Medical cannabis use was legalised in Greece in June 2017 – the sixth EU country to do so – and on 2 March 2018, the Greek government introduced Law 4523/2018 and announced plans to cultivate cannabis for domestic consumption and export.

In mid-2018, two important regulations were issued:

• The Joint Ministerial decision, 51483/700/Φ15, defined the terms and procedures for cultivation and processing of medicinal cannabis. Companies must be vertically integrated, and licenses are nontransferable.
• The Ministry of Health decision, Δ3(γ)52588, on the terms and conditions for the production and distribution of medicinal cannabis end products.

According to the law passed in 2018, the license for the cultivation and processing of medical cannabis in Greece has two main stages:

• 1st stage: obtaining the first license which is called Installation License, which is the license that allows the medical cannabis investor to start building the facility.
• 2nd stage: as soon as the facility is designed and built, it is necessary to get the Operation license which certifies that everything is done properly and according to the EU-GMP standards.

The Scientific Committee of the National Organization of Medicines (EOF) concluded that medical cannabis end products can be prescribed for:

• Prevention and treatment of side effects of chemotherapy.
• Neuropathic or cancer pain that does not respond to other treatments.
• Spasticity and pain in patients with multiple sclerosis.

In May 2021, the Greek Parliament voted in favour of a bill to legalise production, extraction and distribution of final products of pharmaceutical cannabis of the species Cannabis Sativa containing over 0.2% Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). In November 2021, the Greek government introduced a ban on the importation of cannabis products.

A total of 94 plant installation licenses had been issued by the Greek authorities to cultivate, produce and sell medicinal cannabis with only three progressed to starting construction – Bioprocann SA, Essenza Cannabis, and Tikun Europe. In February 2024, Tikun Europe became the first company to offer locally produced finished medical cannabis products to patients with a prescription in Greece.

According to the European Cannabis Report, by 2028 Greece’s industrial and pharmaceutical cannabis industry could inject some €2 billion into the local economy.

Source: cannabusinessplans.eu.