Buy CBD Oil in Australia
Medical cannabis and CBD oil are becoming increasingly popular in Australia. As the cannabis space grows, so does the amount of information and misinformation. New legal cannabis companies, medical cannabis, cannabis clinics, and cannabis-based product companies are constantly appearing on the Internet.
With the media pumping out eye-catching headlines and stretching the truth, it’s hard to know what’s legal and what’s illegal in the Australian hemp oil and CBD oil space. We got the question, “Where can I buy CBD oil in Australia?” followed by “I heard I could buy it…” a lot. The aim of this article is to reveal the truth about buying CBD legally in Australia.
In short, CBD Oil is legal with a prescription from a healthcare professional and over-the-counter via a pharmacist. However, you will not find any products in drugstores yet because there are no cannabis products that currently meet the TGA guidelines to be sold in drugstores.
In this article, you will learn about the current status of prescription CBD oil and what you need to know about low dose over the counter CBD oil. We’ll also explain the often misunderstood subject of the Personal Import Scheme. Here’s an index in case you want to go further:
Definition of hemp oil in Australia
To understand why you can’t get into the local chemist’s world to buy CBD off the shelf, you need to know how CBD and hemp oil is defined locally.
TGA is clear in its definition of hemp oil. They classify hemp oil into two categories:
Hemp oil (including CBD oil)
Hemp oil is what you would probably call CBD oil. TGA defines it as “an oil made from the green matter of the hemp plant, usually containing a mixture of CBD and THC. This is sometimes called hemp extract or “cannabis oil,” which is a form of medicinal cannabis.”
This cannabis oil is what your doctor may prescribe if you have been successful in obtaining medicinal cannabis. These substances are regulated and scheduled in Schedule 3 (over-the-counter by pharmacist), Schedule 4, or Schedule 8 when legally purchased.
Hemp seed oil
Hemp seed oil is often what you buy from a food supplier, a cannabis food store, or even some health and beauty company. TGA defines this as “made by pressing the seeds of the hemp plant, and it usually does not contain THC or CBD.”
TGA states that some hemp seed oils contain little or no CBD or THC and can be obtained without a prescription. However, over-the-counter products must comply with standard food codes and import requirements.
So, you may now think that hemp seed oil bases give you a way out – a way to buy CBD oil without a prescription or even import it overseas. But the answer, unfortunately, is no; You cannot buy CBD oil in Australia without a prescription.
Where can I legally buy CBD oil in Australia?
At the moment there is only one option. To access CBD oil, which falls under the medical cannabis umbrella, you must obtain a prescription from a healthcare professional. There are two different ways to do this, and we explain them in the article “How Get medical cannabis”
You can go through the following channels:
- Your GP, specialist or nurse practitioner (in some jurisdictions)
- approved descriptor
- cannabis clinics
We’ll explain the process in a little more detail below. If you are looking for a local descriptor, you can visit Find a cannabis doctor Tool and search by your zip code. We also have a list cannabis clinics.
TGA has also approved the sale of low-dose CBD without a prescription. However, there are currently no cannabis products in Australia that meet the requirements for sale in pharmacies. If you are interested in being notified when the first products will be available in pharmacies, you can sign up for our newsletter below:
Does the personal import regime or exemption for travelers allow the import of CBD oil?
Traveler Waiver is an option for individuals traveling to Australia with a legal prescription for medical cannabis. For the traveller’s exemption to apply, the product must be a therapeutic good to be provided for medical treatment by a medical practitioner. The product must also have been dispensed as per prescription (i.e. dispensed through a pharmacist, rather than supplied through some other form of retail or other mechanisms).
In theory, under these guidelines, to use the traveller’s exemption, an individual living in Australia would need a prescription from an overseas doctor who distributed the products to them via a pharmacy and then imported them with their prescription.
Drug control office documentation On Hemp and CBD products it makes everything more transparent. While it comes to importing, the regulations also spell out the legal levels of CBD in the products. Additionally, the guidelines state that you can import some cannabis products without permission and others require either a permit or a prescription.
The products you can import without permission are:
- hulled hemp seeds
- Hemp seed meal
- hemp fiber
- Hemp seed oil (if it meets the criteria)
Remember that hemp oil is considered a scheduled drug in some cases. If hemp seed oil meets the following qualifications, it is not a scheduled drug:
- The total CBD content of hemp seed oil is 0.0075% (75 mg/kg) or less, and
- The total THC content of the oil is 0.005% (50 mg/kg) or less.
It is important to note that CBD will not have health benefits at this concentration in the oil or tincture.
Now that you understand how to buy CBD oil legally, we will explain the specific laws regarding CBD in Australia.
Understanding CBD Oil Via Pharmacy
As of February 1, 2021, it is legal for medical cannabis companies to sell low-dose CBD oil without a prescription through pharmacists across Australia. Unfortunately, to do this, products must be registered with the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods (ARTG) and meet other products Requirements.
These products must undergo clinical trials and be proven safe and effective. The trial process may take up to 12 months. It must then be approved, which can take up to another 12 months. So, we probably won’t see low-dose CBD in drugstores until at least 2023.
Understanding CBD Oil by Prescription
Any doctor in Australia can prescribe medicinal cannabis that contains CBD oil. The patient process is straightforward and can be summarized in 3 steps:
Whether you choose your regular GP, a new doctor, or a clinic, the steps you’ll take as a patient are similar. First, you will see your doctor, who will assess your eligibility. They will then write a prescription on the spot if the AP is or applies to the TGA via the Special Access Scheme (SAS) to write a prescription for you.
While most doctors and clinics charge a few hundred dollars for appointments, the application process is not complicated for prescribers. If your doctor tries to charge you an application fee of hundreds of dollars, look elsewhere.
The time you see the prescriber until the time you take the medication is, on average, about two weeks.
Buy CBD from third-party companies online
Various Australian websites provide links to reputable third-party websites where you can buy CBD oil. And while many countries allow CBD to be purchased online, buying CBD online overseas and having it shipped to Australia is technically illegal.
Many Australians decide that they prefer going this route because of the perceived cost of cannabis in Australia. But, surprisingly, the price of legally prescribed CBD oil in Australia is on par with many outside brands at the cost per mg level.
Since the middle of 2020, Australian Customs has been seizing an increasing number of shipments from overseas. We’ve even seen reports of people receiving letters from the government that their products have been confiscated. While these people had no serious legal repercussions, they did cause concern and may not be worth the risk.
If you decide to buy CBD oil from abroad, we have two recommendations:
- Do your research and make sure you are buying products from a reputable company that is willing to provide third party testing documentation.
- Check the total cost of the CBD oil you buy and compare it to Legal CBD Cost oil in Australia.
How about buying CBD from local online stores?
Every two months, we hear about new Australian online stores claiming to sell CBD oil and that the oil they sell is legal.
There are two categories these companies fall into:
- Products that contain some CBD, in which case they are illegal
- Products that do not contain any CBD and therefore lie to customers
If the products contain some CBD, the odds are the product contains what is listed too low.
Let’s say you purchased a product and found no benefit from that product. In this case, it will be impossible to tell if the result is that it is not the right product for you, that you are taking it incorrectly, or that it does not contain what is listed on the label.
Keep this in mind when buying CBD oil
If you are interested in purchasing CBD Oil, you will likely be interested in the positive health outcomes. Whether you want to help with pain, sleep, anxiety, or any other illness, your goal is to improve your overall health.
While buying CBD oil online may seem like the easy solution, it is technically illegal. It is not easy knowing that you are getting what you bought. The price of legal CBD products is reasonably close to the price of illegal CBD. Legal products are highly regulated, so you know you’re getting what is written on the label.
If you purchase a product illegally and determine that it does not contain the ingredients on the label, the only thing you can do is report the company to TGA. The TGA has a large backlog of cannabis-related cases that they deal with and it often takes up to 12 months to take action on complaints. The TGA may look at the website and send a letter of cessation and cessation. However, you purchased the product illegally, so there is nothing you can do to get your money back.
Conclusion
You now understand the legal aspects of CBD oil in Australia. While it is unfortunate, the fact is that the Australian government has classified CBD oil as a drug and a scheduled drug. Therefore, to get CBD oil, you must have a prescription.
Your only options for accessing CBD oil are to go to the doctor, a cannabis clinic, or wait until it becomes available without a prescription.
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