Costa Rica’s congress has passed a bill to legalise medicinal cannabis and industrial hemp cultivation a month after president Carlos Alvarado vetoed an earlier version on health and safety grounds.
Under the new law, cannabis producers will need to register with health institutions and agree to reviews by the Costa Rican Drug Institute. Cultivation and sale for recreational use will remain illegal.
Alvarado had demanded changes to limit individual cultivation and consumption and lauded the new version as being “of great benefit to Costa Rica”. He could sign it into law this week.
