After all the talk it's here, recreational marijuana is legal in Canada.
The new rules don't mean everyone can just go buy weed from anyone/anywhere and walk around smoking it. Here in Quebec the province took a more Rubik's Cube than Wild West approach to dealing with legalized marijuana.
In order to buy marijuana from one of Quebec's cannabis stores you will need to show the proper ID, showing you are at least 18-years-old.
The new CAQ government has said, during the campaign and since being elected, it plans to increase the minimum age to buy marijuana to 21. The exact date for that increase is not yet known, so for now, if you're 18 or older you can enjoy the newly legalized drug.
In Montreal there will be three Société québécoise du cannabis locations open on Day 1:
Additional stores are planned:
There are no plans to open a location in Laval. By the end of this year the SQDC hopes to have 20 stores in operation across the province.
Stores will be open from 10:00 A.M. to 9:00 P.M. Monday to Friday, and from 10:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M. on weekends.
If you don't want to make your way to one of the SQDC's locations you can also buy online, from the SQDC's online store. When your delivery arrives you'll need your ID (just like in store).
Quebec will have some of the lowest prices in Canada. The overall cost will vary between $5.25 and $10 per gram. The average price is expected to be about $7 per gram.
In store you can only buy 30 grams at a time. You can buy more online, but Quebec has put a cap (150 grams) on how much weed you can have in your home.
SQDC stores will have about 150 different products available. You can buy dried buds, ground cannabis, pre-rolled joints, or cannabis oil, pills, or oral spray. There will be three types of cannabis: Indica, known for its relaxing properties; Sativa, known of inducing a cerebral, uplifting feeling and Hybrid, which is a blend of both. Products will also come in a variety of aromas, from food to diesel fuel.
Edibles will not be sold.
At home, unless you live in an apartment or condo building where smoking has already been banned. The province's current marijuana bill gives landlords 90 days (from October 17) to modify lease conditions to prohibit smoking cannabis. Condos can change rules with a majority homeowner agreement.
For now the provincial government's law prohibits smoking cannabis in the same places where smoking a cigarette is banned and a few extra locations as well.
The list of prohibited places is long, can be found here, and includes: bars/restaurants, CEGEPs/Universities, hospitals, bus shelters, schools, sports centres, and the area within nine metres of all locations on the banned list.
If you feel like enjoying some marijuana while walking along any of the streets on the Island of Montreal, you will need to know where city/borough limits are.
The City of Montreal has a law in place similar to the provincial government, but some boroughs and other on island cities took it a step further.
Laval also plans on being tougher - it wants marijuana smoking banned in parks, wooded areas, rivershores, major outdoor public places and family festivals. It will hold public consultations on the matter. Until Laval comes up with its own byaw, the law on smoking tobacco in public places will apply on its territory.
Saint-Léonard, Montreal North and Rivière-des-Prairies-Pointe-aux-Trembles are planning similar regulations.
This means, until the CAQ puts in its blanket ban on smoking in public, on some streets on the island you can smoke your pot without a care in the world, but if you cross the street you could be subject to hefty fines.
Many other municipalities, including those off the island, are waiting for provincial legislation to be passed before implementing their own.
While the Federal government says yes, the Quebec government gave a hard no on the matter. The provincial government prohibits growing your own cannabis. Manitoba is the only other province to ban home grown pot.
Walk, use public transit or find a lift. Quebec has a zero tolerance policy in place for driving under the influence of cannabis.
If Montreal police suspect someone is driving high they can ask the individual to perform a roadside detection test. Those who fail will be arrested and sent for further testing, to be done by a team of specialized officers.
In Quebec the penalties for driving high will be the same as drunk driving.
While recreational use of marijuana is legal in Canada, where you can smoke it and how much you can have on you can vary by province. So if you plan on taking a trip outside Quebec you'll want to brush up on other provincial laws concerning cannabis.
Other countries laws regarding marijuana, and bringing it in to their country, have not changed.
For more information on Quebec pot shops, visit them online.
For more information on Quebec's current marijuana legislation (the CAQ has stated it plans on changing current laws) you can read it here.
If you want to read the Federal law, you can do so here.