Swiss CBD in France: 1% THC against 0.30%
Swiss law does not treat hemp as a narcotic while its total THC content stays below 1.0%. France allows only 0.30% Δ⁹-THC, and its official measurement method counts most of the THCA. A flower bought legally in Switzerland can thus be illegal in France, because the threshold that applies is that of the country where you hold the product.
Key takeaways
- The Swiss limit is below 1.0% total THC, which adds THC and its acidic form THCA, converted by calculation.
- France caps varieties, extracts and finished products at 0.30% Δ⁹-THC.
- Heating to 300 °C in the official French method converts nearly all the THCA into THC.
- At 0.33 to 1.0% total THC, a flower is legal in Switzerland yet over the French threshold by the official measurement.
- Neither country authorises CBD foods.
The Swiss threshold: 1.0% total THC
Swissmedic, the Federal Office of Public Health, the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office and the associations of cantonal pharmacists and chemists wrote the reference document, an enforcement guide. Its version 8.0, dated 1 May 2025, sets out the rule plainly: cannabis and cannabis preparations with a total THC content below 1.0% are not considered narcotics under the ordinance on narcotics schedules.
The same document corrects three common assumptions. The reform of 1 August 2022, which opened up medical cannabis, left the 1.0% limit unchanged. Non-medical use of a product at 1.0% or more is still prohibited. Since 1 October 2024, hemp below 1.0% has been sold as a herbal smoking product under the tobacco products act. Switzerland does regulate hemp; it just sets the line higher.
The French threshold: 0.30% Δ⁹-THC
In France, the order of 30 December 2021 authorises only Cannabis sativa L. varieties listed in the official catalogues whose Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol content does not exceed 0.30%. Hemp extracts and the products containing them face the same cap. The order also banned the sale of raw flowers, until the Conseil d'État annulled that ban on 29 December 2022. The court found that CBD has no psychoactive effect and causes no dependence, and that tests can distinguish varieties.
A product above the threshold leaves the authorised hemp framework and comes under narcotics law. The ANSM settled the THCA question in 2024. Its decision in force from 3 June 2024 classifies THCA as a narcotic, unless it is present in hemp whose THC content meets the 0.3% threshold. Where the figure comes from is explained in our article on the legal THC level.
Δ⁹-THC or total THC: what each country measures
Swiss law uses total THC, that is Δ⁹-THC plus THCA converted with the standard formula Δ⁹-THC + 0.877 × THCA. The 0.877 factor accounts for the mass THCA loses as it turns into THC. French law names Δ⁹-THC alone, which seems more lenient.
The official French method alters that impression. Under the order's annex, variety THC is measured by gas chromatography with the injector heated to 300 °C. A 2022 study in Frontiers in Chemistry showed that in those conditions nearly all the THCA converts to THC, so the official figure comes close to total THC. Between the two countries, the ratio stays roughly 1 to 3.
Consider a hypothetical flower with 0.20% Δ⁹-THC and 0.70% THCA. Its total THC is 0.20 + 0.877 × 0.70, which gives 0.81%. Below 1.0%, it can be sold in Switzerland as a smoking product. In France its Δ⁹-THC line looks compliant, yet the official method heats the sample and would put it well over 0.30%, even allowing for the 0.03-point tolerance. When a certificate comes from liquid chromatography (HPLC), read both lines, as our guide to reading a certificate of analysis explains.
Switzerland and France, point by point
| Question | Switzerland | France |
|---|---|---|
| THC threshold | Below 1.0% | 0.30% at most |
| What is measured | Total THC (Δ⁹-THC + converted THCA) | Δ⁹-THC, official method at 300 °C |
| Flowers | Sold as a smoking product since 1 October 2024 | Sold since the annulment of 29 December 2022 |
| CBD foods | Novel food, no authorisation | Withdrawal restated on 20 May 2026 |
| Non-medical use above the threshold | Prohibited | Prohibited (narcotic) |
| Reference text | Enforcement guide v8.0, 1 May 2025 | Order of 30 December 2021 |
The two countries agree on food. According to the Swiss guide, no product with added cannabinoids has been authorised as a novel food. In France, on 20 May 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture restated that foods containing CBD or any other cannabinoid must be withdrawn from the market.
Bringing CBD back from Switzerland: what to check
Once in France, a product bought in Switzerland has to comply with French law. Check three things:
- The batch certificate of analysis, with Δ⁹-THC and THCA, so you can estimate total THC.
- The total THC, which has to stay below 0.30%. A Swiss flower sold as "under 1%" tells you no more than that.
- The type of product: France does not authorise a food, an oil sold as a supplement or a CBD gummy, whatever its content.
Export from Switzerland is not simple either. According to its enforcement guide, Swissmedic issues no certificate of no objection for importing or exporting cannabis below 1.0% total THC. Internationally, these products fall under the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. Importing into Switzerland requires a batch certificate of analysis from a laboratory accredited to ISO/IEC 17025.
The rest is covered in our articles on flying with CBD and on CBD parcels from abroad. As our comparison with the German market shows, three neighbouring countries can treat the same product in three different ways.
Frequently asked questions
Under 1.0% total THC, that is Δ⁹-THC plus converted THCA. Beyond it, Swiss narcotics law applies and non-medical use is prohibited.
Only when it meets French law, with an authorised variety and at most 0.30% Δ⁹-THC under a method that counts almost all the THCA. A Swiss flower at 0.33 to 1.0% total THC fails.
Each threshold has its own source. Switzerland, which is outside the European Union, sets its limit in the ordinance on narcotics schedules. France chose 0.30% in its December 2021 order, matching the figure the EU common agricultural policy has applied to hemp varieties since 2023.
No. The Swiss threshold applies to a product's total THC and leaves CBD aside, so a CBD product under 1.0% total THC is not a narcotic there.
Written by the Phytogrammes team
Each journal article draws on cited primary sources: ANSM, EFSA, EUR-Lex and peer-reviewed publications. Product profiles are distinguished from documented laboratory results. Our approach.
Article published on . CBD is not a medicine.