Medicinal Cannabis Export — Three Markets, One Partner

GLG currently operates across three markets: Australia, Canada and Thailand. In Australia, we hold an active NSW Wholesale Poisons Licence covering Schedule 4 and Schedule 8 substances, and active ODC import permits under the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967. In Canada, we operate through established supply relationships with Health Canada-licensed entities. In Thailand, we work alongside locally licenced partner organisations operating under the Thailand FDA medicinal cannabis framework. Each market has distinct regulatory requirements, and we manage the in-market compliance layer for all three. See our Markets page for a detailed breakdown of what each jurisdiction requires.

For Australian market access, GMP certification must be consistent with TGA requirements. The TGA accepts GMP certification from regulatory authorities that are members of the Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme (PIC/S), including the European Medicines Agency (EU GMP), the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), and a number of other PIC/S-member authorities. For cannabis botanical products, Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP) is generally required in addition to manufacturing GMP. For Canada, Health Canada's Good Production Practices (GPP) standards apply, which differ from pharmaceutical GMP in certain respects — producers should confirm their certification scope covers the relevant product category. For Thailand, the Thailand FDA assesses GMP certification on a product-by-product basis. GLG will advise on the specific certification requirements relevant to your product during the producer qualification stage.

Each jurisdiction has a distinct regulatory framework, and GLG maintains active compliance capability in each. In Australia, our compliance framework is built around the TGA Act 1989, the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967, the ODC import permit system and the NSW Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966. In Canada, we work within the Cannabis Act 2018 and the Cannabis Regulations administered by Health Canada. In Thailand, we operate through locally licenced partners under the Thailand FDA framework. For overseas producers, the practical implication is that a single producer may need to produce jurisdiction-specific documentation for each target market — different COA formats, different labelling standards, different batch record requirements. GLG maps these requirements at the outset and provides producers with a clear documentation checklist for each target market, so there are no surprises at the import stage.

For each Australian shipment, the following documentation is required: a valid ODC import permit (issued by the Office of Drug Control, product and shipment specific), a Certificate of Analysis from a NATA-accredited or equivalent laboratory confirming cannabinoid profile and THC concentration within permit specifications, a current GMP certificate from the overseas manufacturing facility scoped to the product category, a phytosanitary certificate where required by Australian biosecurity requirements, a commercial invoice and packing list, and any additional biosecurity documentation required by the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry for botanical products. The ODC import permit is applied for by GLG on the Australian side. All other documentation is the responsibility of the overseas producer and exporter. GLG reviews the producer's documentation against the permit specifications before any shipment is dispatched to avoid clearance issues at the Australian border.

Timeline depends on the target market and the producer's documentation readiness. For Australia, the ODC import permit application takes 20 to 30 business days once submitted with a complete application. The producer qualification and regulatory mapping stages add two to four weeks depending on the complexity of the product profile and the currency of the producer's GMP certification. Allowing for documentation preparation on the producer side, a realistic timeline from initial engagement to first Australian shipment is three to four months for a producer with current GMP certification and well-documented COA history. For Canada and Thailand, timelines vary depending on in-market partner scheduling and jurisdiction-specific authorisation processes. GLG will provide a market-specific timeline estimate during the qualification stage. Producers with incomplete GMP documentation or product profiles that require specification adjustment will require additional time before a permit application can be submitted.

GLG can work with producers from any country, provided the producer holds GMP certification acceptable to the target market regulator and can produce export documentation that meets the applicable jurisdiction requirements. There are practical constraints — some countries' GMP certification frameworks are not recognised by the TGA, Health Canada or the Thailand FDA, and producers in those jurisdictions may need to undergo additional third-party GMP audit processes before market access is achievable. There are also export licensing considerations on the producer's side: the country of manufacture must permit the export of medicinal cannabis to the target jurisdiction, and the producer must hold the relevant export licence or authorisation in their home country. GLG can provide general guidance on these considerations but does not manage the producer's home-country export compliance — that remains the producer's responsibility.

Once product has cleared customs and been received at our licenced storage facility, GLG manages the full in-market distribution cycle. In Australia, product is on-supplied to authorised healthcare providers and wholesale accounts under our NSW Wholesale Poisons Licence, with all Schedule 8 movements documented in accordance with NSW Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 record-keeping requirements. GLG provides producers with shipment receipt confirmations, distribution reports and COA verification records for their own regulatory files. Ongoing supply arrangements are managed under a commercial supply agreement between GLG and the producer, covering pricing, minimum order quantities, supply lead times and quality standards. Producers are expected to maintain their GMP certification and COA standards across all supply batches — any batch that fails to meet the agreed specification will not be cleared for distribution and will be managed in accordance with the agreed non-conformance process.