Cannabis Possession Limits in Mexico — The 5-Gram Rule

Last verified: April 2026

The Ley de Narcomenudeo (2009)

The 2009 Ley de Narcomenudeo (small-scale dealing law) created Annex Table I — the Tabla de Orientación de Dosis Máximas de Consumo Personal — which establishes that up to 5 grams of cannabis is the personal-use threshold. Below 5 grams, the user is, at most, presumed to be a personal consumer; the police should send them to treatment or release them rather than charge under the Penal Code.

The Three-Tier Quantity Framework

Tier 1: Up to 5 g — Consumo Personal

This is the tolerance zone. Police should refer to treatment under Article 199 of the Código Penal Federal (farmacodependiente diversion). In practice, what happens varies by jurisdiction:

• For amparo permit holders: The permit document is your protection. COFEPRIS-issued authorizations explicitly cover personal possession.
• For non-permit holders: The 5-g threshold is a sentencing/prosecutorial guideline (cuantificación de orientación), not legalization. Police can detain, search, and demand the mordida. The threshold simply protects users from the most serious charges if pressed forward to prosecution.

Tier 2: 5 g – 5 kg — Narcomenudeo (State Jurisdiction)

Between 5 grams and 5 kilograms, jurisdiction shifts to the states, which prosecute under the narcomenudeo category — small-scale dealing. Each state has its own narcomenudeo procedural code and prosecution practice. Penalties typically range from:

• Roughly 3 years at the lower end (5 g – 1,000 g)
• Up to roughly 7 years approaching 5 kg

State courts prosecute. State public defenders represent. The Defensoría Pública state systems vary in capacity.

Tier 3: Over 5 kg — Narcotráfico (Federal Jurisdiction)

Above 5 kilograms, the case escalates to federal prosecution under Article 194 of the Código Penal Federal. Penalties are 10 to 25 years plus substantial fines. Federal trafficking is prosecuted by the Fiscalía General de la República (FGR) with federal-level investigative resources.

The Conceptual Fault Line: Consumo Personal vs Narcomenudeo vs Narcotráfico

• Consumo personal: Personal use; protected (in theory) by the SCJN's 2021 declaratoria for those who hold an amparo, and statistically tolerated under 5 g.
• Narcomenudeo: Small-scale dealing, prosecuted at the state level. Any sale, even one joint passed for money, falls here.
• Narcotráfico: Federal trafficking, prosecuted under the Código Penal Federal Article 194.

There is, in this scheme, a right to consume but no right to buy. That gap is the entire policy crisis.

What Counts as "Possession" in Mexico

Mexican drug-possession law does not distinguish meaningfully between dried flower, edibles, and concentrates by weight category. The Ley de Narcomenudeo's Annex Table I assigns 5 g to cannabis (marihuana), with separate thresholds for other substances. Concentrates in particular can quickly exceed practical possession limits even in small physical quantities.

For Amparo Holders

Permit holders carry written authorization from COFEPRIS. The document specifies the holder's name and the scope of the permit. In practice:

• Carry a copy of the permit when transporting personal product.
• Be prepared to wait at Guardia Nacional or state checkpoints while officers verify.
• The permit does not authorize crossing the border — see border warning.
• The permit does not override local public-order codes — public smoking is still subject to municipal sanction.

If You Are Detained

For visitors: see police encounters for what to do, including consular notification under Article 36 of the Vienna Convention.

Official Sources

• Ley General de Salud — full text including Annex Table I
• Código Penal Federal — Articles 193–199

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