighs several thousand milligrams). Learn more about hemp versus cannabis derived THC here.
This 0.3% Delta 9 THC threshold is also what allows us to sell top tier (natural) cannabis flower and concentrates, legally, across the country. When you buy weed from a medical or recreational dispensary, what you’re buying is cannabis flower with high amounts of THCA, the precursor to Delta 9 THC. Even though it converts into D9 THC simply with heat in a process called “decarboxylation,” because THCA is technically a different cannabinoid, cannabis flower with high amounts of THCA is federally compliant if the D9 THC concentration is < 0.3%. You can find cannabis flower with THCA content ranging anywhere from 15-40%; and with an 87.7% conversion rate, you’ll understand that this federally legal cannabis is just as potent and high quality as cannabis that you buy in a medical or recreational dispensary. Read more about THCA flower here.
Certain states, including Virginia are subject to hemp regulations which require third party lab testing on all ingestible products, as well as child resistant packaging and labeling requirements for complete transparency on a product’s potency. This should give you peace of mind knowing that your cannabis product is pure and accurate.
Any ingestible hemp product must EITHER be at least a 25:1 ratio of CBD:THC (for example, a gummy that contains 5mg of THC must also contain 125mg of CBD), OR the product must contain no more than 2mg of THC per package, in order to legally be sold in Virginia stores.
Many compliant edibles are available in Virginia stores such as these THC gummies and THC chocolates. THCA flower and THCA concentrates are also available in Virginia stores as of May 1st, 2024, however, this will change once the Office of Hemp Enforcement begins enforcement of hemp smokables later this year.
Even though Virginia stores can’t sell certain hemp derived THC products, you can still legally purchase them online from another state. According to the 2018 Farm Bill which federally legalized hemp production and commerce, states can establish their own regulations to enforce within their ownjurisdiction but CANNOT interfere with interstate commerce of hemp goods. So as long as you purchase hemp derived THC or THCA products from a state where the sale of those products is legal, you are free to have these items shipped to you, anywhere in Virginia. Consumers are protected and are allowed to possess both hemp derived products, as well as recreational cannabis in Virginia.
The Solution to your Cannabis Dilemma in Virginia
If you are local or visiting, you can visit our retail location in Virginia Beach, VA where we have so many amazing Virginia compliant THC edibles and more! Additionally, we offer so much more on our website. All the cannabis products that you could ever want can be shipped directly to your door, legally and discretely from The Hemp Spectrum.
