Legalisation of the coffeeshop supply chain
Portfolio

Policy & advocacy

Legalisation of the coffeeshop supply chain

Year

2025 – heden

Category

Policy & advocacy

Status

Ongoing / recent

Role

Initiator and moderator on behalf of the Bond van Cannabis Detaillisten (BCD) (Association of Cannabis Retailers)

Working towards a comprehensive regulatory framework for the entire coffeeshop supply chain — including regulatory sessions with municipalities and ministries, and modernisation of the toleration policy (stock levels, AHOJG criteria). Preparing for the period after the Experiment Gesloten Coffeeshopketen (Experiment into a Closed Coffeeshop Supply Chain) (2029/2030).

The Experiment Gesloten Coffeeshopketen (Experiment into a Closed Coffeeshop Supply Chain) offers a regulated supply side for the first time, but only in ten municipalities and with an end date. The evaluation will be submitted to the ministers by 7 August 2028 at the latest, the cabinet's position will follow on 7 December 2028, and the experimental phase will end on 7 April 2029 (with a possible extension until 7 October 2030).

Four months between a cabinet decision and the end of the experiment is very ambitious for new legislation. Therefore, we are working in parallel: adhering to the ultimate goal of a fully regulated supply chain and seeking concrete scope within the existing toleration policy. Not waiting until December 2028, but already developing scenarios and frameworks for the period thereafter — for the entire sector, not just for the municipalities participating in the experiment.

In the regulatory sessions, we discuss with entrepreneurs, policymakers, and experts how a future regulatory model could look — consciously including non-experiment municipalities, to prevent division and to initiate a flywheel effect towards structural regulation.

In parallel, we are working on modernising the toleration policy itself. Elements such as the 500-gram stock limit and the AHOJG criteria (criteria for coffeeshop policy: no posters, no hard drugs, no nuisance, no selling to minors, no large quantities) no longer align with practice; recalibration is needed so that entrepreneurs can operate safely and the policy remains enforceable, both within and outside the experiment.

Tijdlijn

Juridische stappen — van heden terug in de tijd

  1. 7 okt 2030

    Uiterste einddatum

    Mogelijke einddatum experiment na verlenging

    Bij gebruik van de verlengingsmogelijkheid eindigt het Experiment Gesloten Coffeeshopketen uiterlijk op deze datum. Zonder structurele wetgeving valt de keten dan terug op het bestaande gedoogkader.

  2. 7 apr 2029

    Einde experimenteerfase

    Reguliere einddatum experiment

    Vier maanden na het kabinetsstandpunt loopt de experimenteerfase af. Onvoldoende tijd voor nieuwe wetgeving — daarom werken wij parallel aan een vervolgkader.

  3. 7 dec 2028

    Kabinetsstandpunt

    Kabinet bepaalt het vervolg

    Op basis van de evaluatie neemt het kabinet een standpunt in over voortzetting, beëindiging of omzetting naar structurele wetgeving.

  4. 7 aug 2028

    Evaluatie

    Evaluatie experiment bij ministers

    De wettelijke evaluatie van het Experiment Gesloten Coffeeshopketen ligt uiterlijk op deze datum bij de ministers van JenV en VWS.

  5. 7 apr 2025

    Volledige fase

    Start volledige experimenteerfase

    Na de transitiefase gaan alle deelnemende coffeeshops in de tien gemeenten volledig over op gereguleerd geteelde cannabis van aangewezen telers.

  6. 2024

    Transitiefase

    Start aanloop- en transitiefase

    Eerste gereguleerd geteelde cannabis komt beschikbaar in de experimentgemeenten naast bestaande inkoop, met track & trace en strikte handelsvoorraadeisen.

  7. 2023

    Aanwijzing

    Aanwijzing telers en deelnemende gemeenten definitief

    Tien telers en tien gemeenten zijn aangewezen voor deelname aan het experiment; vergunningverlening en toezicht worden ingericht.

  8. 2020

    Wetgeving

    Wet experiment gesloten coffeeshopketen aangenomen

    Eerste en Tweede Kamer stemmen in met de experimenteerwet en de bijbehorende AMvB. Daarmee ontstaat voor het eerst een wettelijke basis voor gereguleerde aanvoer.

  9. 2017

    Regeerakkoord

    Experiment aangekondigd in regeerakkoord Rutte III

    Het kabinet kondigt een uniform experiment aan met gesloten coffeeshopketens in een beperkt aantal gemeenten.

  10. 1976

    Gedoogbeleid

    Opiumwet gewijzigd — start gedoogbeleid en AHOJG-criteria

    Onderscheid tussen soft- en harddrugs wordt vastgelegd. De voorkant van de coffeeshop wordt gedoogd, de achterdeur blijft onverkort verboden — de kern van de ketenparadox die tot vandaag voortduurt.

In the news

Related articles & publications

The cannabis experiment is science. Legalisation is politics.

Blog·9 October 2025

The cannabis experiment is science. Legalisation is politics.

After fifty years of coffeeshop policy, we know that regulated sales work. Yet, parties continue to hide behind research.

Regulation session on 13 May about next steps following the experiment

coffeeshopbond·30 March 2026

Regulation session on 13 May about next steps following the experiment

The Experiment gesloten coffeeshopketen (closed coffeeshop chain experiment) is approaching the end of its first year. This brings a question increasingly to the forefront.

Quality standard within reach: what the baseline measurement of the tolerated situation teaches us

Blog·22 January 2025

Quality standard within reach: what the baseline measurement of the tolerated situation teaches us

The baseline measurement of the 'experiment gesloten coffeeshopketen' (closed coffeeshop chain experiment) was recently presented. A baseline measurement with important insights.

Only 100 days until the elections: will the coffeeshop model endure?

coffeeshopbond·21 July 2025

Only 100 days until the elections: will the coffeeshop model endure?

On 29 October 2025, the Netherlands will once again go to the polls. For the coffeeshop sector, these elections are more important than ever. The new cabinet will decide on future coffeeshop policy. They will be responsible for evaluating the Experiment gesloten coffeeshopketen (Experiment into a Closed Coffeeshop Chain) and will, based on this, determine whether the Netherlands truly opts for national regulation or not.

European Drug Report 2026 – cannabis in Europe

coffeeshopbond·10 June 2026

European Drug Report 2026 – cannabis in Europe

The EUDA published the European Drug Report 2026. Cannabis remains the most widely used illicit drug in Europe. The report describes an increasingly diverse market, risks associated with high-potency products and semi-synthetic cannabinoids, and explicitly mentions the Netherlands in relation to cannabis seizures, dismantled production sites, and the experiment gesloten coffeeshopketen (closed coffeeshop chain experiment).

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