Cannabis laws in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Tolerated, not legal
Coffeeshop sales are tolerated, not legal, and national policy limits them to residents aged 18 and over — so do not assume tourist access is guaranteed.
Official sources checked November 6, 2026. This is news information, not legal advice. Laws and local penalties change — confirm with the destination's official sources before you travel.
Before you fly
Carrying cannabis across a border is treated separately from possessing it inside the country. Even where buying is legal, taking it onto a plane can be a customs or smuggling offence, and a domestic flight can become an international one the moment you connect somewhere else.
Current law at a glance
- Buying as a visitor
- National policy tolerates coffeeshop sales only for Netherlands residents aged 18 or older, with a 5 g transaction limit, and municipal enforcement varies. Amsterdam's current practice with non-residents was not confirmed from official sources, so treat tourist access as uncertain rather than a right.
- Possession
- Possession is still unlawful nationally. Holding no more than 5 g for personal use is generally not prosecuted — a tolerance threshold, not legalization.
- Smoking in public
- Amsterdam's official visitor guidance bans cannabis smoking in city-centre public areas and publishes a general nuisance-fine range of €100–€650 rather than a cannabis-specific amount. Do not assume you may smoke on any street outside that area.
- Medical cannabis
- Prescribed medicines covered by the Opium Act need a medical declaration to enter the Netherlands; a foreign prescription alone is not enough border paperwork. Whether a Dutch pharmacy will dispense cannabis against your foreign prescription was not verified — arrange it before you travel.
- Home growing
- Growing at home stays illegal. Police generally seize rather than prosecute up to five personal-use plants. The regulated supply-chain experiment that began on 7 April 2025 covers approved commercial growers and coffeeshops, not home growing.
- Borders
- Dutch customs bans taking recreational drugs into or out of the Netherlands, including travel inside the EU. The 5 g tolerance is not a border allowance, and it applies to flights, rail and road as well as ferries.
Key dates and proposed changes
1 January 2013
The residents-only coffeeshop criterion took effect nationally; enforcement still varies by municipality.
Government of the Netherlands — soft-drug toleration policy and coffeeshop rules
7 April 2025
The experimental phase of the regulated commercial cannabis supply chain began. This was not recreational legalization or a home-grow permission.
Government of the Netherlands — coffeeshop supply-chain experiment starts 7 April 2025
6 November 2026 — sources checked
Official national, municipal and customs pages were reviewed. No Amsterdam-specific 2025–2026 tourist-access change or new THC threshold could be verified.
Government of the Netherlands — soft-drug toleration policy and coffeeshop rulesCity of Amsterdam — visitor rules and nuisance penaltiesGovernment of the Netherlands — coffeeshop supply-chain experiment starts 7 April 2025Dutch Customs — narcotics you may not take with you
Practical questions
Can I buy weed in Amsterdam?
Coffeeshop sales are tolerated rather than legalized. National policy points to residents aged 18 or older and a 5 g limit, with enforcement that varies locally. Official confirmation of Amsterdam's practice with non-residents was not available, so check locally before relying on it.
Government of the Netherlands — soft-drug toleration policy and coffeeshop rules
Can I smoke on the street?
Not in the city-centre public areas Amsterdam bans. The city's visitor page lists a general €100–€650 nuisance fine range and does not set a fixed cannabis-smoking amount.
Can I fly home with it, or take it to Belgium?
No. Dutch customs extends the narcotics ban to countries inside and outside the EU, so a coffeeshop receipt is not an export document.
Can I bring cannabis into the country?
Not recreational cannabis. Opium Act medicines need proper medical documentation, and customs says missing paperwork can mean seizure and further action.
Dutch Customs — narcotics you may not take with youDutch Customs — travelling with medicines
Can I use my foreign medical prescription?
Arrange the required medical declaration and any legalization before you travel. Whether a Dutch pharmacy can dispense against your particular foreign prescription was not verified — ask the pharmacy first.
What about CBD?
A traveler-safe CBD THC cutoff could not be confirmed from the official sources checked, and neither could a claimed new 15% recreational threshold. Do not assume a CBD label authorizes import.
Government of the Netherlands — soft-drug toleration policy and coffeeshop rulesDutch Customs — narcotics you may not take with you
Latest Netherlands cannabis news
No Netherlands stories in today's feed. See all of today's cannabis news.
Official sources
- Government of the Netherlands — soft-drug toleration policy and coffeeshop rules
- City of Amsterdam — visitor rules and nuisance penalties
- Government of the Netherlands — coffeeshop supply-chain experiment starts 7 April 2025
- Dutch Customs — narcotics you may not take with you
- Dutch Customs — travelling with medicines