Is Weed Legal in Belize?

Last reviewed: August 6, 2026

Partly — Belize has decriminalized possession of up to 10 grams of cannabis on private premises, but there is no legal way to buy it, and everything beyond that narrow carve-out remains a crime. The Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Act, No. 47 of 2017 removed criminal penalties and criminal records for small private possession and private smoking, while keeping sale, cultivation, public use, and import fully criminal under the Misuse of Drugs Act. A 2022 bill that would have created a licensed adult-use industry passed the National Assembly but was never brought into force, and it remains shelved as of August 2026. Belize has no medical cannabis program.

Belize Cannabis and Hemp Overview

Belize occupies the awkward middle ground common in the Caribbean: consumption is widespread and small-quantity possession has been softened, but supply is untouched. The 2017 amendment was a criminal-justice measure, not a market reform — its purpose was to stop saddling Belizeans with convictions for a joint, not to let anyone sell one. The follow-on attempt to build a regulated industry, the Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Control and Licensing Bill of 2022, cleared both houses and then collided with organized church opposition demanding a referendum; the government paused enactment, then shelved the referendum itself over its cost. Four years later the licensing framework is still parked, which leaves tourists and locals alike with a decriminalized possession threshold and a wholly illegal supply chain beneath it.

What Belize Law Actually Says

The Misuse of Drugs Act remains the controlling statute. Under the 2017 amendment, possession of 10 grams or less is not an offense when it occurs on private premises — and smoking is lawful only on private premises with the occupier's consent. Possession of 10 grams or less on school premises, or smoking in public, is handled outside the criminal-record system but still draws monetary penalties. Above 10 grams, ordinary criminal liability returns: fines and imprisonment, charges prosecuted in court, and a criminal record. At 60 grams the law presumes trafficking — a threshold documented in analyses of the Act by the Transnational Institute's drug law reform program — and trafficking convictions carry mandatory minimum sentences under the Criminal Justice Act alongside heavy fines. Cultivation of any amount and sale of any amount remain crimes; the Attorney General emphasized when the 2017 reform passed that "it is still very much a crime to grow and retail marijuana."

The Stalled Licensing Bill

The Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Control and Licensing Bill, 2022 would have established a licensing authority and roughly eight license classes covering cultivation, processing, retail, and hemp. It passed the House and Senate in early 2022 with government backing. The National Evangelical Association of Belize then mounted a signature campaign to force a national referendum before the law took effect, and in July 2022 the government shelved the referendum — estimated to cost around BZ$5 million — leaving the bill assented to in limbo and never commenced. No commencement order, replacement bill, or new referendum date has been announced through August 2026, and cannabis played no visible role in the most recent legislative agenda. Until that changes, there is no licensing regime, no legal commerce, and no hemp industry of scale.

What This Means for Travelers

The 10-gram allowance is narrower than most visitors assume. It protects possession and consumption on private premises with the owner's permission — a rented beach house where the landlord consents, for example. It does not create anywhere to buy legally: every purchase, whether in San Pedro, Caye Caulker, or Belize City, is an illegal sale by the seller, and buying puts you in contact with the illicit market and its policing. Smoking on the beach, on the street, or in any public place remains an offense, and hotels are private premises only if management actually permits use, which most do not. Carry more than 10 grams and you are in ordinary criminal territory; reach 60 grams and you are presumptively a trafficker facing mandatory sentencing. Cruise passengers should remember ships follow their flag-state and US rules regardless of Belizean law, and bringing any cannabis across the border or through the airport in either direction is a serious offense. Foreign medical cards have no legal effect in Belize.

What This Means for Operators

There is nothing to license. The 2022 framework never commenced, so cultivation, processing, retail, and export all remain criminal, and no regulator accepts applications. Businesses positioning for an eventual market should track whether a future administration revives the bill or a referendum, but should assume no legal sales channel exists today — including for CBD, which occupies an unregulated gray zone with a nascent, locally supplied hemp scene and no lawful import pathway for finished products. Anyone marketing cannabis products to tourists in Belize is operating illegally.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can tourists legally buy weed in Belize?
No. Decriminalization covers possession only. There are no licensed sellers, so every purchase is an illegal transaction, and vendors offering cannabis to tourists are committing supply offenses.

Can I smoke on the beach or in public?
No. The 2017 amendment protects consumption only on private premises with the occupier's consent. Public smoking remains punishable.

What happens if I'm caught with under 10 grams?
On private premises, nothing — it is not an offense. In public, expect the cannabis to be seized and a monetary penalty rather than a criminal charge, provided you are at or under 10 grams.

What happens above 10 grams?
Ordinary criminal prosecution with fines or imprisonment. At 60 grams the law presumes trafficking, which carries mandatory minimum sentences.

Is there medical marijuana in Belize?
No. Belize has no medical cannabis program and does not recognize foreign prescriptions or patient cards.

Will Belize legalize cannabis sales?
A licensing law passed the National Assembly in 2022 but was paused pending a referendum that was itself shelved over cost. As of August 2026 the bill remains parked and no new timetable exists.

This page is provided for informational purposes by ComplyAssistAI LLC and is not legal advice. Belizean drug law leaves meaningful discretion to police and courts, and rules change. Travelers and operators should verify current requirements with Belizean counsel. Find one in our Cannabis Lawyer Directory.