Cannabis public policy is usually complicated anywhere on the planet, but it is particularly so in Europe, where the interplay of several layers of laws and regulations can be found. In addition to local and national laws, there are also regional public policy parameters that have to be considered due to European Union and continental agreements.

That layered public policy dynamic has been on full display as individual European nations have worked to modernize their cannabis laws and regulations in recent years, with Germany serving as arguably the most notable example.

Various lawmakers in Germany have proposed and promoted amending the nation’s medical cannabis laws for the better part of the last year, but according to a recent analysis, such proposals could run afoul of European Union law.

“The planned amendment to the Medical Cannabis Act (MedCanG) is facing significant legal concerns. An expert opinion commissioned by Member of Parliament Linda Heitmann (Alliance 90/The Greens) from the German Bundestag’s Research Service (EU 6 – 3000 – 002/26) concludes that the Federal Council’s proposal to disqualify foreign EU prescriptions is contrary to EU law. According to the Research Service’s assessment, such a ban would disproportionately restrict the European freedom to provide services and the free movement of goods.” wrote the German Cannabis Business Association (BvCW) in its newsletter this week (translated from German to English).

“Should the unlawful regulations nevertheless be adopted, the MEP predicts a standstill in their implementation: In practice, nothing would likely change, and online prescriptions and shipments from other EU member states would continue as before, since national law would have to yield to overriding EU law. Heitmann therefore calls for legally sound and proportionate legislation to avoid superficial measures and create genuine solutions for medical care.” BvCW added.

“Expert opinion commissioned by me: Will the amended medicinal cannabis law violate EU law? The reform of the medicinal cannabis law is currently stalled, and for good reason: the government’s proposed amendments are incomplete in many areas and are also apparently controversial among the coalition partners. Now, an expert opinion I commissioned from the Parliamentary Research Service shows that at least the proposals of the Federal Council would likely violate EU law.” Linda Heitmann wrote on LinkedIn (translated from German to English).

“Specifically, this means that the exclusion of prescriptions in other EU countries would not be in accordance with EU law. The Tagesspiegel background health section also reports on this today and quotes me as saying what would likely be the consequence of a law violating EU law: everything would probably continue as before regarding the prescription and shipment of medicinal cannabis. This assessment should serve as a clear warning signal to the Federal Government.” she added.

“Stricter symbolic measures that violate EU law help no one and ultimately ensure that nothing changes in practice. The amendment to the law requires further intensive consultation! The expert opinion, including my press commentary, can also be found on my website here.” she concluded.