Is Weed Legal in Belize? The 10-Gram Rule and Penalties

Cannabis is not fully legal in Belize, but personal possession was decriminalized in 2017. If you are asking whether weed is legal in Belize, the short answer is that adults can hold up to 10 grams without a criminal charge, and can use it only on private property with the owner’s consent. Everything else — larger amounts, public use, buying, selling, and especially bringing it into the country — still carries criminal penalties.

The 10-Gram Rule

In November 2017, Belize amended the Misuse of Drugs Act to decriminalize possession of 10 grams or less of cannabis for personal use.¹ At or below that amount, you are not arrested and you do not get a criminal record.

Instead, police issue a violation ticket with a fine of $100 BZD (roughly $50 USD). The fine is non-recordable, so it does not appear as a criminal conviction. Possession on school grounds is handled separately, with its own monetary penalty that is also non-recordable under the amendment.¹

Cross the 10-gram line and the picture changes completely. Above that amount, cannabis possession is an arrestable offense that leads to charges, court, and a conviction on your record.

Where You Can Actually Use It

Decriminalization is not permission to smoke anywhere. Use is restricted to private premises, and only with the property owner’s or occupant’s consent. Public consumption remains illegal across the board: parks, streets, beaches, public transportation, government buildings.

The 2017 amendment treats a hotel room or other paid lodging as private premises for this purpose, but only if the proprietor or authorized manager consents. Hotels and guesthouses set their own rules; some allow it, many don’t. Ask before you assume. The same consent requirement applies to any rented or leased property, so a landlord or Airbnb host who prohibits cannabis use is within their rights.

The decriminalization framework is for adults. Minors found with cannabis face penalties that can include detention and counseling.

Penalties Above 10 Grams

Once you are over the threshold, Belize treats cannabis as a criminal matter and penalties escalate with weight.

More than 10 grams but under 60 grams: a criminal offense carrying fines of up to $50,000 BZD and up to three years in prison. The conviction goes on your permanent record.
60 grams or more: treated as drug trafficking, which carries the most severe penalties under the Misuse of Drugs Act, including substantial prison time and higher fines.

Cultivation, sale, and distribution are illegal. Buying or selling cannabis on the street is a criminal offense regardless of quantity.

Bringing Weed Into Belize Is a Separate, Serious Offense

This is where visitors most often misread the law. Decriminalization applies only to possession inside Belize. Bringing cannabis into the country — in any form, in any amount — is treated as importation of a controlled drug, which is a trafficking-level offense.

It makes no difference whether you are carrying half a gram or half an ounce, or whether the product is flower, edibles, vape cartridges, or oil. Authorities at the Philip Goldson International Airport and land borders routinely flag and arrest travelers who try. One American tourist caught with 38 grams at the airport was fined $1,500 BZD plus court costs, with jail as the alternative. In another case, three U.S. tourists were each fined $300 BZD plus court costs for importing marijuana at the airport. The magistrate in that case spelled out the distinction: Belizean law allows personal possession of up to 10 grams, but importing the same substance is a completely separate offense. The fact that you could legally hold the amount once inside the country does not protect you at the border.

CBD is not a workaround. Belize’s legal definition of cannabis covers the entire cannabis sativa plant and its derivatives, including oils.² Importing CBD oil carries the same exposure as importing flower.

The risk also runs in reverse. U.S. Customs and Border Protection enforces federal law, under which marijuana remains illegal regardless of state legalization. Arriving at a U.S. port of entry with cannabis can mean seizure, fines, and arrest, and CBP has revoked Global Entry memberships over amounts as small as two grams.³ For foreign nationals, a marijuana incident can affect future U.S. admissibility.

No Medical Marijuana Program

Belize does not have a functioning medical cannabis program. There are no licensed providers, no prescription pathway, and no patient registry. A medical cannabis card issued in the United States or elsewhere has no legal effect in Belize.

The Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Control and Licensing Bill, 2022, would authorize a future Cannabis Commission to write medical-access regulations and would require dispensary applicants to propose how they will serve medical consumers.² That bill has not become law.

There Is No Legal Way to Buy Cannabis

In February 2022, the Belizean Cabinet approved introducing the Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Control and Licensing Bill to Parliament.⁴ The bill lays out a licensing framework for cultivation, processing, dispensaries, and even consumption lounges.

As of 2026, the bill has not been enacted, no licenses have been issued, and no legal dispensaries or retail shops exist in Belize. There is no lawful way to buy cannabis in the country. The only legal path is holding 10 grams or less, obtained within Belize, used on private property with the owner’s consent.

Clearing an Old Possession Conviction

For people convicted of minor possession before decriminalization, there is now a route to clear the record. The Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) (Amendment) Act, 2024, signed into law on November 29, 2024, allows automatic expungement of a first-time cannabis possession conviction where the sentence was a fine of $1,000 BZD or less.⁵

You must have no other criminal record to qualify, and the usual rehabilitation waiting period does not apply. Once you apply, the Board must direct that the conviction be expunged unless it finds the offense doesn’t qualify. If you use this automatic process and later commit another offense, you cannot use automatic expungement again, though the standard expungement process remains open.⁵

1
National Assembly of Belize. Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Act, 2017
2
National Assembly of Belize. Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Control and Licensing Bill, 2022
3
U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Baltimore CBP Reminds Global Entry Members That Marijuana Possession Still Violates Federal Law
4
Government of Belize Press Office. Cabinet Brief
5
National Assembly of Belize. Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) (Amendment) Act, 2024