Development of the Medical Marijuana Industry in Poland 2026 - Report

The Polish medical marijuana market is often described with numbers that no one officially publishes. The Ministry of Health stated plainly that since hemp flower is not reimbursed, the ministry has no tools to analyze the number of prescriptions filled for it (Rynek Aptek, 2020). The hard data that can be opened and read concern import volume and the number of prescriptions issued in the e-prescription system. These define the scope of this report; everything else has been removed. Below you will find the legal status valid in 2026 with links to acts in the ELI register, import data from the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate, available prescription numbers, the demand limit for 2026 reported to INCB, and a description of the rule that since November 2024 determines how a patient obtains a prescription.

KEY INFORMATION
- Medical marijuana has been legal in Poland since November 1, 2017 (Act of July 7, 2017, Dz.U. 2017 item 1458).
- Since November 7, 2024, a prescription may only be issued after a personal examination of the patient; teleconsultation is not sufficient.
- All raw material comes from import, confirmed by the Minister of Health in December 2025; import rose from 14 kg in 2017 to 7.8 tons in 2024 (GIF data cited by Rynek Zdrowia).
- Hemp flower is not reimbursed; the patient covers the full cost of therapy.
- Cultivation for pharmaceutical raw material may only be conducted by a research institute with a GIF permit (Art. 49a of the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction).

Is medical marijuana legal in Poland and since when?

Yes. Medical marijuana has been legal since November 1, 2017, based on the Act of July 7, 2017, amending the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction and the Act on Drug Reimbursement (Dz.U. 2017 item 1458). The ELI register lists this act as “in force”, so the legal basis has not changed for eight years.

In practice, this means that cannabis other than fiber hemp is a pharmaceutical raw material in Poland, not a finished medicinal product. A doctor prescribes it on a prescription marked Rpw, which covers narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances. The patient fills it at a pharmacy, which prepares the raw material according to the prescription.

Polish law does not contain a closed list of conditions for which medical marijuana may be prescribed. The decision lies with the doctor, who assesses the individual patient’s situation and takes professional responsibility. Press reports on Polish practice most often mention oncology and neurology, including chronic pain and drug-resistant childhood epilepsy (Serwis Zdrowie PAP, 2024).

Before 2017, the path was different and much narrower. Patients could only access cannabis preparations via targeted import, requiring individual consent from the Minister of Health for a specific person and indication. The Ombudsman pointed out this mechanism among barriers to therapy access, as the procedure was lengthy and the patient’s condition did not wait (Ombudsman, 2018).

It is worth distinguishing two things often conflated in journalism. Legality of therapy is not the same as its availability. The 2017 Act opened the legal path but did not create national supply, reimbursement, or a patient registry. Each of these three lacks is described separately below, as each has a different basis and history. If you are interested in the patient pathway itself, we described it step by step in a guide on how to become a medical marijuana patient in Poland.

What did the personal examination rule from November 2024 change?

Since November 7, 2024, a prescription for cannabis other than fiber hemp and cannabis extracts may only be issued after a personal examination of the patient by a doctor. Teleconsultation is no longer sufficient. The exception is continuation of treatment with a given preparation when the prescription is issued by a doctor providing services under a primary health care contract (Patient Rights Ombudsman, 2024). As of September 23, 2026, the regulation has not been amended after this change; its consolidated text was published in Dz.U. 2025 item 1678.

The rule does not apply only to cannabis. It also covers fentanyl, morphine, oxycodone, and cannabis resin, i.e., addictive substances. The goal was to limit services issuing e-prescriptions without examination, in just minutes and 24/7. Serwis Zdrowie PAP described this model before the law change, quoting advertising slogans about a prescription “in just 15 minutes.”

The effect is visible in data on prescriptions issued by so-called receptomats. After November 2024, numbers dropped, then rebounded in March 2025: 44.3 thousand medical marijuana prescriptions, 23 percent more than in February. In total, 88 thousand prescriptions for the four substances covered by the rule were issued then, 15 percent more month to month (Rynek Zdrowia, 2025, citing Dziennik Gazeta Prawna and e-Health Center).

Data from receptomats do not describe the entire market, as some prescriptions are issued in clinics and hospitals. However, they show the trend: the channel that before November 2024 drove growth most strongly was narrowed but did not disappear. The scope of the exception is narrower than its common summary suggests. Remote continuation applies only when the prescription is issued by a doctor with a primary health care contract, so a patient treated in a private cannabis clinic still returns for a visit.

How many medical marijuana prescriptions are issued in Poland?

The publicly available data series is short and comes from the e-prescription system. In 2019, about 4 thousand prescriptions were issued, and sales amounted to 26 kg of flower. In 2023, there were already 313 thousand prescriptions, and sales exceeded 2.5 tons. The first quarter of 2024 alone brought 115 thousand prescriptions for over one ton of raw material (Serwis Zdrowie PAP, 2024).

Three caveats determine how these numbers should be read. First, these are prescriptions issued, not filled at the pharmacy. Second, one person in chronic therapy receives several or a dozen prescriptions per year, so dividing prescriptions by patients yields a random result. Third, the data cover the period before the prescription issuance rule change effective November 2024.

The scale of change between 2019 and 2023 is still clear: the number of prescriptions increased nearly eightyfold, and sales volume almost a hundredfold. It is worth remembering the starting level: 26 kg of flower in 2019 was nationwide sales.

Comparing Q1 2024 alone with the entire 2023 says more than percentages. Three months brought over one-third of the prescriptions from the entire previous year, meaning growth pace did not slow until the law change in autumn 2024. Only that change interrupted the series and made simple trend extrapolation meaningless.

Where does the flower used in Polish pharmacies come from?

Entirely from import. The Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate states this in one sentence: cannabis other than fiber hemp used for medical purposes comes entirely from import (Rynek Zdrowia, 2025, citing GIF). There is no commercial domestic production.

The GIF summary shows volumes imported in successive years. In 2017, the year the act came into force, it was about 14 kg. In 2024, import reached 7.8 tons, over 73 percent more than the previous year.

What this table does not contain? Breakdown by country of origin. The GIF summary gives total volume, so this report does not provide percentage shares of individual suppliers, although they circulate in industry journalism. If you seek information about specific preparations available in pharmacies, we discuss the current list separately in the post on which medical marijuana strains are available in Poland.

Import volume is a measure of supply, not consumption. Raw material imported in a given year may remain in wholesaler or pharmacy warehouses the next year, and some batches fail quality control and never reach the market. The import curve shows direction and order of magnitude well but does not replace sales data, which no one centrally collects for non-reimbursed raw material.

Full dependence on import has one practical effect for patients. A supply interruption at a foreign producer directly translates into the absence of a specific strain in a Polish pharmacy, and a substitute does not always have a similar profile. The Ministry of Health has previously admitted that shortages of pharmaceutical raw materials cannot always be predicted, as they depend on delivery delays and production problems at the manufacturer.

What market data are available for 2025 and 2026?

We did not find full import and sales data for 2025 in official sources. There are two more recent primary documents: an estimate by the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), which adopted for Poland 20,000,000 g of cannabis for 2026 (INCB, July 2026 update), and the Minister of Health’s December 2025 response about raw material origin.

This estimate is the upper demand limit Poland reports and INCB confirms and publishes based on the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, not import or sales volume. For 2025, it was 20,934,379 g (INCB, November 2025 update). It has practical significance: the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspector announced that import permits exceeding the estimate will not be issued (GIF announcement, March 1, 2023). With 7.8 tons imported in 2024, the 2026 limit leaves a margin but does not say how much raw material will actually reach pharmacies.

The Minister of Health wrote in a December 3, 2025 response to interpellation no. 13457 that in the last three years all raw material sold in Polish pharmacies came from import (MZ response to interpellation no. 13457). According to the same response, GIF issued cultivation permits to two research institutes; one expired at the institute’s request, and no proceedings were underway at URPL to admit domestic raw material to the market.

Prescription and flower dispensed numbers for 2025 circulate in industry publications citing the e-Health Center. We did not find them in the Center’s publications or ministry responses, so we do not provide them here.

How does flower get from foreign cultivation to a Polish pharmacy?

Through a marketing authorization issued by the President of the Office for Registration of Medicinal Products. The flower does not enter the Polish market as a finished drug but as a pharmaceutical raw material for compounding magistral preparations in the form of cannabis flower, extract, pharmaceutical tincture, or other cannabis extracts other than fiber hemp.

The scale of this procedure was small at the start. By the end of March 2019, nine applications for marketing authorization of such raw material had been submitted to the Office (Rynek Aptek, 2019). Each application concerns a specific raw material from a specific manufacturer, so the number of strains available in pharmacies depends directly on the number of permits issued.

The chain then looks like with other narcotics. The raw material reaches the pharmacy, the pharmacist prepares a magistral drug according to the Rpw prescription, and the patient receives the finished form. The raw material name is not arbitrary. The President of the Office’s announcement of July 16, 2019, decided that the name must include the Latin term, e.g., Cannabis flos, with declared cannabinoid content; fantasy names will not be accepted (Rynek Aptek, 2019).

This arrangement explains why a manufacturer change is noticeable to the patient. Withdrawal of one permit or supply interruption does not automatically mean substitution with another raw material, as the doctor must issue a new prescription for a strain with its own permit and profile. The pharmacy has no freedom to substitute as with finished drugs in the same group.

Is medical marijuana reimbursed?

No. Hemp flower is not on the list of reimbursed drugs, so the patient covers the full cost of raw material and medical visits. This has been the case since the beginning, i.e., 2017, and no later amendments changed it.

The basis for refusal was a negative assessment by the Agency for Health Technology Assessment. The Ombudsman described this issue in 2018: the agency recommended non-financing cannabis preparations from public funds, citing insufficient scientific evidence for drug-resistant epilepsy, chronic pain, and chemotherapy-induced nausea (Ombudsman, 2018).

The Ombudsman then formulated a reservation still valid: the cost of such therapy is so high that without reimbursement the patient effectively cannot start treatment. This is not a problem of a single pharmacy’s price list but the system’s structure. Chronic therapy without reimbursement selects patients by financial means, not medical indications.

It is worth distinguishing raw material from finished drug, as these two are often confused in reimbursement discussions. At the time described by the Ombudsman, the only cannabis-based medicinal product authorized in Poland as a finished drug was Sativex, which had a path to the reimbursement list. Hemp flower remains a pharmaceutical raw material and has no such path.

Since then, the situation changed on the finished drug side. Since January 1, 2024, Epidyolex, a cannabidiol drug, is reimbursed in two drug programs: for seizures in tuberous sclerosis and Lennox-Gastaut and Dravet syndromes (Ministry of Health, status as of October 2024). This is a finished drug, not flower, so it does not change the situation of patients treated with magistral raw material.

Exceptions are decided individually. The Ombudsman described a patient who obtained reimbursement approval for a cannabis-based preparation after a Supreme Administrative Court ruling. Such a path requires court proceedings and is not a systemic solution. This report does not provide specific prices per gram of raw material, as no public price list is available.

Why don’t we know the exact number of patients in Poland?

Because no such register exists. The Ministry of Health answered plainly that due to lack of reimbursement it has no tools to analyze the number of prescriptions filled for this raw material (Rynek Aptek, 2020). Reimbursement is the mechanism in the Polish system that enforces reporting.

The consequence is that any patient number cited in media is an estimate, not a register reading. Estimates usually arise by dividing the number of prescriptions or sales volume by an assumed average monthly dose. The result depends on the assumption, not measurement, and two studies using the same source data can differ twofold.

Distinguishing three concepts clarifies the discussion. A prescription issued is a record in the e-prescription system. A prescription filled is the dispensing of raw material at a pharmacy, which no one centrally counts for non-reimbursed products. A patient is a person who received raw material at least once in a given period. Only the first of these three figures is publicly available.

There is also a variable often omitted in estimates: average dose. An oncology patient in terminal phase and a patient with chronic pain in stable therapy consume monthly amounts differing several times. Dividing sales volume by assumed dose directly affects whether the same tons correspond to one hundred thousand or three hundred thousand people.

Therefore, this report does not contain statements like “over three hundred thousand Polish patients” or similar. Not because the market is small, but because no document exists from which such a number could be read. We discuss how lack of transparency affects the quality of cannabis products available outside pharmacies in the text on CBD product regulation in Poland.

Who can legally cultivate hemp for pharmaceutical raw material in Poland?

Only a research institute supervised by the minister responsible for agriculture, after obtaining a permit from the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspector. This is stipulated by Art. 49a sec. 1 of the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction, added by the Act of March 24, 2022 (Dz.U. 2022 item 763), effective May 7, 2022.

This solution is narrow by design. An entrepreneur cannot apply for such a permit independently, as the act specifies the circle of entitled entities by their legal status. The permit is issued for a fixed term, no longer than five years, and the application must describe the cultivation area and address as well as security of the facility.

Technical conditions in sec. 9 show why starting such cultivation is not an agricultural undertaking. The institute must conduct cultivation in a properly secured place, mark plants with an RFID system allowing data reading, employ a qualified person with at least two years’ experience at a drug manufacturer, and have its own laboratory for harvest quality assessment.

The act has existed since 2022, while import grew simultaneously: from 1.65 tons in 2022 to 7.8 tons in 2024. This is the simplest test of how much this path has met market demand.

The reason is not only in the law. Cultivation meeting Art. 49a requirements requires a facility, pharmaceutical-experienced personnel, and analytical facilities, i.e., a manufacturing-type investment, not agricultural. According to the Minister of Health’s December 2025 response cited above, no proceedings were underway at URPL to admit domestic raw material to the market then.

How does medical marijuana differ from legal hemp flower?

By THC content threshold and sales method. Medical marijuana is cannabis other than fiber hemp, where the sum of delta-9-THC and tetrahydrocannabinolic acid exceeds 0.3 percent. Hemp flower from stores comes from fiber hemp, where this sum does not exceed that threshold. The first is dispensed only on prescription; the second can be bought without one.

The basis is two definitions from the same act: Art. 4 point 5 describes fiber hemp, and Art. 4 point 37 cannabis other than fiber hemp (Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction, Dz.U. 2023 item 1939, as amended by the Act of March 24, 2022). The current wording took effect May 7, 2022; previously the threshold was 0.20 percent.

One detail changes lab test results and is often omitted. The threshold is the sum of delta-9-THC and THCA, not delta-9-THC alone, then rounded to one decimal place. A plant with low delta-9-THC but high THCA may exceed the threshold, even if delta-9-THC alone looks harmless.

The history of this threshold is also often distorted. Until May 6, 2022, it was 0.20 percent; the current 0.3 percent was introduced by the Act of March 24, 2022 (Dz.U. 2022 item 763). Separately and independently from national law, the 0.3 percent threshold for varieties qualifying for support under the Common Agricultural Policy was introduced by EU Regulation 2021/2115, effective January 1, 2023. The previous Regulation 1307/2013 set 0.2 percent and was repealed. The Polish threshold matches the EU value but does not derive from it: these are two separate regulations.

The distinction matters practically when shopping. If you seek legal flower without a prescription, you will find it in the hemp flower category, not in pharmacies. No store product replaces therapy with a prescription preparation.

What numbers does this report not provide and why?

You will not find here forecasts of the Polish market value in euros, shares of raw material origin countries, number of doctors issuing Rpw prescriptions, or price per gram of flower in pharmacies. Each of these figures circulates in industry journalism but cannot be read from any public document that can be opened and verified.

This is not pedantry. A market report without source indication for each number becomes a collection of others’ assumptions repeated as fact. An earlier version of this text gave, among others, the market value in 2030 and import structure with one percentage point accuracy. None of these numbers could be confirmed at the cited source, so they disappeared along with the sentences carrying them.

The same rule applies to citing organizations. One source cited in the previous version for ten separate claims does not exist under the given name, and the indicated domain does not resolve in the domain name system. An institution-sounding name is not proof that an institution stands behind a number. Checking takes a minute and is worth doing for every market report, including others’.

Where to realistically look for data if you need it for your own analysis? Import volume is published by the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspectorate in media responses. The number of prescriptions issued in the system is known by the e-Health Center. Legal status is read in the Journal of Laws via the ELI register, where each act shows status and consolidated text information.

The picture left after this sifting is more modest but verifiable. The market has grown since 2017 at a pace visible in import volume, relies entirely on foreign supplies, has no reimbursement or patient registry, and since November 2024 requires a doctor’s physical visit before the first prescription. More on patient-side barriers is collected in the post on how medical marijuana in Poland looks, progress and barriers.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is medical marijuana legal in Poland in 2026?

Yes. The basis is the Act of July 7, 2017, amending the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction, published as Dz.U. 2017 item 1458, effective from November 1, 2017. The ELI register lists this act as “in force”. The raw material is dispensed only on a prescription marked as Rpw.

Can you get a prescription for medical marijuana via teleconsultation?

Not at the first qualification. Since November 7, 2024, a prescription may only be issued after a personal examination of the patient. The exception is continuation of treatment with a given preparation when the prescription is issued by a doctor providing services under a primary health care contract (Patient Rights Ombudsman, 2024).

Does the NFZ reimburse medical marijuana?

No. Hemp flower is not reimbursed, so the patient covers the full cost of raw material and visits. The Agency for Health Technology Assessment recommended non-financing cannabis preparations from public funds, as described by the Ombudsman in 2018. Since January 1, 2024, the ready-made cannabidiol drug Epidyolex is reimbursed in two drug programs for selected epilepsies (status as of October 2024).

Where does the hemp flower sold in Polish pharmacies come from?

Entirely from import. The Minister of Health confirmed in December 2025 that in the last three years all raw material sold in pharmacies came from abroad. The volume increased from about 14 kg in 2017 to 7.8 tons in 2024, with 2024 alone showing a growth of over 73 percent compared to 2023.

How many patients in Poland use medical marijuana?

No one knows exactly because no register exists. The Ministry of Health stated that due to lack of reimbursement there are no tools to analyze the number of prescriptions filled. Only the number of prescriptions issued is publicly available, for example 313 thousand in 2023.

Is it legal to cultivate hemp for pharmaceutical raw material in Poland?

Yes, but the circle of entities is narrow. Article 49a of the Act on Counteracting Drug Addiction allows such cultivation only for a research institute supervised by the Minister of Agriculture, after obtaining a permit from the Chief Pharmaceutical Inspector issued for up to five years.

The article is informational and educational and does not constitute legal advice. The legal status described is valid on the publication date: cannabis regulations may change. Consult a lawyer or current legal acts before making decisions.

Author: Michał Waluk · Published: 2026-05-11 · Updated: 2026-09-23