Am I allowed to use medical cannabis in Norway?
Only on prescription — medical cannabis is legal through two routes, but not for free use. One is approved medicines such as Sativex (MS spasticity) and Epidyolex (severe epilepsy), which can be prescribed. The other is an exemption from marketing authorisation from the Norwegian Medical Products Agency (DMP) for unregistered cannabis products, where the doctor applies — you cannot apply yourself. It is a last resort: you must first have tried approved alternatives without sufficient effect. Here is where people are mistaken: a prescription gives you no right to grow — ordinary cannabis is still illegal, and growing your own is a criminal offence whatever your diagnosis. Exemption products are usually paid for privately.
📋 The rules
- Allowed only on prescription, not for free use
- Approved medicines such as Sativex and Epidyolex
- Or a special exemption from DMP where the doctor applies
- It is a last resort when other treatment fails
- You cannot grow cannabis yourself
🔓 Exceptions
- MS and severe epilepsy patients can get approved medicines on hospital prescription
- A specialist can start treatment for chronic pain when standard treatment has failed
- Hospitals can initiate and administer in defined cases
⚠️ Penalties & fines
Cannabis outside the medical route is illegal under the Medicines Act and the Penal Code, and possession, use and above all home growing are punishable by a fine or imprisonment depending on quantity. What people do not grasp is that the prescription does not move that line: an approved treatment gives you a right to a particular medicine, not to the plant, and growing your own is a criminal offence even with a diagnosis and a prescription in hand. The other cost is financial — exemption products are usually paid for privately, while Sativex and Epidyolex can be covered on an H-prescription.
📎 Official sources
❓ Frequently asked
Can I use medical cannabis?
Only on prescription, either as an approved medicine such as Sativex, or through an exemption from the DMP. It is a last resort: you must first have tried approved alternatives without sufficient effect.
Which approved medicines exist?
Sativex for MS spasticity and Epidyolex for severe epilepsy, which can be prescribed and covered on an H-prescription. Other cannabis products are unregistered and require an exemption.
What is an exemption from marketing authorisation?
A scheme where the doctor applies to the DMP to use an unregistered cannabis product when approved alternatives have not worked. It is the doctor who applies, not you, and the products are usually paid for privately.
Can I grow cannabis for my own medical use?
No. You may not grow cannabis yourself, not even with a prescription. Home growing is a criminal offence whatever your diagnosis — the prescription gives you a right to a medicine, not to the plant.
Does the state cover the cost?
Exemption products are usually paid for privately. Sativex and Epidyolex, by contrast, can be covered on an H-prescription, so the route you take also decides what the treatment costs you.
🔎 Common searches
What people search to land here:
- “can I use medical cannabis norway”
- “medical cannabis prescription norway”
- “special exemption dmp cannabis”
- “sativex epidyolex”
- “grow cannabis banned”
- “cannabis last resort”