Thai cannabis glossary: the terms investors and operators need

Thai cannabis law has its own vocabulary, much of it translated from Thai and used loosely in English. These are the terms that come up in licences, renewals, deals and the news, defined in plain English. Where a term has its own article, the definition links to it.

The definitions describe the rules as checked on 31 October 2026. They are a guide, not legal advice.

Terms from A to Z

Board of Investment (BOI). The Thai agency that grants tax and other incentives to listed activities. Its current guide names no cannabis or hemp activity. See does the BOI promote cannabis businesses.

Cabinet approval in principle. The Cabinet's agreement to a draft bill's aims. It starts the legislative process; it does not make law.

Cannabis Control Act (draft). The government's draft law approved in principle by the Cabinet on 22 September 2026. As reported, it limits cannabis to medical use. It is not in force.

Category 5 narcotic. A class under the Narcotics Code. Cannabis and hemp extracts above 0.2% THC by weight are Category 5. See extracts and the 0.2% THC line.

CBD. Cannabidiol, a non-intoxicating compound in cannabis and hemp. CBD products need the right licence and, as finished goods, Thai FDA registration.

Certificate of analysis (COA). A laboratory report on a harvest. Since September 2025 a COA for each harvest is one route to proving flower comes from a certified source.

Certified source. A supply that meets the sourcing rule: a GACP-certified farm or a harvest with its own laboratory certificate of analysis.

Controlled herb. The legal status of cannabis flower under the Thai Traditional Medicine Wisdom Act. Selling or processing it for commerce needs a DTAM licence.

Council of State. The government's legal drafting body. It reviews a draft bill before it goes to Parliament.

DTAM. The Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine, part of the Ministry of Public Health. It licenses cannabis flower businesses.

DTAM-trained worker. A worker who has passed DTAM's training. One must be on duty at a licensed shop. The worker need not be a prescriber.

DTAM shop map. DTAM's public online map of registered cannabis shops and cultivation sites, which officials say can be used to check registration.

Eligibility list. The list in Ministerial Regulation No. 2 of underlying licences or certificates a flower licence applicant must hold, applied at renewal too.

Extract production licence. The licence needed to produce cannabis or hemp extracts under the extracts regulation in force since 25 April 2026.

Extracts regulation. The regulation in force since 25 April 2026 that governs extract production and closed it to foreign businesses.

Flower sale licence. The DTAM licence a shop needs to sell cannabis flower. It runs to 31 December of the third year from its year of issue.

Folk healer. A traditional practitioner. A folk healer certificate is on the eligibility list, and folk healers are among the prescribing groups.

Foreign Business Act. The Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542 (1999), which restricts the activities foreign-controlled businesses may carry on in Thailand.

GACP. Good Agricultural and Collection Practices, the cultivation standard DTAM certifies. A GACP-certified farm is a certified source.

Hemp. Cannabis plants with low THC, regulated separately for fibre, seed and extract uses.

House Coordination Committee. The government's committee that schedules bills for the House of Representatives.

Inflorescence. The flower of the cannabis plant, the part that is a controlled herb, raw or processed.

Inspection before renewal. The Prime Minister's direction of 22 October 2026 that licences be renewed only after inspection, not automatically.

Licence term. A shop licence runs to 31 December of the third year from its year of issue, under section 46 of the Thai Traditional Medicine Wisdom Act.

Licensing authority. The office that grants, renews, suspends and revokes licences, DTAM or the provincial public health office.

Medical facility licence. A licence to run a clinic or other health facility. It is on the eligibility list for a flower licence.

Ministerial Regulation No. 2. Ministerial Regulation No. 2 B.E. 2569 (2026), in force since 30 April 2026. It added the eligibility test and licence conditions at renewal.

Ministry of Public Health. The ministry responsible for cannabis policy, DTAM and the Thai FDA.

Narcotics Code. The Narcotics Code B.E. 2564 (2021). It lets the Minister set the Category 5 list by notification.

Narcotics Control Board. The board, served by the ONCB, that approves changes to the narcotics lists and coordinates drug policy.

Nominee. A person who holds shares on behalf of a foreigner to get around the Foreign Business Act. Section 36 makes it an offence for both people. See the nominee trap.

Notification. A ministerial instrument published in the Royal Gazette. Most Thai cannabis rules are notifications, which can change by signature.

Odour and smoke removal system. A licence condition since 30 April 2026: every flower licensee must run an effective system.

ONCB. The Office of the Narcotics Control Board, Thailand's lead drug control agency.

Online sale ban. Selling flower online, by vending machine or other electronic channel is banned and grounds for revocation.

Penalty guideline. DTAM's guideline announced on 22 June 2026 that grades breaches into suspensions and revocation.

Prescribing groups. The seven groups whose members can issue a PT.33: medical practitioners, dentists, pharmacists, Thai traditional medicine, applied Thai traditional medicine and Chinese medicine practitioners, and folk healers.

Prescription regime. The period since 26 June 2025 in which every flower sale needs a prescription.

PT.27. A DTAM report form recording the controlled herb a licensed business takes in. Filed monthly. See PT.27 and PT.28 explained.

PT.28. A DTAM report form recording what a licensed business does with its stock. Filed monthly.

PT.33. The prescription form for cannabis flower, issued by a qualified practitioner. Every flower sale needs one.

Public nuisance rule. Since 15 June 2022, cannabis smell or smoke can be a public nuisance.

Renewal window. The sixty days before a licence expires, in which the renewal must be filed.

Revocation. The cancellation of a licence. A revoked licensee cannot apply for any licence under the Act for two years.

Royal Gazette. The official journal in which Thai laws and notifications are published. A law takes effect from the date it sets.

Suspension. A temporary stop on a licence. Under Ministerial Regulation No. 2, a past suspension lets the authority consider refusing renewal.

Thai FDA. The Food and Drug Administration, which registers foods, cosmetics and medicines, including those with cannabis or hemp ingredients.

Thai Traditional Medicine Wisdom Act. The Protection and Promotion of Thai Traditional Medicine Wisdom Act B.E. 2542 (1999), the law that licenses cannabis flower as a controlled herb.

THC. Tetrahydrocannabinol, the intoxicating compound in cannabis. The 0.2% THC by weight line separates lawful extracts from Category 5 narcotics.

Underlying licence. Another regulated licence or certificate, such as a medical facility licence, that a flower licensee must hold under the eligibility list.

Where to go next

Section 3 of the report, free to read, puts most of these terms to work: the licence term, the renewal test, the prescribing groups and the penalty path. See also Thailand's cannabis timeline.

Sources

• Section 3 of the 2026 report, The rules in force (free to read)
• Nation Thailand, Thai cabinet endorses draft cannabis control bill for medical use, 22 September 2026
• The Star (Bernama), Thailand to tighten cannabis controls and propose tougher penalties, 22 October 2026
• Thairath, DTAM guideline on administrative orders for cannabis shops, 22 June 2026
• Thailand Board of Investment, A Guide to the Board of Investment 2025 (PDF)

This article is market intelligence, not legal advice. Rules change by notification; check the current text with the licensing authority or Thai counsel before you act.