Driving after cannabis in Germany: the THC limit and penalties
Cannabis may be legal to possess within limits, but on the road what counts is the THC level in your blood serum.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
THC at the wheel: the 3.5 ng/ml limit
Total including fees
€528.50
| BKat number | 242 |
| Points | 2 |
| Driving ban | 1 month |
Driving a motor vehicle in Germany with 3.5 nanograms of THC per millilitre of blood serum or more is an administrative offence under Section 24a(1a) of the Road Traffic Act (StVG). The fine catalogue sets 500 euros, a 1-month driving ban (Fahrverbot) and 2 points for a first offence. With one earlier entry for drink or drug driving it is €1,000 and 3 months, with several €1,500. If you are over the THC limit and have also drunk alcohol, a separate ban applies: €1,000 and one month from the first offence, up to €2,000 for repeat offenders. Drivers on probation and everyone under 21 must have no THC at all; that costs 250 euros and a point. The licensing authority can order an MPU assessment under Section 13a of the Driving Licence Ordinance if there are signs of misuse or repeated offences. Prescribed medical cannabis taken as directed is exempt from the limit, though not from the duty to drive safely.
Legal to own, not to drive with
Germany has allowed adults to possess and grow limited amounts of cannabis, and many newcomers assume that driving rules relaxed at the same pace. They did not disappear. Section 24a(1a) of the Road Traffic Act sets a limit of 3.5 ng/ml of THC in blood serum for anyone driving a motor vehicle. Serum is the liquid part of a blood sample, so the value comes from a lab test, not from a roadside device. No sign of impairment is needed: reaching the value is the offence.
The number tells you nothing about when you last used cannabis or how you feel. Regular users build up THC and may test above the limit a long time after the effect has faded. For that reason there is no reliable rule of thumb for how long to wait, and no responsible source will give you one.
Fines, bans and points
The amounts come from the official fine catalogue, numbers 242 to 243b. For THC alone they match the 0.5 per mille alcohol offence, and earlier entries for drink driving count as previous offences just as earlier drug entries do.
| Situation | Cat. no. | Fine | Ban | Points | With fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| THC from 3.5 ng/ml, first time | 242 | €500 | 1 month | 2 | €528.50 |
| THC, one earlier entry | 242.1 | €1,000 | 3 months | 2 | €1,053.50 |
| THC, several earlier entries | 242.2 | €1,500 | 3 months | 2 | €1,578.50 |
| THC with alcohol, first time | 243a | €1,000 | 1 month | 2 | €1,053.50 |
| THC with alcohol, one earlier entry | 243a.1 | €1,500 | 3 months | 2 | €1,578.50 |
| THC with alcohol, several earlier entries | 243a.2 | €2,000 | 3 months | 2 | €2,103.50 |
| probation or under 21, any THC | 243b | €250 | none | 1 | €278.50 |
Every case with a ban carries two points under annex 13 of the Driving Licence Ordinance, and they stay on the register for five years. If it is your first ban in two years, you can choose when it starts within 4 months of the decision becoming final, which the driving ban page explains.
Cannabis plus alcohol
Section 24a(2a) adds a total alcohol ban for anyone over the THC limit. You may not drink while driving or start a journey under the influence of alcohol, and no per mille threshold applies. The reason is that the two substances can reinforce each other. The fines are higher from the start, €1,000 for a first offence, and the legal maximum for this offence is also higher than for THC alone. If your alcohol level is at 0.5 per mille or above anyway, the drink-driving rules on the drink-driving page apply as well.
New drivers and under-21s
Section 24c of the Road Traffic Act extends the zero rule for new drivers to cannabis. During the 2-year probation, and for everyone under 21, it is an offence to take THC as a driver or to start driving under its influence. No limit value applies to this group. The fine is €250 and 1 point, and on probation it is an A offence with a remedial course and 2 more years of probation. Young expats and students should note that a licence from home does not change this; the rule depends on age and on probation, which the probationary licence page explains.
Misconceptions newcomers bring with them
- "Possession is legal now, so driving after a joint is fine." Possession rules and road rules are separate. Driving is governed by its own THC limit in the Road Traffic Act, whatever the possession rules say.
- "I feel completely sober." The offence is defined by the serum level, not by how you feel. A level above 3.5 ng/ml is an offence even with perfect driving.
- "Back home this is legal." Some countries and US states have different limits or none at all. On German roads, German limits apply to everyone, residents and visitors alike.
- "It was a low-THC product." Products sold as low in THC can still contain measurable amounts. Only the lab value counts.
- "One beer is fine below 0.5 per mille." Not if you are over the THC limit: then no alcohol at all is allowed.
E-scooters, foreign licences and accompanied driving
Rental e-scooters are motor vehicles, so the THC limit, the zero rule for under-21s and the catalogue fines apply to them exactly as to a car. A ban imposed after a scooter ride covers driving a car too. If you drive on a licence from outside the EU, the points are still recorded in Germany, and a ban applies on German roads. Under Section 48a(6) of the Driving Licence Ordinance, the named adult companion in Germany's accompanied driving scheme from 17 may not accompany a young driver with 3.5 ng/ml of THC or more.
Other drugs
For the other substances listed in the annex to Section 24a, Germany takes a stricter line: any detectable amount in the blood counts as being under the influence. Number 243 sets €500, a 1-month ban and 2 points for a first offence, with the same steps for earlier entries. Prescribed medicines taken as directed are exempt here too.
When it becomes a crime
Section 316 of the Criminal Code covers driving under alcohol or other intoxicants. For cannabis there is no fixed value at which a driver is automatically unfit, unlike the 1.1 per mille line for alcohol. A criminal case therefore needs concrete evidence of impairment: driving errors, an accident or clear signs at the check. The penalty is a fine or up to a year in prison, and the licence is normally withdrawn for at least six months.
The MPU and cannabis
Section 13a of the Driving Licence Ordinance governs fitness checks after cannabis. It contains no threshold value. A medical report is required where facts suggest dependence; an MPU (medical and psychological assessment) is required where a medical report finds signs of misuse, where facts otherwise suggest misuse, where offences under cannabis influence have been repeated, where a licence was withdrawn for these reasons, or where the authority must check that misuse or dependence has ended. Offences only against the zero rule for new drivers are left out when counting repeats. Misuse here means failing to separate use from driving. A single drive just over the limit does not automatically lead to an MPU; a second one may. See the MPU page.
THC at the wheel: the 3.5 ng/ml limit
Total including fees
€528.50
| BKat number | 242 |
| Points | 2 |
| Driving ban | 1 month |
At a roadside check
Police may offer a voluntary preliminary test. If suspicion remains, they can order a blood sample, which is taken by a doctor, often at the police station or a hospital. Lab results take time, so the hearing form arrives weeks later. The fine notice names the catalogue number and the measured value; an objection is possible within 2 weeks of delivery. The blood alcohol and THC calculator shows what a given value means.
Besides the fine and the standard fees, the notice can list expenses for taking and analysing the blood sample, which can add a noticeable sum. If a ban follows, plan for the months without a car; a first ban in two years can be timed within the window described above. Since July 2026, an offence of this kind becomes time-barred after six months unless the authority interrupts that period, usually by sending the hearing form once the lab result is in.