The main determiner for schedule listing of medical cannabis...

The main determiner for schedule listing of medical cannabis products in Australia is the cannabinoid referred to as Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).   Products that contain THC are more controlled and therefore assigned a higher Schedule 8 (S8) rating.  Products that do not contain THC, and consist of the cannabinoid known as Cannabidiol (CBD) are less controlled and assigned a lower Schedule 4 (S4 rating).

In most Australian states (apart from QLD), medical cannabis products with a Schedule 4 listing only require approval from the TGA Australia.  However, for medical cannabis products with a Schedule 8 listing, further State Health Approval is often necessary before the drug can be dispensed from a pharmacy.  

For the full list of approval rules based on state location and Schedule listing, see the table below.  Approval forms can be downloaded from the TGA and State Health websites, or the CannabisAccess medical cannabis portal may be used for online submissions.

	Column 1	Column 2	Column 3	Column 4
0	State	Schedule Listing	TGA Approval Process	State Approval Process
1	QLD	Schedule 4	SAS B	QLD Health Approval
2	QLD	Schedule 8	SAS B	QLD Health Approval
3	NSW	Schedule 4	SAS B
4	NSW	Schedule 8	SAS B	NSW Health Approval
5	ACT	Schedule 4	SAS B
6	ACT	Schedule 8	SAS B	ACT Health Approval
7	VIC, TAS, NT	Schedule 4	SAS B
8	VIC, TAS, NT	Schedule 8	SAS B
9	SA	Schedule 4	SAS B
10	SA	Schedule 8	SAS B	SA Health Approval
11	WA	Schedule 4	SAS B
12	WA	Schedule 8	SAS B	WA Health Approval