Road Transport Legislation Amendment (Medical Cannabis and Driving Offences) Bill 2026 (NSW)
Status at 2 October 2026: The Bill passed both houses of NSW Parliament on 17 September 2026, but it is still awaiting assent and will commence on a date set by proclamation. The government expects the registration system and compulsory driver education program to be available in late 2026 or early 2027. Until the Act commences, the current law applies to all drivers.
For about a decade, a patient in NSW could hold a valid prescription for THC-containing medicinal cannabis and still be charged for driving with it in their system.
Parliament has now passed a Bill to change that. It does not legalise driving after taking THC. It creates a registration-based pathway that replaces automatic penalties with a graduated, threshold-based system.
The problem the Bill addresses
Drivers can currently be penalised simply for having THC detected, regardless of whether the cannabis was prescribed or the driver was impaired. A first offence for driving with a prescribed illicit drug present can attract a $722 penalty notice and a three-month licence suspension. If the matter goes to court, the maximum is a $2,200 fine and an automatic six-month disqualification, which can be reduced to a minimum of three months.
The Bill is a response to a recommendation of the 2024 NSW Drug Summit report, along with years of private members’ bills and campaigning for a medicinal cannabis driving defence. The government describes the result as a more commonsense system for patients, with road safety protections kept in place.
Who can register
Eligible drivers must hold an unrestricted NSW licence, register with Transport for NSW, provide evidence of a valid medicinal cannabis prescription, and complete an approved online education program on cannabis and driving. Learner and provisional licence holders are not eligible, and the government has said commercial drivers are excluded too. The Bill’s drafting also excludes novice drivers, special category drivers and supervisors, and people supervising under the Driving Instructors Act 1992.
Registration stays valid until two months after the prescription expires, and can be extended with evidence of a new prescription. A driver’s status can also be displayed on their digital driver licence.
The key change: the presence offence
The Bill revokes s 111(1) of the Road Transport Act 2013 and replaces it with three new subsections. New s 111(1A) says a registered medicinal cannabis user does not commit the offence if THC is detected and no other prescribed illicit drug or alcohol is detected, and they are not in an excluded driver category.
The offence is also tied to numeric limits. The THC limits for registered users are 50 ng/mL of oral fluid and 3.5 ng/mL of blood. The previous position was zero tolerance.
What happens at or above the limit
A laboratory oral-fluid result of 50 ng/mL or more counts as a positive detection under the new system. The first or second such detection within two years results in a formal warning, not an immediate fine and licence loss. A third detection within two years can result in a $722 fine and at least a three-month suspension. The legislation provides for an automatic six-month disqualification after conviction, which a court can reduce to no less than three months.
What doesn’t change
- Roadside testing continues. A registered driver who returns a positive roadside test is still prohibited from driving for 24 hours while the sample goes for laboratory analysis. The threshold police use for roadside detection is unchanged.
- Other drugs and alcohol remove the protection. Drivers who test positive to multiple drugs, or to alcohol, are dealt with under the standard drug-driving laws.
- Impaired driving is still an offence. Police can still charge a medicinal cannabis patient with driving under the influence if they are considered impaired, and registered patients remain subject to blood and urine testing after serious crashes.
- CBD is not affected. CBD is not one of the prescribed illicit drugs for roadside drug-testing purposes.
When will it be law?
Commencement is not a fixed date.
- As at the latest reports, the Bill was awaiting assent.
- The Bill provides that the Act commences on a day or days to be appointed by proclamation. The wording (“day or days”) means provisions could be commenced in stages.
- Practical start. The government’s expected timeframe for the registration system and education program is late 2026 or early 2027. The protection depends on being registered, so in practice it won’t be available to patients until that system is live.
- The reforms are scheduled to be reviewed after their first 12 months of operation.
How NSW compares
In Victoria it is still an offence to drive with detectable THC even with a valid prescription, although since March 2025 magistrates have had discretion over whether to cancel the licence of certain medicinal cannabis patients who test positive but aren’t impaired. NSW changes the offence itself, not just the sentencing discretion.
The key takeaways
- Nothing has changed yet. The current presence offence applies until commencement.
- Registration is the gateway. Without it, there is no protection.
- The concession is conditional. Other drugs, alcohol, impairment, or an excluded licence class all take a driver outside it.
- Impairment is still the real line. The Bill makes the law fairer to sober patients, but it does not make driving while affected lawful.
