For Consumers
What Is In The Law?
It’s illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to buy, possess or use adult-use cannabis in New Mexico, just like alcohol. Businesses must have a license to lawfully sell cannabis in New Mexico and cannabis stores can lose their license for selling adult-use cannabis to anyone underage and/or face significant fines and penalties.
Adults can be charged with criminal penalties for selling or giving cannabis products to someone underage. Youth cannabis use, like youth use of alcohol and other intoxicating substances, has been found to have negative social, physical, and mental health impacts on youth whose brains are still growing and developing. Because of this, adult-use cannabis remains controlled for individuals under 21.
What is lawful?
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- It is lawful for adults 21 years or older to possess 2 ounces of cannabis, 16 grams of cannabis extract, and 800 milligrams of edible cannabis.
- It is lawful for adults 21 years or older to use cannabis in a private home or licensed cannabis consumption area.
- It is lawful for adults 21 years or older to “share” cannabis without compensation, to a person 21 years or older under the legal possession limit, but the sale of a service or commodity associated with the sharing is prohibited, including so-called “gifting.”
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What is unlawful?
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- It remains unlawful to smoke cannabis in any public space, including sidewalks, parks, private businesses, or any place where smoking tobacco is prohibited (like restaurant patios). Local governments may impose further restrictions.
- It is unlawful to distribute, sell, or “gift” cannabis without a license. So-called “gifting” or giving away cannabis at the same time as another transaction or is offered or advertised in conjunction with an offer for the sale of goods or services – this activity is illegal.
- It remains unlawful to store or display product in excess of the legal possession amounts unless the excess cannabis is in a person’s private residence and not visible from a public place.
- It is illegal to drive under the influence of cannabis which can slow motor coordination and other skills needed to drive safely. Like with alcohol and other controlled substances, if you drive under the influence of cannabis, you are at risk of getting a DUI and hurting yourself or others.
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Safe Storage to Reduce Legal and Health-related Risks
You have to be 21 to buy, use, or possess adult-use cannabis in New Mexico.
Parents and mentors: You can impact whether youth in your life use cannabis. Start the conversation with them early and have it often. Make sure they understand the consequences and the negative impact it can have on their growing, developing brain. Pre-teens, teens, and youth in their early 20s tend to seek out new experiences and engage in risky behaviors, like using cannabis. Resources can be found under Health and Safety (provide direct link here).
If you keep cannabis and cannabis products at your home, they should be stored safely, locked up, and out of reach of children and pets. Accidentally consuming edibles is a risk for children and pets that can result in acute intoxication or the need for emergency medical attention. Acute intoxication may be unwelcomed by an unintentional consumer and can be identified with symptoms such as euphoria, perception alterations such as time and spatial distortion, intensification of ordinary sensory experiences, and motor impairment. If there is an accidental exposure to cannabis or cannabis products of any kind — call Poison Control Center (800) 222-1222 or visit your Emergency Room if needed. It should be noted that research as not yet found a lethal dose of naturally occurring Delta 9 THC, the psychoactive cannabinoid in cannabis.
Contact your vet immediately if your pet has ingested a cannabis-containing product.
Further research on cannabis intoxication: