Cannabis is Legal in Michigan. Now What?

Jan 7, 2019 | Cannabis Laws & News

When St. Nicholas visited Michigan last year, he brought a special present to its habitants. The kind of present that all people who like to toke up, light up, blaze or puff, puff and pass were really excited about. Yes, you guessed it right. On December 6th, 2018, Michigan became the 10th state in the US to legalize marijuana for recreational use. In this article we will break down what it all means and what the legal structure is behind it.

Rules and regulations

While MRTMA (Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act) was indeed in effect since December 6th of last year, you still can’t legally purchase or sell cannabis anywhere in the country. Due to state and market regulations, aspiring recreational marijuana business owners will be able to start sending applications on November 1st.

That basically means that the good people of Michigan can expect to enter their first “weed stores” sometime in 2020.

However, even though you still can’t buy marijuana in Michigan legally (it’s important to stress this word), you can grow it on your own. You have to be over 21 years of age, and you can possess, grow, and of course, consume marijuana – inside the premises of your (or somebody else’s) home. Smoking in public is illegal, so if you want some fresh air while you are enjoying your herbs; well, you can open the window.

In addition, there are more rules regarding the quantity of marijuana you can carry, and that you can grow.

You can walk around with 2.5 ounces of pot, while you can have up to 10 ounces at home. Along with that, you can also grow up to 12 plants. Unless you are hanging with Snoop Dogg or Willie Nelson, that should be enough weed to go around (pun intended).

License and registration, please

If you want to grow your own plants, you can buy the seeds online. However, you may only do so legally if it’s from another country that has passed the legalization of marijuana. Another option is to buy it from someone within the state of Michigan, but that person has to be a licensed grower.

If you are thinking about entering the marijuana business, you can check this link to see all the licenses that you might need. Also, don’t try to get weed into the state from another place because you’ll be penalized, even though it’s legal to have it within the state limits.

The season of giving

If you are a little bit befuddled by some of the rules that we mentioned, we don’t blame you. But there is some good news! When it comes to marijuana, you don’t have to wait for a holiday or someone’s birthday. Under the current law, you can gift weed to family and friends. It’s only illegal if you receive compensation for it. We can see this be exploited a bit, but hey, we didn’t write the rules.

All in all, if you are from Michigan and enjoy marijuana and its related products, you should have no problem obtaining in and consuming it legally. If you are passing through Michigan, you still currently can’t buy it legally, as we mentioned. But if you have a friend there – they can give you a little green gift.

If you have additional questions please reach out to us at (248) 266-0790 and we’d be happy to help you navigate this ever changing landscape.

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About The Author

<a href="https://www.cannabistherapynetwork.org/author/courtneyt/" target="_self">Courtney Trzos</a>

Courtney Trzos

To Courtney, it’s always 420 somewhere… After attending Michigan State University and working in communications for over 10 years, she took her passion for cannabis, professionally. In 2017, Courtney began freelancing as a writer for cannabis brands across the globe, promoting the therapeutic and recreational use of the plant, while helping her partner cultivate crops full-time, and learning more about the industry from a seed-to-sale perspective. Get in touch with her and follow her journey at https://www.instagram.com/thecannaspace/
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