The season of summer is upon us, and with it comes the summer vacations. For those of you CBD flower users, travel can present some hard questions, right? What should you do with your cannabis when hitting the road? Well, this brief guide will attempt to showcase the legal nuances involved when it comes to traveling with CBD hemp flowers, cannabis, and so on. You’ll also find a few tips on how you can properly store your cannabis products when on the road.
In-State Travel vs Interstate Travel
Each place has its own legal status when it comes to cannabis and this can sometimes prove tricky for those of you traveling with CBD products. Cannabis, at the federal level, is considered a controlled substance. This means that you’re not allowed to possess any amount.
In the states where it’s legal, you can have it in your car while you drive and even carry it on certain in-state flights. Interstate travel, on the other hand, involves you crossing state borders which means federal law will kick in making traveling with it illegal. For instance, you can travel with cannabis from San Francisco, California to Santa Monica and everything will be fine. However, you can’t travel from Santa Monica to Las Vegas even though cannabis is also legal in Nevada.
The Exception Of Hemp
The Farm Bill of 2018 legalized hemp nationwide. Some folks feel that hemp-based products such as CBD hemp flowers and oils were made legal by extension. But, the situation isn’t that clear-cut just yet. The Farm Bill, 2018, explicitly legalizes the possession and transport of hemp-based products, for any purpose set forth. The TSA allows you to store products that have less than 0.3% THC in your checked or carry-on luggage.
Flying With Cannabis
The aviation industry is federally regulated, meaning it is illegal for you to carry any kind of cannabis into United States airspace. Your best bet will always be to try and buy the cannabis at the source instead of carrying your own on the trip. Although, local law enforcement agencies might allow you to carry cannabis products, for example, on a San Diego to Sacramento flightseeing as how that counts as in-state travel.
Road Travel
Since federal law deems cannabis illegal, carrying it along international borders will definitely not be allowed. When Canada made cannabis legal in 2018, border agents in the United States quickly reasserted this. While you won’t get arrested for using cannabis in Canada, transporting it to or from the country is actually a felony. Travelers using cannabis products abroad might have to face additional questioning.
You will, technically, be subject to the same rules even when crossing state borders by car. However, penalties may differ across destination states.
Wrapping Up
Gummies and CBD hemp flowers often travel quite well. This is large because they’re often shelf-stabilized. If you’re going to be using a plane to travel, make sure they’re in their original packages so that TSA agents don’t bother you too much. Hopefully, now you know what to do next time you need to travel with CBD.