Iowa Cannabis Laws & Penalties in 2024

Key Takeaways

Weed is not legal for recreational use in Iowa, with possession punished by up to 6 months in jail and a $1,000 fine.
Qualifying medical patients can access CBD and THC products from the state’s medical program, but only tinctures, capsules, vaporizable or nebulizable forms, suppositories and topical creams are allowed.
Patients can buy 4.5 g of THC in a 90-day period.

Weed isn’t legal for recreational use in Iowa, but there is a limited medical program in the state.

Iowa’s medical marijuana laws don’t allow flower, though, and the main focus of the program is CBD. This means that there is no legal way to smoke a joint in Iowa, but if you have a medical need, the program does allow you to purchase up to 4.5 g of THC (i.e. the chemical itself, not cannabis) over a 90-day period.

So it’s a good idea to learn the basics of the state’s rules and see if you can get access.

Iowa Cannabis Laws

Weed is not legal in Iowa, but you can get CBD oil with THC if you have a medical need and qualify for the program. Flower is always illegal.

Recreational Cannabis Laws

Iowa bans recreational weed use in the state.

The law classes marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance, in the same Schedule as heroin. It’s one of the remaining 19 states that still punish simple possession with jail time.

Penalties for Possession of Weed

Possession of weed in Iowa is a crime, even if you only have a small amount or if you’re a medical patient but don’t have it in one of the approved forms.

Iowa’s weed laws don’t break down possession offenses by the amount you have, but by the number of times you’ve been convicted in the past, if at all.

In short:

If you’re caught with weed for the first time, you can get up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
For a second offense, you can get up to a year in prison and a fine of between $430 and $2,560.
For any subsequent offense, the punishment can increase up to two years in prison and a fine of between $855 and $8,540.
You can also get up to 30 days in jail and a fine of between $105 and $855 for simply possessing paraphernalia.

Medical Marijuana Laws

While Iowa’s medical “marijuana” might not be what you’re thinking, there is technically a medical marijuana program in the state.

Most rules surrounding this come from HF 524, the 2017 Medical Cannabidiol Act. The state defines (page 2, point 6) medical cannabidiol as “any pharmaceutical grade cannabinoid found in the plant Cannabis sativa L. or Cannabis indica or any other preparation thereof that has a tetrahydrocannabinol level of no more than three percent,” and specifies that it must be delivered in an approved form.

The allowable forms for medical cannabidiol in Iowa are vaporizable, oral (tablets, tinctures, capsules and more), topical (like lotions and creams), nebulizable inhaled forms and suppositories.

The law explicitly states (page 10, section 124E.16) that it cannot be used by smoking, and THC-infused edibles like gummies or chocolates are also not allowed. So Iowa’s medical marijuana law doesn’t allow ordinary marijuana, but THC is available in specific forms.

Patient Possession Limits

HF 2589 was signed into law in 2020, expanding the medical marijuana law in the state.

Although this doesn’t establish a hard Iowa patient possession limit (PDF page 6, subsection 14), it states that dispensaries can only sell someone 4.5 g of total THC in a 90-day period.

This can be exceeded if your life expectancy is less than one year or if your healthcare practitioner believes it to be needed.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Iowa?

The process for getting a medical marijuana card in Iowa is basically the same as it is in most other states.

First off, you’ll need to be diagnosed with one of the program’s qualifying conditions by your healthcare practitioner, which are:

Cancer (if it or your treatment causes severe or chronic pain, nausea or severe vomiting, cachexia or severe wasting)
Seizures
Crohn’s disease
Chronic pain
Multiple Sclerosis with severe and persistent muscle spasms
AIDS or HIV
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
Parkinson’s disease
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Any terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one year (if the condition or treatment causes severe or chronic pain, nausea or severe vomiting, cachexia or severe wasting)
Ulcerative colitis
Severe, intractable pediatric autism with self-injurious or aggressive behaviors
Severe, intractable autism with self-injurious or aggressive behaviors
Corticobasal Degeneration

If your physician diagnoses you with one of these conditions, and believes medical CBD may be a good treatment for you, he or she will discuss some patient information with you and then fill out a certification form.

With this form, you can apply online, along with a copy of some photo ID and a fee of $100 (unless you’re eligible for the reduced $25 rate through something like Medicaid). You’ll get a temporary card via email and a permanent card in the mail.

Public Consumption Laws

Unsurprisingly, public consumption is illegal in Iowa. But a bit surprisingly, there is a specific law addressing “Gatherings where controlled substances [are] unlawfully used.”

This basically means promoting or otherwise helping organize an event where weed will be sold or used is considered a serious misdemeanor.

So the punishment – on top of any possession charge – is $430 to $2,560 in fines and possibly up to a year in prison.

It’s also illegal to “simulate intoxication,” which is basically a legal term for being intoxicated with something that isn’t alcohol. This is a simple misdemeanor and is punishable by a fine of $105 to $855, and/or up to 30 days in jail. Again, this is not including any possession charge.

Can You Drive Under the Influence of Weed in Iowa?

Driving under the influence of weed is illegal in Iowa, as it is in every state.

If you have any amount of a controlled substance in your blood or urine, you’re in violation of Iowa law. The state also has an implied consent law, so by driving on the road you’ve already consented to blood, breath or urine tests for alcohol and drugs.

If you’re found to be driving with marijuana in your system, the punishments are:

For a first offense, it’s considered a serious misdemeanor. You can receive between 48 hours and 1 year in prison (or possibly probation), you’ll be fined between $625 and $1,250 (which could be wholly or partially replaced with community service), your driver’s license will be revoked for between 180 days and a year, and you’ll be assigned to substance abuse evaluation and treatment.
For a second offense, it’s considered an aggravated misdemeanor. You can get 7 days and two years in jail, fined between $1,875 and $6,250, have your license revoked for a year, and you’ll be assigned to substance abuse evaluation and treatment as needed.
For third or subsequent offenses, it’s considered a class D felony and there is a mandatory minimum of 30 days in the custody of the department of corrections, up to a maximum of 5 years. You’ll be fined between $3,125 and $9,375, your license will be revoked for 6 years, and you’ll be sent to substance abuse evaluation and treatment.

Is Delta-8 THC Legal in Iowa?

Delta-8 THC is heavily restricted in Iowa to the point where most commercial products are illegal.

Although the state uses the same definition (page 2, section 204.2(9)) as the federal government for what constitutes hemp (less than 0.3% delta-9 THC by dry weight), hemp products are limited to containing 0.3% of any THC by dry weight (section 204.2(11)(b)).

This means the limit applies to all isomers combined.

While it is technically possible to sell delta-8 THC with these restrictions, virtually all commercial delta-8 products do not meet this requirement and are illegal in the state.

Is Weed Decriminalized in Iowa?

Weed is not decriminalized in Iowa, despite several efforts in the past few years.

Even on a local level, no region has decriminalized weed either.

One example bill aimed to establish a civil penalty of $25 for possession of 42.5 grams (1.5 ounces) or less of marijuana, but the bill died shortly after its introduction.

Is Growing Weed Legal in Iowa?

Growing weed is not legal in Iowa, since the medical program doesn’t allow cultivation (or even flower) and recreational use is strictly banned.

If you have less than 50 kg, it’s a class D felony and carries a punishment of $750 to $7,500 in fines and up to 5 years imprisonment.
If you have up to 100 kg, it’s a class C felony. The fines increase to $1,000 to $50,000, and you can get up to 10 years in prison.
If you have up to 1,000 kg, it’s a class B felony, the fines rise to between $5,000 and $100,000 and the maximum prison sentence is 25 years.
For more than this, the fine is up to $1,000,000 and you can get up to 50 years in jail.

When Will Weed Be Legal in Iowa? The Future Outlook

Although over half of Iowans support legalizing marijuana, lawmakers are struggling to get any bills over the finish line.

Part of the reason for this is that the state doesn’t have a citizen initiative process, and Republicans in the state are generally quite opposed to recreational legalization.

However, legalization is on the democratic agenda, and even the libertarians are making it an issue, with their candidate for governor pointing out in a campaign ad that there is legal weed just a few miles from the border in Illinois.

Additionally, Iowa has one of the worst racial disparities in marijuana arrests in the country, with black Iowans being 7.3 times more likely to be arrested for marijuana possession.

Unfortunately, even the medical marijuana program is essentially stuck, with lawmakers being unable to pass a bill that would have simply increased the number of dispensaries. Achieving any real reform in the state is likely to be a challenge unless it is forced by moves from the federal government.

Conclusion

Iowa weed laws are pretty strict. With no legal way to obtain flower, and harsh penalties for possession of even small amounts of cannabis, your options in the state are very limited.

In fact, the only way you can get high legally is through the medical program, but even this severely limits you in terms of what you can consume. Residents and Democratic lawmakers generally favor legalization, but current leadership makes that unfortunately unlikely.

Is Cannabis Legal in Iowa?

Lee Johnson