Medicinal Cannabis & Driving in Victoria: Current Law & Court Discretion (2026)
Presence offence — court discretion on licence; trial reporting 2026 Last verified:
Page updates
- : Verification sweep: s50(1F) discretion confirmed, including retrospective application to matters heard from 1 March 2025 regardless of offence date.
It is an offence in Victoria to drive with any amount of THC in your system, including from prescribed medicinal cannabis, and a valid prescription is not a defence to the charge itself. However, from 1 March 2025, section 50(1F) of the Road Safety Act 1986 (inserted by the Roads and Road Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2024) gives magistrates discretion not to cancel the licence of a driver who tests positive for THC where the matter relates to a legal medicinal cannabis product used in accordance with a current prescription. The discretion applies to matters heard from 1 March 2025 even where the offence occurred earlier. The driver remains guilty of the offence and the fine stands. A closed-track driving trial (began September 2024, ~70 participants) is expected to report in mid-2026.
Just tested positive? What happens next in Victoria, step by step →
Medicinal cannabis and driving in Victoria: where the law stands
Victoria has taken the most significant reform step of any mainland state — but the headline is easy to misread. Driving with any detectable THC in your system remains an offence in Victoria under section 49(1)(bb), (h) and (i) of the Road Safety Act 1986, and a valid prescription is not a defence to the charge itself.
What changed on 1 March 2025 is what happens to your licence. A new section 50(1F), inserted into the Road Safety Act 1986 by the Roads and Road Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2024 (Vic), gives magistrates discretion not to cancel or disqualify the licence of a driver who tests positive for THC, where the matter relates to a legal medicinal cannabis product used in accordance with a current prescription.
Before this change, a positive THC result meant mandatory licence loss even for compliant patients taking medication exactly as prescribed.
What the court considers
When exercising the discretion, the court looks at evidence including:
- whether the driver held a valid prescription at the time of detection
- whether the driver was not impaired or under the influence of drugs
- whether the matter relates to use of a legal medicinal cannabis product in accordance with the prescription
Three critical caveats:
- You are still guilty of the offence, and the fine still stands — the discretion applies to the licence outcome only.
- Going to court does not guarantee you keep your licence. The court can still cancel and disqualify — the discretion is exactly that.
- It reaches back. The provision applies to matters heard from 1 March 2025 regardless of whether the positive test occurred before or after that date — practitioner analyses and community legal information confirm the retrospective application. If you have an older unresolved matter, raise this with a lawyer immediately.
A practical note practitioners emphasise: if your matter goes before the court, bring your medicinal cannabis prescription and dispensing records — the discretion turns on that evidence. And if your medicine is CBD-only, Transport Victoria's guidance is that you can lawfully drive as long as you're not impaired — see our CBD guide.
Existing impairment laws are untouched: driving while impaired or under the influence remains a separate, serious offence regardless of prescription.
What happens at a roadside test in Victoria
- Police take a saliva sample at random roadside drug testing.
- A roadside positive for THC is sent for laboratory confirmation.
- A confirmed positive leads to a drug-driving charge. If you hold a valid prescription and were unimpaired, the section 50(1F) discretion is the mechanism through which a court may spare your licence — which typically means having the matter heard rather than accepting an infringement outcome. This is exactly the decision point where legal advice matters most — the procedural path (infringement versus court) determines whether the discretion can even be exercised, and a lawyer will confirm the right one for your matter.
The closed-track trial — reporting mid-2026
Victoria is running a world-first closed-circuit driving trial, conducted by Swinburne University, assessing how prescribed medicinal cannabis affects patients' real driving performance. Patient recruitment concluded and control-group testing was underway as of April 2026, with results expected mid-2026. The Government has said it will then consider broader reform treating medicinal cannabis like other prescription medicines. This page will be updated the day the report lands — the Reform Tracker will carry it first.
Reform timeline (VIC)
- 2023 — Road Safety Amendment (Medicinal Cannabis) Bill introduced by Legalise Cannabis Victoria.
- Late 2024 — Parliament passes the Roads and Road Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2024, creating the licence discretion.
- 1 March 2025 — Section 50(1F) discretion commences, applying to matters whenever the offence occurred.
- September 2024 onward — closed-track trial runs; results expected mid-2026.
FAQ (render with FAQPage schema)
Is it now legal to drive with prescribed THC in Victoria? No. THC presence while driving remains an offence. What changed is that a court now has discretion over whether you lose your licence, if you had a valid prescription and were not impaired.
Do I avoid the fine if the court exercises the discretion? No — the driver is still guilty of the offence and the fine stands; the discretion concerns the licence.
Does the discretion apply automatically? No. It is decided case-by-case on the evidence, typically requiring the matter to go before a magistrate. Outcomes are not guaranteed.
I tested positive before 1 March 2025 — does this help me? Potentially, yes. The provision applies to matters dealt with from 1 March 2025 even where the offence occurred earlier. Speak to a lawyer about your specific matter.
Active reform items
- Section 50(1F) licence discretion for prescribed patients — commenced 1 March 2025 via Roads and Road Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2024 (Vic). (In force)
- 18-month closed-circuit medicinal cannabis driving trial (began September 2024) — outcome/report expected mid-2026. (Awaiting report — update this entry on publication)
Quick answers for Victoria
Can I drive with a medicinal cannabis prescription in Victoria?
It is an offence in Victoria to drive with any amount of THC in your system, including from prescribed medicinal cannabis, and a valid prescription is not a defence to the charge itself. However, from 1 March 2025, section 50(1F) of the Road Safety Act 1986 (inserted by the Roads and Road Safety Legislation Amendment Act 2024) gives magistrates discretion not to cancel the licence of a driver who tests positive for THC where the matter relates to a legal medicinal cannabis product used in accordance with a current prescription. The discretion applies to matters heard from 1 March 2025 even where the offence occurred earlier. The driver remains guilty of the offence and the fine stands. A closed-track driving trial (began September 2024, ~70 participants) is expected to report in mid-2026.
Is a valid prescription a defence to drug driving in Victoria?
No — a prescription is not a defence to the offence in Victoria. However, courts have discretion over your licence where you held a valid prescription and were not impaired. The offence and fine still stand.
What happens if I test positive at a roadside drug test in Victoria?
You will be unable to drive for a period while your sample goes to a laboratory, and charges typically follow laboratory confirmation. See our step-by-step guide, “Tested positive in Victoria: what happens next”, and get legal advice early.
Primary sources for this page
- https://transport.vic.gov.au/road-and-active-transport/road-rules-and-safety/alcohol-drugs-and-driving/medicinal-cannabis-and-driving
- https://www.legislation.vic.gov.au (Road Safety Act 1986 s49, s50(1F))