CBD or cannabidiol has taken the world by storm over the past decade, and it’s made its way to Australia as well, with demand vastly increasing for the medicine over the past few years. Medical cannabis as a whole has been legal in Australia since 2016, so how can you get your hands on some CBD oil?
As medical cannabis as well as CBD oil is classed as a Schedule 4 drug by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), the only legal way to access the medicine is through a prescription. However, the TGA made a change to the laws in late 2020, which made 150mg/day CBD oil available over the counter without a prescription from early 2021. Unfortunately, no products are available yet and no one is able to give an accurate timeframe as requirements and certifications needed are uncertain.
Buying CBD oil legally
If you’re a law abiding citizen, the only way for you to access CBD oil legally at the moment is by getting a prescription from your doctor. There are a number of dedicated cannabis clinics around the country, and many of them offer telehealth services where consultations are available via video call. To see all the cannabis doctors and specialist clinics around the country, visit our Australia Cannabis Companies Database and tap the ‘Clinics & Doctors’ category.
Honahlee has a great breakdown of the costs related to each clinic. If you’d like to read some reviews of patients who’ve already gone through the process, visit MedicalCannabisAus and MedicalCannabisOz for some fantastic and detailed reviews.
In future years, you will no longer need a doctor’s prescription to buy certain types of CBD oil in Australia. From the 1st of February, 2021, the TGA made CBD oil available to be purchased without a subscription. It restricts the types of CBD oil available to those only containing recommended dosages of 150mg/day, in packs not containing more than a 30 days supply, containing less than 1% THC, and others. Unfortunately, some experts have warned that 150mg/day is not a high enough dose to be effective based on various studies.
Until CBD oil is available to be purchased in Australian pharmacies without a prescription, the only legal way to access it is with a doctor’s prescription.
Accessing CBD oil other ways
The other way to access CBD oil in Australia is illegally. If you chose this route, one which we do not condone, and you get caught, you may face fines and/or prosecution. Please be aware of the risks before you continue – which we’ll add to further down.
There’s no shortage of international organisations with websites targeted towards Australians looking to purchase CBD online without a prescription. There are even some local organisations with ‘.com.au’ domains claiming to sell CBD oil – but is it legit?
Let’s start with the local organisations first. Let’s make this clear – as no CBD oil products are available for over the counter purchases, purchasing any type of CBD online in Australia is illegal. That, or it’s not really CBD oil. ‘Cando ifestyle.com.au’ clearly has “Buy CBD Oil Australia” in its title – primarily to trick Google into putting the website on the 1st page of search results, and another to trick visitors into thinking they’re selling real CBD oil. They’re not.
Looking at the products on their website, they make no mention of how much CBD is actually in the oil, and also label their products ‘Hemp Oil’ as well – likely to not get sued by people who think they’re purchasing real CBD oil. Hemp oil is different to CBD oil and it’s highly manipulative to market it as such. Please do not purchase from these websites as they’re trying to rip you off.
The other options you have are illegal importing CBD oil by purchasing it from companies overseas – where it’s likely legal to sell without a prescription. The two risks you take using this option is it being seized on the border and/or the CBD oil not being what it claims to be.
The Australian Border Force issued a new warning in 2021 cautioning people to stop importing CBD oil products and mentioning those who are caught will face fines and/or prosecution.
People who import these products are not only wasting their money, they risk prosecution. Anyone purchasing goods from overseas has a responsibility to check if they can legally be bought into Australia.
You should also be aware that companies exporting CBD oil products to Australia most likely know that it’s illegal to do so (at least by Australian law). As such, they’re probably not the most trustworthy. And it’s backed by studies showing that many products claiming to be CBD oil actual contain nothing of the sort.
With that being said, there are plenty of people claiming they successfully import real CBD oil illegally on a regular basis. We won’t share them, but we’re sure you can find them if you want.
Final thoughts
Until 150mg/day CBD oil is made available for purchase over the counter without a prescription, the safest and best way to access CBD oil in Australia is to visit a doctor. There are plenty around, with more and more educating themselves on the topic every day. For a full list of cannabis doctors click here.
If you have any more questions about CBD oil in Australia, please let us know in the comments below.
