TSA · 2026

Marijuana, cannabis, and the checkpoint

TSA last updated its What Can I Bring? entry for medical marijuana on 27 April 2026. This is a traveler note, not legal advice, and not a permission slip. Confirm on that page the morning you fly. The officer in front of you is the last word.

What the page actually says

Carry-on: Yes (special instructions). Checked bags: Yes (special instructions). “Yes” here is TSA’s screening code, not “federally legal to fly with.”

The special instructions, in TSA’s words: marijuana and certain cannabis-infused products — including some CBD oil — remain illegal under federal law, except products that contain no more than 0.3 percent THC on a dry weight basis or that FDA has approved (Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018). TSA officers are required to report suspected violations to local, state, or federal authorities.

TSA screens for threats to the aircraft, not for drugs. Officers do not search for marijuana. If they find a suspected illegal substance during screening, they refer it to a law enforcement officer.

State law does not fly

A medical card, a recreational-state dispensary receipt, or a Las Vegas shop bag does not change federal law at a TSA checkpoint. The airplane is federal. Crossing a state line with marijuana is still a federal problem even when both states have legalized it on the ground.

Hemp CBD at or under 0.3% THC is the written exception. Labels lie. If the bag looks like cannabis and an officer thinks it is, you are in a conversation with law enforcement, not a debate about milligrams.

Liquids and vapes

Oils, tinctures, and vape liquid in a carry-on still meet 3-1-1 unless they qualify as declared medically necessary liquids — and that exemption does not override the federal marijuana statute. Batteries for vape devices belong in carry-on, like other lithium cells. None of that makes the contents legal.

What this is not

• Not an invitation to pack flower, edibles, or oil.
• Not a reading of your state’s medical program.
• Not a substitute for the TSA page, a lawyer, or the officer.

Source of truth: TSA — Medical Marijuana. Checkpoint habits: TSA in 2026.