Medical cannabis in Türkiye: the law, pharmacy rules and travel

Cannabis remains a controlled narcotic

Law No. 2313 on the Control of Narcotic Substances prohibits growing hemp solely to make cannabis (esrar) and prohibits preparing, importing, exporting or selling cannabis in any form. Growing hemp without a permit is prohibited whatever the purpose. Growing it to obtain cannabis carries four to twelve years’ imprisonment and a judicial fine; growing it solely for one’s own use carries one to three years.

Under Article 191 of the Turkish Penal Code (Law No. 5237), buying, accepting or possessing a narcotic or stimulant substance for personal use, or using one, is punishable by two to five years’ imprisonment. In such an investigation the public prosecution is deferred for five years, with supervised probation for at least one year, possible treatment and referrals for testing at least twice a year. Breaching the obligations or using again during that period leads to prosecution; complying with them ends in a decision not to prosecute.

Article 188 covers manufacture and trade. Importing or exporting narcotic or stimulant substances without a licence, or contrary to one, carries twenty to thirty years’ imprisonment and a judicial fine. That is why the travel section below deserves careful attention.

SourceMevzuat Bilgi Sistemi · Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi

What the 2025–2026 hemp rules changed

Article 23 of Law No. 2313 makes hemp cultivation subject to a permit from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, whether it is for fibre, seed and stalk or for flowers and leaves used in medical products, health products, non-narcotic personal-care products and support products. Cultivation for those product groups is carried out or commissioned by the state agency Toprak Mahsulleri Ofisi (TMO). An amendment made by Law No. 7557 in July 2025 adds that the Ministry of Health licenses or registers these hemp-derived products and that they may be sold only in pharmacies.

Two regulations published in the Official Gazette on 31 January 2026 put this framework into practice. The cultivation regulation repeals the 2016 hemp regulation, limits fibre, seed and stalk production to 21 named provinces and their districts, and requires an application to TMO for cultivation aimed at medical and health products. That cultivation takes place at sites the regulation specifies, such as TMO’s Afyon Alkaloids Factory or an organised agricultural zone, with perimeter cameras, alarms and security staff.

None of these texts gives individuals a right to grow, buy or carry cannabis. Growing hemp without a permit remains prohibited.

SourceMevzuat Bilgi Sistemi · Resmî Gazete

Hemp-derived medical products: pharmacy only, prescription only

The Ministry of Health’s Regulation on Products Derived from Hemp states that hemp-derived medical products, health products, personal-care products and support products are sold only in pharmacies. Medical products and health products may be dispensed only against a prescription created in the Reçetem information system and may not be sold without one. No hemp-derived medical product may be placed on the market unless TİTCK, the Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency, has licensed it. Support and personal-care products are limited to 0.3% THC.

The regulation does not name a medical specialty that may prescribe, and it does not list approved products. Ask a doctor practising in Türkiye, a pharmacist or TİTCK whether a licensed product exists for your condition. Because dispensing is tied to Reçetem, do not assume that a prescription issued in another country can be filled in a Turkish pharmacy.

For medicines that are not licensed or not on the market in Türkiye, the Regulation on the Supply of Medicines from Abroad lets the patient’s treating doctor apply to TİTCK; supply runs through bodies such as the Social Security Institution (SGK) and the Turkish Pharmacists’ Association (TEB). Approval depends on TİTCK’s assessment of the individual application. TİTCK also publishes lists of medicines that require red or green prescriptions and of monitored medicines issued on normal prescriptions.

SourceResmî Gazete · Resmî Gazete · TİTCK

Bringing cannabis-based medicine into Türkiye

Türkiye is not part of the Schengen area, which the European Commission lists as 29 countries. The Article 75 certificate is issued to residents of a Schengen State travelling to another Schengen State and is valid for at most 30 days, so it does not cover entry into Türkiye.

Turkish consular guidance on ordinary personal medicines allows a reasonable quantity for the length of stay if a health-institution report, doctor’s report or prescription is presented. Cannabis is treated differently. Türkiye’s entry in the International Narcotics Control Board’s traveller database, dated 28 November 2017 and naming TİTCK as the competent authority, states that entering Türkiye with cannabis plant, herb or resin is prohibited; a prescription for cannabis flower, from any country, does not change that. Because the entry predates the 2025–2026 reforms, confirm the current requirements in writing with TİTCK or a Turkish embassy or consulate before you travel.

According to the same entry, only cannabis-containing medical preparations approved by the US FDA or the European Medicines Agency may be brought in by travellers under treatment, on these conditions:

• A supply covering no more than 31 days.
• An INCB model certificate, translated into English and endorsed by the competent authority of the country of departure.
• The original form sent by that authority to TİTCK at least three days before arrival.
• The document declared to border control on arrival and, for stays over 31 days, contact with a specialist physician in Türkiye.

SourceEuropean Commission · EUR-Lex · TİTCK / INCB · T.C. Taşkent Büyükelçiliği

Prepare a lawyer callback about Türkiye

If your question concerns Turkish law, choose Türkiye as the country where advice is needed, even if you live elsewhere. Give a callback number with country code, a supported language and a short factual timeline. If you have received an official document, note its date and any deadline, and keep it to hand for the call.

Useful questions include which procedure applies to you, what obligations and deadlines follow from it and what work falls outside the initial consultation. Keep medical records with your clinician and substantive legal advice with your lawyer; the card’s QR code is not the place to share them.

What CannaCards membership does and does not cover

Türkiye is one of the 50 countries listed for CannaCards membership. The €60 annual membership includes digital and physical membership cards and one 30-minute initial legal consultation per membership year, with a lawyer callback within six elapsed hours for eligible requests under the service terms.

The card is a private membership card. It is not a prescription, a licence or a government ID, and it gives no permission to possess, buy or carry cannabis in Türkiye or anywhere else. The optional one-off €60 medical assessment through CannaCards’ EU clinical network is priced separately and depends on country and language availability; a doctor decides whether any treatment is appropriate. Further legal representation requires its own agreement.