Saint Kitts and Nevis
North America
#17 of 196 worldwide
#9 of 23 in North America
A 2019 court ruling protected private adult use; small amounts are decriminalised.
Score breakdown ▏world average
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Possession · 25%4/10adds 10.0 of 25 points
In May 2019 the High Court ruled that adults may possess and use cannabis in private. Parliament then made possession of small amounts a ticketable infraction instead of a crime — a small fixed fine — first up to 15 g, raised in February 2020 to 56 g. Above that it is a criminal offence.
Personal cultivation · 25%3/10adds 7.5 of 25 points
The same court ruling protects growing in private for personal use, and the 2019 amendments treat five plants or fewer as a ticketable matter rather than a crime. It is tolerated rather than positively licensed.
Punishment & enforcement · 20%5/10adds 10.0 of 20 points
Small amounts and a few plants mean a ticket. Public smoking is fined more heavily, and larger quantities and dealing remain criminal.
Sharing & gifting · 10%1/10adds 1.0 of 10 points
Supply to another person remains an offence. Rastafari sacramental use in registered places of worship is recognised.
Consumption · 10%3/10adds 3.0 of 10 points
Private use by adults is protected. Smoking in public is an offence with a substantially higher fine than simple possession.
Legal access · 10%1/10adds 1.0 of 10 points
No adult-use shops. The Cannabis Act, fully brought into force in April 2023, sets up a Medicinal Cannabis Authority to license supply to patients with qualifying conditions; the authority was only launched in 2025.
More context not part of the score
The Cannabis Act provides licences for cultivation, production and supply of medicinal cannabis only.
Medicinal products through the licensed system as it rolls out; otherwise home-grown only.
Legal under the Cannabis Act for people with a qualifying medical condition, through the Medicinal Cannabis Authority. The system is new and access is still limited.
The 2019 reforms included expungement of past convictions for small amounts.
All sources
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