Schedule-0 CBD explained — what Gazette 43347 actually says
The 2020 Gazette that created the consumer CBD market in South Africa. Here's what the document says, what the limits are, and what consumers need to know.
If you buy CBD oil at a South African pharmacy or online shop without a prescription, you're buying under the Schedule-0 carve-out established by Government Gazette 43347, published 23 May 2020. This short regulation reshaped the SA CBD market overnight. Here's what it actually says.
What the Gazette does
It moves specific low-dose CBD preparations from Schedule 4 (prescription-only) to Schedule 0 — the over-the-counter tier — subject to conditions.
The three conditions
- Maximum 600 mg CBD per sales pack. This is the total amount of CBD in the product as sold — not per bottle per lifetime, per pack. A 30 ml bottle with 500 mg CBD qualifies; a 1000 mg bottle doesn't.
- Maximum 20 mg of CBD per recommended daily dose. The label's recommended daily dose (not the bottle's capacity) must be at or below 20 mg. Higher suggested doses push the product out of Schedule-0.
- General-health claims only, no therapeutic claims. Language like "may support general wellbeing" is fine. "Treats anxiety" or "helps insomnia" is not — those are therapeutic claims reserved for registered medicines.
What about THC?
Schedule-0 CBD products must contain only trace THC, below the legal threshold. Products with clinically meaningful THC content fall under Schedule 4 or 6 and require Section 21.
What the Gazette does NOT do
- It does not legalise commercial cannabis sale generally. It is a narrow CBD-specific carve-out.
- It does not cover synthetic cannabinoids, THC-dominant products, or full-flower products — those remain scheduled.
- It does not cover products that make disease claims — those must go through standard SAHPRA medicine registration.
- It is not a licensing regime for sellers. Schedule-0 products can be sold by any retailer permitted to sell Schedule-0 medicines; no cannabis-specific licence.
Practical effect for consumers
- Most CBD wellness products on the SA market today are Schedule-0. Browse the wellness CBD category.
- Higher-potency CBD (beyond the 600 mg pack or 20 mg dose limits) needs a different pathway — that's Section 21 territory. See the Section 21 guide.
- If a brand is making specific-disease claims on a product sold as Schedule-0, they're out of compliance. Report channels exist with SAHPRA.
Why the narrow limits
The 600/20 mg thresholds were negotiated to align with doses where therapeutic equivalence is unclear — low-dose CBD acts as a supplement rather than a pharmacologically active intervention. Higher doses enter territory where SAHPRA wants clinician oversight, which is what Section 21 provides.
For the broader legal landscape see our 2026 legal guide.