Rastafari Rights Recognition Bill, 2023

This law creates an official registration process for Rastafari groups and their places of assembly with the government. It gives registered groups legal rights to grow and use cannabis for religious purposes at their meeting places and allows them to apply for tax and fee discounts.

Adult members (ages 18 and older) of a registered Rastafari group can grow, harvest, dry, trim, cure, and possess cannabis at their registered place of assembly as a sacrament for spiritual upliftment.

However, cannabis use and possession remain banned in sensitive locations, including:

• Schools, school buses, and educational institutions
• Hospitals and health centers
• Police stations, defense camps, and correctional facilities
• Community centers and government or statutory corporation offices and vehicles
• Other churches or religious establishments

Registered groups can apply to the Cabinet of Ministers for several concessions and waivers:

• Waivers on cannabis licence fees and business licence fees
• Reductions in business income tax and corporate income tax
• Import duty waivers on imported goods
• Property tax waivers
• Discounts when buying or leasing government (Crown) land

• Registration for groups and assembly places is free of charge, but groups must re-register every two years.
• Faking a group's Rastafari identity to get benefits without receiving them carries a fine up to $100,000 and up to 2 years in prison.
• Fraudulently claiming Rastafari status to get property or financial benefits carries a fine up to $250,000 and up to 5 years in prison, along with forfeiting the property or paying back the concession value.
• Breaking other rules under this law carries a general fine up to $30,000.