Jamaica Likely to Start Offering Marijuana Licenses to Tourists

Jamaica’s Cannabis Licensing Authority (CLA) is attempting to open kiosks for tourists to easily and conveniently obtain a medical marijuana license at airports and seaports. The license would be valid for the duration of the visit, and allow tourists to obtain up to two ounces of medical marijuana.

Tourists who are patients in other countries would be able to continue using medical marijuana while on vacation, Jamaica Gleaner reports. Much of the consideration of the kiosk licensing concept is simply because of the additional revenue it can bring the country as a whole. Proper regulation and permitting requirements, along with jurisdictional requirements, are yet to be implemented or blueprinted – but are pending.

CLA Medical Committee chairperson, Dr. Winston De La Haye said, “We’ve had our first meeting and my thinking is that we’d need a few weeks to turn out an appropriate policy document.”

CLA Chairman Hyacinth Lightbourne said, “It would primarily be for people who have a prescription and, in effect, you’re doing it for medicinal purposes with a permit from the Ministry of Health. If they don’t have a prescription, then they can do what we call ‘self-declare,’ and this will allow them to have the two ounces while they are here.”

Discussions surrounding easy processes, proper legislation, proper regulation, and regular monitoring of the system are planned for the near future. If the kiosks do come to fruition, they would be located near seaports and airports. Each station would be human-manned to ensure validity and that the appropriate measures are being taken.

Lightbourne also commented that, “The thought is that if you are coming out of the airport, there is a kiosk that you can go to. So basically whoever is coming out of immigration can go to that desk and register and get the clearance.”