Possession of less than 10 grams of cannabis is not a punishable offence in Switzerland, regardless of whether you are a minor or an adult, the Federal Court has confirmed.
In publishing its precedent decision on Thursday, the Federal Court in Lausanne cleared up any lingering confusion around differences in treatment between adults and minors – no distinction should be made, judges ruled.
Referring to the case of a 16-year-old collared in Winterthur with 1.4 grams of cannabis, the court dismissed the appeal of the canton Zurich public prosecutor for minors, who wanted the reinstatement of a punishment initially handed down.
However, the court said that possession of a “minimum quantity”, defined as less than 10 grams and for personal usage, was not punishable for adults in Switzerland, and that there was no reason a youth should be treated otherwise.
Growing, consuming and dealing cannabis are all forbidden in Switzerland. But since 2013 anyone caught in possession of up to ten grams of cannabis will receive a fixed CHF100 ($101) fine and not have it put on their criminal record.
The court said that while the protection of minors was a key component of the narcotics law, imposing heftier fines on youths was not the solution. Rather, judges said, prevention, therapy, and larger punishments for dealers was a better strategy.
The decision will lead to changed practices among Zurich authorities, who from now on will only punish youths with large amounts of cannabis, or those with the intention to sell.
Is your place of origin, your Heimatort, important to you?
Every Swiss citizen has a Heimatort, a place of origin, but many have never visited theirs. What’s your relationship with your Heimatort? What does it mean to you?
Controversial Russian soprano Anna Netrebko returns to Zurich
This content was published on
Russian soprano Anna Netrebko, who is said to be close to Russian president Vladimir Putin, to perform at the Zurich Opera House.
This content was published on
Multiple births following artificial insemination in Switzerland have fallen sharply over the last 20 years, shrinking from 17.4% in 2002 to 2.8% in 2023.
This content was published on
Three independent UN experts call on Switzerland and other countries to redouble efforts a year after a ECHR ruling in favour of Climate Elders.
“No US tariff negotiations”: Swiss economics minister
This content was published on
Switzerland has yet to enter formal tariff negotiations with the United States despite making contact with the administration.
Soaring cocoa prices hit Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut
This content was published on
Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut suffered from soaring cocoa prices in the first half of the 2024-2025 financial year.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss police want more clarity on cannabis
This content was published on
Fines for possession of cannabis have not been uniform throughout the country due to lack of clarity in the implementation of the law.
This content was published on
In Switzerland, 15% of 15-year-old boys and 9% of girls said they had used cannabis in the past 30 days, according to the WHO studyExternal link, based on data from 42 countries from 2014. Switzerland was pipped by young stoners from France (16% of boys) and was level with Italy (15% of boys). In addition,…
‘In three years, medical cannabis could be sold in Swiss pharmacies’
This content was published on
Tens of thousands of patients in Switzerland regularly use cannabis to relieve pain and discomfort. Most of them do so illegally, however.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.