Can I keep cannabis at home in Hungary?
No — in Hungary possessing weed is a crime, and since 2025 even the escape hatch narrowed. Under the Criminal Code, consuming drugs or acquiring/keeping a small quantity for personal use carries up to 2 years' imprisonment. For cannabis the small-quantity ceiling is 6 grams of pure THC content (not plant weight!), and 5 plants for growing. Above that, sentences climb steeply; dealing means years. The classic lifeline is diversion (elterelés): first-time small-quantity offenders escape punishment by confessing and completing 6 months of treatment/preventive care — but since the 15 June 2025 tightening, qualifying also requires revealing the drug's source, i.e. the dealer. Hungary's zero-tolerance drug policy doesn't touch CBD (legal when THC-free), but everything containing THC — foreign 'medical weed' prescriptions included — is criminal-law territory.
📋 The key rules
- Consumption and small-quantity possession: a crime, up to 2 years' imprisonment
- Small quantity: max 6 g pure THC content; growing: max 5 plants
- Above that: multi-year sentences; supply/dealing is far heavier
- Diversion: confession + 6 months' treatment — since 15/6/2025 naming the source is also required
- Diversion is available only once every 2 years
🔓 Exceptions
- THC-free CBD products: legal (see the CBD question)
- Industrial hemp growing: a separately licensed, regulated sphere
- Diversion: a first small-quantity case can escape punishment — but only once every 2 years
⚠️ Penalties
Small quantities carry up to 2 years' imprisonment, larger quantities 1–5 years, significant quantities 5–10; transfer and dealing are separate, heavier offences. The real price, though, is rarely prison: the criminal proceeding itself lands you in the criminal records register, which bites for years on background certificates, job applications and visas. Diversion is what keeps that mark away — but since the 15 June 2025 tightening it also demands that you reveal the source, meaning the dealer, and it is available only once every two years.
📎 Official sources
- TASZ (civil liberties union) · Caught with a small amount? (HU) →
- Vidákovics Law Office · Drug possession, Criminal Code §178 (HU) →
- Arsboni · Consumption, possession, growing and diversion (HU) →
❓ Frequently asked questions
What counts as a small quantity?
For cannabis the ceiling is 6 grams of pure THC content, established by forensic experts — so it is not the weight of the seized plant matter. Growing caps at 5 plants, above which the offence is graver.
What is diversion, and does it still work?
In a first small-quantity case, punishment is avoidable through confession plus 6 months of treatment. Since the June 2025 tightening, revealing the source (the dealer) is also required, and it is available once per 2 years.
Is consumption itself punishable?
Yes — consumption has been a standalone offence since 2013, carrying the same exposure of up to 2 years as small-quantity possession. No stash and no selling are needed for liability.
Can I bring in medical cannabis on a foreign prescription?
Risky ground: THC-containing preparations count as narcotics here, and Hungary runs no general medical-cannabis programme. Don't attempt it without prior clearance from the authorities.
Two plants on my own balcony — still a crime?
Yes: growing is a crime below 5 plants too, it merely qualifies as a small quantity and lands in the up-to-2-years band. The plant count doesn't legalise anything — it only softens the classification and opens diversion.
🔎 What people actually search
Real search phrases for this topic.
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