Abkhazia
Asia
Not ranked: disputed territory
would rank #142 among countries
Using cannabis means administrative arrest, and since 2020 the law allows life imprisonment or death for large-scale dealing. Sources on Abkhaz law are few; several details could not be confirmed.
Disputed territory. Abkhazia has governed itself since the 1990s and is recognised by Russia and a handful of other states. Most countries regard it as part of Georgia. Georgian law is not applied there. See also 🇬🇪 Georgia.
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- Can I carry it?NoIt is a crime
- Can I grow it?NoIt is a crime
- Can I buy it?NoThere is no legal source
- Can I use it in public?NoUse itself is an offence
- What if I'm caught?PrisonUsers are routinely jailed
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 3,000
- Share aged 15–64
- about 1.9%
An estimate: there is no national survey, so the median rate of surveyed countries in Asia is assumed.
Source: UNODC World Drug Report prevalence figures, as collected in Wikipedia's list of annual cannabis use by country; population aged 15–64 from the World Bank.
Score breakdown ▏world average
Select a segment to show or hide the exact rules and sources.
Possession · 25%1/10adds 2.5 of 25 points
Possession is dealt with under Abkhazia's own criminal code, which follows the Russian model. The amounts that separate an administrative case from a criminal one could not be confirmed.
Personal cultivation · 25%1/10adds 2.5 of 25 points
Growing is a criminal offence under the drug articles of the criminal code. No tolerated number of plants is known.
Punishment & enforcement · 20%1/10adds 2.0 of 20 points
Strict. A law in force from 1 January 2020 introduced life imprisonment or the death penalty for distributing drugs in especially large quantities, ruled out any reduction of sentence for trafficking and barred pardons for traffickers.
Sharing & gifting · 10%0/10adds 0.0 of 10 points
Any supply is treated as distribution, with long prison terms.
Consumption · 10%1/10adds 1.0 of 10 points
Using a drug is an administrative offence under Article 45 of the code of administrative violations, punished by 15 days of arrest whatever the drug. In December 2022 parliament passed at first reading a bill to cut this to three days for cannabis, with 30 days for a repeat within a year. Whether it became law could not be confirmed.
Legal access · 10%0/10adds 0.0 of 10 points
More context not part of the score
Since 1 January 2020 the law provides for life imprisonment or death, with confiscation of property, for distributing drugs in especially large quantities. Abkhazia had observed a moratorium on executions since 1993, and no execution for a drug offence has been reported.
None. No licensed cultivation is known.
No legal cannabis products are known.
No medical cannabis programme is known.
Abkhaz officials have blamed drug couriers from Russia for a rise in overdose deaths, and foreigners convicted of drug offences cannot be pardoned.
Taking cannabis into or out of Abkhazia 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.
In Abkhazia the heaviest penalties, up to the death penalty, are aimed at trafficking, and bringing drugs across the border is treated as trafficking.
A prescription or medical card from another country is generally not recognised. Travellers who need a cannabis-based medicine should ask Abkhazia's embassy before travelling.
General guidance that applies to almost every country, not a check of Abkhazia's customs rules.
All sources
Last updated: · 3 sources