Palau: Schedule II correction, penalty tables and 1947-2026 history

Small-scale possession is punished by a $500 fine rather thancitation, not prison; giving away under an ounce or less is treated like possessionthe same. Cultivation and sale are felonies carrying up to eight years.

Marijuana is a Schedule III controlled substance under Palau law34 PNC section 3106, but small-scale possessionnot Schedule I.[@pnc34] Possession of two ounces or less is punished by a fine rather than prisoncitation: $500 for a first offence and $1,000 for a secondeach later one, for amounts reported aswith no prison.[@pnc34] More than two ounces up to one pound is a first conviction of one year and up to $3,000, with eleven months normally suspended and counselling or testing required; later convictions reach two ouncesyears and $5,000. People are cited rather[@pnc34] More than jailedone pound reaches ten years and $15,000.[@pnc34] A positive blood or urine test is deemed possession of under one gram.[@pnc34]

pit1, itpnc34

Cultivation is illegalProduction includes planting, cultivation, growing and prosecuted asharvesting.[@pnc34] Unauthorised manufacture or production of marijuana is a felony carrying up to eight years and a $5,000 fine, with no plant-count tier.[@pnc34]

pit1pnc34

FinesSimple possession of two ounces or less is a citation, while cultivation, sale and citations for userslarger possession are felonies.[@pnc34] Enforcement is overwhelmingly methamphetamine-focused; prison forcannabis cases are mainly cultivation and trafficking raids plus simple-possession citations.[@it24] No aggregate cannabis-arrest count is published.[@yearbook23]

itpnc34, pit1it24, yearbook23

TraffickingDelivery or sale of marijuana carries up to eight years and a fine of up to $5,000 — but givingfine.[@pnc34] Giving away less than anone ounce or less without payment is punishedtreated like simple possession, an unusual explicit carve-out for sharinga $500 first citation or $1,000 later.[@pnc34] Selling to a person under 18 who is at least three years younger can double the imprisonment to sixteen years.[@pnc34]

pit1pnc34

UseThere is illegal; Palau has long had one of the highest reported rates ofno standalone cannabis-use offence in the worldTitle 34. Under a drug law signed in May 2026 (RPPL 12-5)[@pnc34] Possession is the hook, testingand since 2026 a positive for an illegal drugblood or urine test is treated asdeemed possession of under one gram.[@pnc34] Public use would likely be charged as possession or a small amountpublic-order offence; no cannabis-specific consumption charge was verified.[@pnc34]

pit1, pinapnc34

None. There is no dispensary, patient programme, club or home-grow right, and no hemp or CBD licensing route.[@pnc34]

pit2pnc34

NoneNo lawful cannabis production. Planting, cultivation, growing and harvesting fall within "production" and carry up to eight years and a $5,000 fine.[@pnc34] No hemp or medical production permission was found.[@pnc34]

pit2pnc34

None.

pit2

NoneNo medical cannabis programme. A Medical Marijuana Act was introduced in 2015 and shelved;, and a later president said he supported medical but not recreational 2021 compassionate-use bill passed first reading without becoming law.[@pit17] There is no licensed cannabis medicine, and advocates have kept pressingprescriber pathway or dispensary.[@pnc34]

pit2pnc34, pit1pit17

A citation is recorded but does not mean custody.[@pnc34] A first marijuana-possession offence may be conditionally discharged and expunged under section 3308, despite the general exclusion of Schedule I and II drugs in the same section.[@pnc34]

itpnc34

No cannabis clubs are known. Trafficking carries up to eight yearsCultivation and supply are prohibited, with one carve-out: giving away less than an ounce is punished like simple possession. Nothingand nothing in the law provides for collective growing.[@pnc34]

pit1pnc34

There is no legal recreational supply for anyone. British travel advice says there are heavy penalties for all drug offences and that possessing even a small amountPossession of an illegal drug can bring a finetwo ounces or less is a prison sentence$500 citation, more than two ounces reaches one year, and more than a pound ten years.[@pnc34]

pit2, fcdopnc34

impairmentunknown

Driving on a highway42 PNC section 514 prohibits driving under the influence of "narcotic drugs is prohibited by 42 PNC section 514. The current code provides one day to one year in prison", a fine up to US$1,000, a onebut the controlled-year licence suspension and upsubstances definition limits "narcotic drug" to 60 hours’ community service. A second conviction within two years raises the minimum imprisonment to 20 daysopium and coca derivatives, fine ceiling to US$2,500 and suspension to two years; a third or subsequent conviction within two years of the second brings at least 90 days’ imprisonment and licence revocation, with no new licence application for three years1974 Trust Territory case held that marijuana is not a narcotic.[@pnc42,pnc34] The 2026 amendment reflected in sections 602 and 609 provides fordrug law adds field sobriety teststesting for "another controlled -substance impairment, subject to adopted rules, lawful arrest" and treats a warning aboutpositive test as possession of under one gram; refusal sanctions. Refusal can result inbring a six-month licence revocation after a judicial hearing checking those conditions and reasonable grounds; nonresident driving privileges are covered too. Section 608’s concentration presumption concerns alcohol, not THC. The implementing field[@pnc42] No standalone cannabis-sobriety rules and drug laboratory cutoffs remain unverifiedDUI offence was verified.[@pnc42]

vehicles2026pnc42, pnc34

Figures reported by the government to the UN drugs office recordUNODC records 2.3 kg of herbal cannabis seized in 2024. The UN publishes them as kilogram equivalents[@unodc_szr] Palau's local market is small and localised, with cannabis processed into cigarettes and countries count seizures differentlysold through small outlets.[@ocindex25] In 2019 police seized and burned over a tonne in Peleliu; in 2021 they found 635 plants, so the figures are not comparable across borders136 joints and about 250 lb; in 2024 they seized 182 plants and $31,600 in cash.[@it19,it21,it24] In 2026 THC gummies hospitalised three women in Koror, and a Meyuns search found 11.52 g of marijuana alongside meth.[@it26a,it26b]

unodc_szr, ocindex25, it19, it21, it24, it26a, it26b

Palau — 34 PNC, Public Health, Safety and Welfare, current as of 1 October 2026 Palau Hybrid Survey 2023 Palau — 2023 Statistical Yearbook Global Initiative — OC Index 2025: Palau profile Pacific Island Times — Where it is illegal but tolerated (14 March 2017) Island Times — Ton of marijuana seized, burnt by NEA (13 August 2019) Island Times — 635 marijuana plants, $18,000 cash seized in Peleliu bust (26 April 2021) Island Times — Police seize marijuana plants, cash in Peleliu drug bust (9 July 2024) Island Times — MOE emphasizes support not expulsion in drug policy clarification (15 August 2025) Island Times — Woman charged after THC gummies allegedly hospitalized three women (17 July 2026) Island Times — Two women charged with drug trafficking after Meyuns apartment search (4 August 2026) GOV.UK (FCDO) — Foreign travel advice: Palau, safety and security PINA / Island Times — Zero-tolerance drug law clears Palau legislature (29 April 2026) Pacific Island Times — The legality of cannabis in Pacific countries (2020) Pacific Island Times — Remengesau backs medical pot, bucks recreational use (2018) Island Times — Teens cited for possession of marijuana 2 unchanged

USD

label Two ounces or less · treatment civil · term Possession · fine 500 · note Citation; $1,000 for each later violation; no prison, label More than two ounces up to one pound · treatment criminal · term Possession · prison 1 year · fine 3000 · note Eleven months normally suspended with counselling or testing; later convictions up to two years and $5,000, label More than one pound · treatment criminal · term Possession · prison 10 years · fine 15000

USD

label Cultivation or production · treatment criminal · term Production · prison 8 years · fine 5000

USD

label Sale or delivery, any amount · treatment criminal · term Delivery · prison 8 years · fine 5000, label Gift of one ounce or less · treatment civil · term Gift · fine 500 · note Treated like possession; $1,000 for each later violation, label Sale to a person under 18 at least three years younger · treatment criminal · term Delivery to a minor · prison 16 years · fine 5000

All recreational use is prohibited. Possession of two ounces or less is a $500 citation, $1,000 for each later violation; more than two ounces reaches one year, and more than a pound ten years.[@pnc34] Cultivation and sale carry up to eight years.[@pnc34] Use is widespread: 15.2 per cent of adults reported past-30-day marijuana use in the 2023 Palau Hybrid Survey, and 41.6 per cent of current users used daily.[@survey23]

pnc34, survey23

none

No legal hemp category or THC threshold. "Marijuana" covers all parts of Cannabis sativa L., growing or not, seeds, resin and every derivative, excluding only mature stalks, stalk fibre, seed oil or cake and sterilised non-germinating seed.[@pnc34] No hemp licensing or pilot programme was found.[@pnc34]

pnc34

illegal

banned

illegal

banned

Marijuana includes seeds, and production expressly includes planting, cultivation, growing and harvesting.[@pnc34] There is no personal seed or clone exception; cultivation carries up to eight years and a $5,000 fine.[@pnc34]

pnc34

No aggregate cannabis-arrest count is published for 2024–2026. The 2023 statistical yearbook recorded illegal marijuana cultivation cases of 11 in 2020, 10 in 2021, 14 in 2022 and 3 in 2023.[@yearbook23] Specific recent cases include 182 plants in Peleliu in 2024, a 14-year-old selling marijuana at Palau High School in 2025, and the 2026 gummies and Meyuns cases.[@it24,it25,it26a,it26b]

yearbook23, it24, it25, it26a, it26b