Germany becomes biggest EU country to legalise recreational cannabis

BERLIN – A huge crowd packed the streets around the famous monument in the German capital toting cannabis plant-shaped placards and banners that read ‘we don’t want to be offenders!’

The throng of marijuana enthusiasts erupted in cheers as the clock struck midnight and thick clouds of smoke quickly filled the air as hundreds of people sparked up in unison.

One participant, a very happy 25-year-old Niyazi, said the new legislation – despite fierce objections from opposition politicians and medical associations – gave German citizens ‘a bit of extra freedom’.

Under the first step in the much-debated new law, adults over 18 are now allowed to carry 25 grams of dried cannabis and cultivate up to three marijuana plants at home.

The changes leave Germany with some of the most liberal cannabis laws in Europe, alongside Malta and Luxembourg, which legalised recreational use in 2021 and 2023, respectively.