Can I Travel With CBD? What You Need To Know

Traveling with CBD has been a frustrating legal gray area for years. So if you’re confused about whether you’re allowed to bring your CBD Oil Drops or CBD Sleep Aid Capsules with you on vacation, you’re not alone.

That’s what makes the confusion around the legality of transporting CBD doubly infuriating. But don’t worry—we’re about to clear some things up.

Hemp-derived CBD & What the Law Has to Say About it

We wish there was a straight yes or no answer to the question of “Can I travel with CBD?” Unfortunately, it’s a little more complicated than that.

But before you get discouraged, we do have some good news: In December 2018, the 2018 Farm Bill was passed. And it actually clarified a lot about the legality of CBD products and the rules for traveling with them.

To understand the new clarifications, let’s go through some brief fundamentals.

CBD Vs. THC

CBD and THC are the two most talked about compounds found in the Cannabis plant. The compounds are chemically very similar, and both are known to pack a ton of health benefits.

…But there is one key difference.

That’s right, you guessed it: THC gets you high. CBD doesn’t.

Hemp-derived CBD Vs. Marijuana-derived CBD

Hemp and marijuana are different varieties of the Cannabis plant. The most important differences between them are their levels of THC.

Hemp contains less than .3% of THC, which is so tiny an amount that it might as well be zero. Marijuana typically contains much higher levels of THC, up to 35%.

Therefore, CBD products derived from hemp contain zero or very low levels of THC. On the other hand, CBD products derived from marijuana—medical or otherwise—may contain higher levels of THC.

Also, most CBD products are hemp-derived because hemp naturally contains more CBD.

What the Law Has to Say About It

Since the 1970s, the federal government had not really distinguished between CBD and THC or hemp and marijuana in terms of legality. If it was Cannabis, it was illegal. Period.

But that has all changed in recent years. In fact, the 2018 Farm Bill finally, explicitly declared that hemp products, including hemp-derived CBD, are completely legal to possess, consume and yes, transport over state lines.

Travel With CBD Around the United States

Per the 2018 Farm Bill, traveling with hemp-derived CBD is 100% legal.

And, after the bill was passed, the TSA also updated their rules. Now, you can bring hemp-derived CBD products on a plane, in both your carry-on and checked baggage.

However, TSA does require that your CBD product contain 0% THC. While TSA is probably not going to confiscate your product to test it, just to be safe, we recommend you bring proof that it contains no THC. For Soul CBD products, you can easily download our “3rd party lab purity testing” results on each product page, which guarantees it contains 0% THC.

Finally, of course, you’re also allowed to tote your hemp-derived CBD products all around the U.S. by car (or by bus, train, bicycle, electric scooter, etc.). That’s because it’s no longer illegal to transport it across state lines, and it’s completely legal to use in every state.

CBD Travel in a Nutshell

To boil down the rules around CBD travel to one just one sentence:
You can legally travel around the United States, including by plane, with hemp-derived CBD products because they contain less than .3% of THC.

In other words: The federal government and the TSA no longer care about your hemp-derived CBD products. You can finally stop Googling “CBD TSA” in a panic the night before your flight.

But this just pertains to travel within the United States. International travel is a different story altogether, and is not advised due to strict regulations in certain countries.