Concentrates and Extracts Under Canadian Law

Cannabis concentrates, extracts and hash are legal in Canada only when they are made and sold inside the licensed system, and only within the federal limits on potency and packaging. Extracts, edibles and topicals became legal to sell after amendments to the Cannabis Regulations came into force on 17 October 2019. This page covers the federal rules as of 27 October 2026; provinces add their own rules on who may sell and where products may be used.

Is shatter, hash or wax legal?

Health Canada’s page on what is controlled as cannabis does not mention hash, resin, shatter or wax by name. It does say that any substance or mixture that contains cannabis, and any processed or unprocessed part of a cannabis plant, is cannabis under Schedule 1 of the Act, including molecules identical to a phytocannabinoid “regardless of how they were obtained.” The regulations define a cannabis concentrate as a substance with a THC concentration greater than 3% w/w. We found no official page that treats shatter differently from other concentrates, so the rules below apply by category rather than by street name.

What are the THC limits per package?

The Cannabis Regulations, as amended in 2019, cap THC by product class. The limits apply per “immediate container,” meaning the package that holds the product.

Product	Federal THC cap	Provision
Edible cannabis	10 mg per immediate container	s. 102.7
Cannabis extract (including for inhalation)	1000 mg per immediate container	s. 101.2
Cannabis topical	1000 mg per immediate container	s. 101.2
Extract for ingestion, nasal, rectal or vaginal use	10 mg per discrete unit	s. 96(1)

Other rules from the same regulations shape what is on the shelf. Extracts may not contain sugars or sweeteners, and edibles can include caffeine only from naturally caffeinated ingredients, at no more than 30 mg per container, and ethyl alcohol up to 0.5% w/w. Plain packaging, mandatory health warnings and the standardized cannabis symbol are required on all cannabis products.

How much concentrate can an adult possess?

The 30-gram limit in the Cannabis Act is counted in dried-cannabis equivalents. Justice Canada lists 0.25 grams of concentrate as equal to 1 gram of dried cannabis, so 30 grams of dried equivalent would be 7.5 grams of concentrate if nothing else were counted. Provinces may set a lower limit.

What does Health Canada say about potency?

Health Canada’s consumer pages link higher-THC products with higher risk. Its health-effects page says products at 20% THC (200 mg/g) or more, such as resin, hash oil, wax and distillates, are associated with a greater risk of mental health problems over time. It also says edibles can take about 2 hours to begin and that acute effects may last up to 12 hours, which is why delayed effects can lead people to take more.

Where can legal concentrates be bought?

Only through the provincial or territorial system. See how licensed retail works and where to find the regulator in each jurisdiction. Product that does not carry the provincial excise stamp and federal packaging is not part of that system. The myth-and-fact page addresses some common claims about potency and risk.