On 15 May 2021 an amendment to the Federal Narcotics Act has come into force allowing pilot trials involving the dispensing of Cannabis for non-medicinal purposes. These trials are intended to create the basis for the future legal regulation.
On 25 September 2020, Parliament passed an amendment to the Federal Act on Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances (NarcA). With its new Article 8a NarcA, the revised Act provides a legal basis for conducting scientific pilot trials with cannabis that are limited in terms of both time and place.
The amended act has come into force on 15 May 2021 and will remain in effect for ten years. An ordinance on pilot trials in accordance with the Narcotics Act sets forth the requirements to be met for conducting the pilot trials and the details concerning the applications procedure (see Documents).
What is the aim of this new regulation?
Why implement these pilot trials in Switzerland?
What are these pilot tests about?
What can these trials teach us?
How do these pilot trials differ from the status quo?
The aim is to increase knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of controlled access to cannabis, and to provide a sound scientific basis for possible decisions on the way the approach to cannabis is regulated.
Growing, importing, producing and selling cannabis is prohibited in Switzerland. Despite this ban, consumption is widespread, the black market is thriving, and users’ safety is not guaranteed.
In view of this unsatisfactory situation, parliament decided to amend the Narcotics Act (NarcA) to create the possibility for a limited period of ten years to test the impact of new regulatory approaches to the way cannabis is handled. The new legislation allows pilot trials to be conducted on non-medical cannabis use in adults. The aim is to provide a sound scientific basis for possible decisions on the design of cannabis regulation
The pilot trials look at the use of cannabis by adults for recreational purposes. They do not cover medically prescribed cannabis use for medicinal purposes.
The pilot trials are designed to give us a better understanding of the effects of controlled access to cannabis on the physical and mental health of users and on behaviour linked to cannabis consumption. In addition, the study will look at socio-economic aspects, such as the effects on users’ work capacity (absenteeism) and on their family and social relationships. These scientific studies may also examine the impact on the local black market and the protection of young people and public safety. However, the specific research questions will be decided by the relevant research projects.
As part of these scientific studies, users will be able to legally purchase various cannabis-based products, the quality of which will be highly regulated. As well as receiving product information, participants will be made aware of the risks of cannabis consumption by staff at the points of sale who will be trained accordingly. Resort to the black market will thus be ruled out, because the supply chains, from seed to product distribution, will be monitored and strictly controlled. The pilot trials are subject to strict requirements in terms of the protection of minors and health protection, and a total ban on advertising.
Documents
Legal basis
Questionnaire for pilot trials with Cannabis
- FOPH standard questionnaire for participants in the pilot trials with cannabis (PDF, 936 kB, 20.03.2023)German version
Federal Office of Public Health, 2023
- Instruction to the use of FOPH standard questionnaire for participants in the pilot trials with cannabis (PDF, 312 kB, 20.03.2023)German version
Federal Office of Public Health, 2023 - Instruction to the module "competency in lower-risk cannabis use” (PDF, 452 kB, 20.03.2023)German version
Federal Office of Public Health, 2023
Scientific and technical basis
A research agenda for the regulation of non-medical cannabis use in Switzerland (PDF, 2 MB, 18.08.2021)in English, executive summary in German, French, Italian
Roman Zwicky et al.
Universität Zürich, Institut für Politikwissenschaft, Forschungsbereich Policy-Analyse & Evaluation, 2021
Health protection, youth protection and prevention: Orientation framework for the pilot tests with cannabis (PDF, 826 kB, 01.06.2021)Infodrog, 2021
in French
Comparison between the Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the Canadian Good Production Practices for Cannabis (PDF, 593 kB, 14.05.2021)in German
Andreas Lardos
Zürcher Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften
Product quality of cannabis relevant under narcotics law in Switzerland - Recommendations on the control of active substances and the handling of contaminants (PDF, 315 kB, 14.05.2021)in German
Andreas Lardos
Zürcher Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften
Overall concept for protection of health for the pilot trials with cannabis (Curia Vista 19.021)
Report FOPH, Nov 2019 (in french)
Accompanying research on cannabis regulation
You can find further documents in German, French or Italian
Last modification 23.04.2024
Contact
Federal Office of Public Health FOPH
Prevention of Non-Communicable Diseases Division
Schwarzenburgstrasse 157
3003
Bern
Switzerland
Tel.
+41 58 463 88 24