Cayman Islands
North America
11/100
Not ranked: British Overseas Territory
would rank #80 among countries
Cannabis possession, use, growing and supply remain criminal offences. A doctor may prescribe extracts and tinctures through the medical route introduced in 2016. Voters backed decriminalising small amounts in April 2025; after a public consultation, the premier expected reform recommendations and supporting legislation in November or December 2026.
British Overseas Territory. The Cayman Islands are a British Overseas Territory with their own parliament and drug laws. The United Kingdom answers for them internationally, so any reform must fit the UN drug conventions the UK has signed. See also 🇬🇧 United Kingdom.
In short all countries →
- Can I carry it?NoIt is a crime
- Can I grow it?NoIt is a crime
- Can I buy it?LimitedOn prescription only
- Can I use it in public?NoUse itself is an offence
- What if I'm caught?Fine or prisonUsually a fine; prison is possible
A rough guide read from the scores below, not legal advice. The details and the exceptions are in each segment: select an answer to jump to it.
- Cannabis users
- about 4,000
- Share aged 15–64
- about 7.1%
This site's figure: there is no national survey, so the median rate of surveyed countries in North America is applied to people aged 15–64.
Source A median computed on this site from surveyed countries in North America, using UNODC World Drug Report 2026 figures. Population from the World Bank, aged 15–64. The whole dataset →Score breakdown ▏world average
Select a segment to show or hide the exact rules and sources. How the scores are made →
Possession · 25%1/10adds 2.5 of 25 points
Unauthorised possession is an offence. For cannabis or resin below one pound, the statutory maximum is CI$20,000 and seven years in prison with hard labour, rising to ten years on a repeat conviction; larger amounts attract higher repeat-offence penalties.[1] These are statutory maxima; the Act also provides community service and attendance orders as sentencing options in specified cases.[1]
Personal cultivation · 25%1/10adds 2.5 of 25 points
Punishment & enforcement · 20%2/10adds 4.0 of 20 points
Police recorded 73 ganja-possession offences and 16 consumption offences among 150 drug crimes in 2023; possession offences rose by 36 in 2024. The Law Reform Commission reports that police say drug charges often arise from supply investigations or encounters for other reasons.[2] Courts may make community service or attendance orders in specified cases, alongside or instead of other sentencing options; the prison maxima do not describe every sentence imposed.[1]
Sharing & gifting · 10%1/10adds 1.0 of 10 points
Consumption · 10%0/10adds 0.0 of 10 points
Unauthorised consumption is a separate offence, with a maximum fine of CI$3,000 and three years in prison with hard labour, rising to CI$10,000 and ten years from the third conviction. Possessing a pipe or utensil for consuming controlled drugs is also an offence.[1] Prescribed medical extracts and tinctures have an express lawful-use exception.[1]
Legal access · 10%1/10adds 1.0 of 10 points
A locally licensed medical doctor may prescribe cannabis extracts or tinctures for a patient under that doctor’s care and must set the dose. The authorised supply route includes licensed pharmacists, retail pharmacies and lawful importers.[1] Buying or supplying cannabis for recreational use remains an offence.[1]
References
- Cayman Islands — Misuse of Drugs Act (2026 Revision)Sections 2, 2A, 3, 16, 37–44; Schedule 1; legislation history, pp. 55–56
- Cayman Islands Law Reform Commission — Cannabis Reform discussion paper, 1 July 2026Sections 1–2, 4.2–4.3 and 10; consultation questions 8–10
More context not part of the score
The Act prohibits unauthorised production, including cultivation; its medical exception provides for extracts and tinctures through doctors, pharmacists and importers.[1] In August 2017, Canadian producer Cronos reported a completed oil shipment to Caribbean Medical Distributors, working with a George Town hospital pharmacy.[2]
Cannabis and resin are controlled drugs. Extracts, tinctures and specified cannabinol derivatives fall within the Act’s hard-drug classification, while prescribed medical extracts and tinctures have a lawful-use exception.[1] The 2026 reform consultation asked whether any decriminalisation should cover dried cannabis alone.[3]
The medical-extract amendment commenced on 18 November 2016. A doctor licensed locally may prescribe extracts or tinctures for medical or therapeutic purposes and determines the dosage.[1] The Law Reform Commission’s July 2026 review focused on recreational possession and use because medical and therapeutic use was already permitted.[3]
Unauthorised supply and distribution remain offences, with no exception for supplying cannabis through a recreational club.[1] The 2026 consultation asked whether importation, production, distribution and sale should remain illegal.[4]
Recreational possession, use and importation are offences under the Act.[1] The lawful medical route requires extracts or tinctures prescribed by a doctor licensed under Cayman’s Health Practice Act for a patient under that doctor’s care.[1]
After the April 2025 referendum, Premier André Ebanks told Parliament that 55.64% had supported decriminalisation and that the issue would go to the Law Reform Commission.[5] Its July 2026 paper asked about 30 grams of dried cannabis, 150 grams wet, four plants per household and clearing old minor convictions.[3] In October the premier expected the final report and supporting legislation in November or December.[6]
Taking cannabis into or out of Cayman Islands is a separate offence from possessing it, normally charged as smuggling or trafficking, with far heavier penalties. That holds almost everywhere, including between two places where cannabis is legal.
A prescription or medical card from another country is generally not recognised. Travellers who need a cannabis-based medicine should ask Cayman Islands's embassy before travelling.[7]
General guidance that applies to almost every country, not a check of Cayman Islands's customs rules.
References
- Cayman Islands — Misuse of Drugs Act (2026 Revision)Sections 2, 2A, 3, 16, 37–44; Schedule 1; legislation history, pp. 55–56
- Cronos Group — First company shipment of medical cannabis oil to Cayman, 29 August 2017
- Cayman Islands Law Reform Commission — Cannabis Reform discussion paper, 1 July 2026Sections 1–2, 4.2–4.3 and 10; consultation questions 8–10
- Cayman Islands Government — Public Comments: Cannabis Reform, 1 July 2026
- Cayman Islands Parliament — Premier André Ebanks, answer to Question 19, 27 June 2025Pages 1–2, cannabis referendum result and proposed referral
- Cayman Islands Government — Summary of parliamentary proceedings, 2 October 2026
- International Narcotics Control Board — Travellers carrying medicines containing controlled substances
History 9 of 10 checked against a source
Score and entries per decade
11 today, from 10 before its first recorded change
This country's score Entries that moved the score Context only
Debate ✓
Cayman expects cannabis reform proposals in November or December
Premier André Ebanks told Parliament that the final cannabis-reform report and supporting legislation were expected to reach the Attorney General for government consideration in November or December 2026. The July consultation had asked about possession limits, home growing, administrative penalties and clearing old minor convictions, following the 2025 referendum. Adults remained subject to the existing criminal law while the review and preparation of legislation continued.
Debate ✓
Cayman consults on 30 grams, four plants and clearing old convictions
Cayman’s Law Reform Commission opened consultation on replacing criminal penalties for personal cannabis possession and use, asking about limits of 30 grams of dried cannabis, 150 grams of wet cannabis and four plants per household. It also asked whether old minor convictions should be cleared, arguing that criminal records can limit people’s economic opportunities. The review followed the 2025 referendum and invited comments by 1 September 2026; in October the premier expected the final report and supporting legislation in November or December.
Debate ✓
Cayman’s premier asks for cannabis limits and penalty options
Premier André Ebanks told Parliament that small-scale cannabis reform would be referred to the Law Reform Commission after voters backed decriminalisation. He asked for recommendations on possession limits, administrative penalties, enforcement, international obligations and the protection of vulnerable people. The commission’s later discussion paper dates Cabinet’s referral to the same day and opened those questions to public consultation in July 2026.
Debate ✓
Cayman voters back decriminalising small amounts of cannabis
Cayman voters backed decriminalising the consumption and possession of small amounts of cannabis in the referendum held on 30 April 2025. Premier André Ebanks later told Parliament that 55.64% supported the proposal and promised a Law Reform Commission review of possession limits, penalties and safeguards. The commission opened public consultation in July 2026, with possession and consumption still criminal offences under the existing law.
Culture & science ✓
Cayman receives a medical-oil shipment from Canadian producer Cronos
Cronos Group announced that its producer Peace Naturals had completed the company’s first shipment of medical cannabis oil to Cayman. The buyer was Caribbean Medical Distributors, working with Professional Pharmacy Services at CTMH Doctors Hospital in George Town. The shipment followed Cayman’s 2016 prescription reform, which authorised medical extracts and tinctures through licensed health professionals and importers.
Medical ✓ Article
Cayman lets doctors prescribe cannabis extracts and tinctures
Cayman made the use of cannabis extracts and tinctures lawful when prescribed by a locally licensed medical doctor for a patient under that doctor’s care, with the doctor setting the dose. The published proposal created a route through authorised doctors, pharmacists and importers, and the official legislation history records the amendment’s commencement on 18 November 2016. By August 2017, Canadian producer Cronos reported a completed medical-oil shipment to a distributor working with a George Town hospital pharmacy.
1011+1 point
Tightening ✓
Cayman requires forfeiture of vehicles used for drug offences
Cayman required courts to confiscate a vehicle, boat or aircraft under an offender’s control when it was used, or intended to be used, to commit or facilitate a drug offence. The earlier law made forfeiture discretionary for a first conviction and allowed recovery through a fixed CI$6,000 redemption payment; the amendment introduced an ownership-restoration process with conditions including an innocent-owner route or a payment linked to the vessel’s value. The official legislation history dates the change to 4 July 1978.
Tightening ✓ Article
Cayman raises cannabis possession penalties to seven years
Cayman raised the prison ceiling for possessing less than a pound of cannabis from five to seven years on a first conviction, with a possible fine of up to CI$10,000. A repeat conviction below that weight carried at least five months in prison, while a first conviction involving a pound or more also triggered a five-month minimum; the amendment barred specified probation and sentencing powers from avoiding or reducing these sentences. It separated cannabis from a defined group of hard drugs, building on the 1973 law; the official legislation history records commencement on 12 April 1977.
Other law ✓
Cayman brings possession, use and growing under one drug law
Cayman’s replacement drug law prohibited unauthorised possession, consumption, cultivation and supply of cannabis, which it listed as ganja. Possession or growing carried imprisonment of up to five years with hard labour on a first conviction, rising to ten years on a repeat conviction, with additional fines possible. The law replaced an earlier Dangerous Drugs Law and described its purpose as bringing drug control into line with international standards; the official legislation history dates commencement to 12 December 1973.
Ban ≈
The Cayman Islands first restricts cannabis
No first law is recorded here for the Cayman Islands. Its first restrictions on cannabis are assumed to date from between the 1925 Geneva convention, which put Indian hemp under international control, and the 1961 Single Convention, which required a ban on non-medical use.
10010−90 points
Datasets not part of the score
What other organisations publish about Cayman Islands, and where it stands among the countries each one covers. Every file is published in full on the sources page.
Use
UNODC
Cannabis use
7.1%of adults
LowestHigher than 76% of 196 countriesHighest4,000 people · median of surveyed countries in the region, computed here
Society
OpenAlex · 2024
Research on cannabis
11papers per million people
LowestHigher than 95% of 176 countriesHighest1 papers in 2024
CEPII
Former colonial rulers
Once ruled by United Kingdom
World Bank · 2025
Government effectiveness
74of 100
88 · 199688 · 199888 · 200088 · 200278 · 200370 · 200477 · 200577 · 200677 · 200778 · 200870 · 200970 · 201070 · 201170 · 201270 · 201372 · 201472 · 201572 · 201672 · 201772 · 201872 · 201968 · 202072 · 202174 · 202274 · 202374 · 202474 · 202519962025 LowestHigher than 84% of 195 countriesHighestestimate 1.06 on a scale of −2.5 to 2.5 · 2025 · 88 in 2000 · 72 in 2015
World Bank · 2024
Income per person
$80,997per person
92,213 · 200692,344 · 200789,380 · 200880,632 · 200976,295 · 201075,095 · 201173,983 · 201272,989 · 201373,052 · 201473,315 · 201573,942 · 201674,600 · 201776,125 · 201877,477 · 201972,183 · 202074,160 · 202176,735 · 202279,581 · 202380,997 · 202420062024 LowestHigher than 96% of 187 countriesHighestat purchasing power parity, 2021 dollars · 2024 · $76,295 in 2010
World Bank · 2017
Development indicators
81.1%use the internet
0% · 19900% · 19930% · 19944% · 199538% · 200544.5% · 200652% · 200761% · 200864.5% · 200966% · 201069.5% · 201169.7% · 201271.4% · 201374.1% · 201477% · 201579% · 201681.1% · 201719902017 LowestHigher than 50% of 195 countriesHighest100% live in towns · 6.6% aged 65+ · life expectancy 78.6 · 2017 · 66% in 2010
Context
Our World in Data, World Bank · 2024
Population
88,833people in 2024
LowestHigher than 5% of 196 countriesHighest
All sources 6 cited in this profile
- Cayman Islands — Misuse of Drugs Act (2026 Revision)Sections 2, 2A, 3, 16, 37–44; Schedule 1; legislation history, pp. 55–56
- Cayman Islands Law Reform Commission — Cannabis Reform discussion paper, 1 July 2026Sections 1–2, 4.2–4.3 and 10; consultation questions 8–10
- Cronos Group — First company shipment of medical cannabis oil to Cayman, 29 August 2017
- Cayman Islands Parliament — Premier André Ebanks, answer to Question 19, 27 June 2025Pages 1–2, cannabis referendum result and proposed referral
- Cayman Islands Government — Summary of parliamentary proceedings, 2 October 2026
- Cayman Islands Government — Public Comments: Cannabis Reform, 1 July 2026
Last updated: · 6 sources · history: 9 of 10 entries checked