{"id":"sl-2009-5","name":"Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009","slug":"drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009","collection":"regulation","jurisdiction":"act","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":"5 of 2009","makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":173346,"registerId":"act-sl-2009-5-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009","content":"Authorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nSL2009-5\nmade under the\nDrugs of Dependence Act 1989\nRepublication No 3\nEffective: 28 October 2023\nRepublication date: 28 October 2023\nLast amendment made by A2022-20\n\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAbout this republication\nThe republished law\nThis is a republication of the Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009, made under the Drugs of\nDependence Act 1989 (including any amendment made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3\n(Editorial changes)) as in force on 28 October 2023. It also includes any commencement,\namendment, repeal or expiry affecting this republished law to 28 October 2023.\nThe legislation history and amendment history of the republished law are set out in endnotes 3\nand 4.\nKinds of republications\nThe Parliamentary Counsel’s Office prepares 2 kinds of republications of ACT laws (see the ACT\nlegislation register at www.legislation.act.gov.au):\n• authorised republications to which the Legislation Act 2001 applies\n• unauthorised republications.\nThe status of this republication appears on the bottom of each page.\nEditorial changes\nThe Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 authorises the Parliamentary Counsel to make editorial\namendments and other changes of a formal nature when preparing a law for republication.\nEditorial changes do not change the effect of the law, but have effect as if they had been made by\nan Act commencing on the republication date (see Legislation Act 2001, s 115 and s 117). The\nchanges are made if the Parliamentary Counsel considers they are desirable to bring the law into\nline, or more closely into line, with current legislative drafting practice.\nThis republication does not include amendments made under part 11.3 (see endnote 1).\nUncommenced provisions and amendments\nIf a provision of the republished law has not commenced, the symbol U appears immediately\nbefore the provision heading. Any uncommenced amendments that affect this republished law\nare accessible on the ACT legislation register (www.legislation.act.gov.au). For more\ninformation, see the home page for this law on the register.\nModifications\nIf a provision of the republished law is affected by a current modification, the\nsymbol M appears immediately before the provision heading. The text of the modifying\nprovision appears in the endnotes. For the legal status of modifications, see the Legislation\nAct 2001, section 95.\nPenalties\nAt the republication date, the value of a penalty unit for an offence against this law is $160 for an\nindividual and $810 for a corporation (see Legislation Act 2001, s 133).\n\nR3\n28/10/23\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\ncontents 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nmade under the\nDrugs of Dependence Act 1989\nContents\nPage\n1 Name of regulation 2\n3 Notes 2\n3A Offence notice penalty—Act, s 171A (3) (c) (i) 2\n4 Drugs of dependence—Act, dict, def drug of dependence 2\n5 Prohibited substances—Act, dict, def prohibited substance 2\n6 Small quantity—Act, dict, def small quantity 3\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes 6\n2 Abbreviation key 6\n\nContents\nPage\ncontents 2 Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\nR3\n28/10/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history 7\n4 Amendment history 7\n5 Earlier republications 8\n\nR3\n28/10/23\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\npage 1\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nAustralian Capital Territory\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nmade under the\nDrugs of Dependence Act 1989\n\nSection 1\npage 2 Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\nR3\n28/10/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n1 Name of regulation\nThis regulation is the Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009.\n3 Notes\nA note included in this regulation is explanatory and is not part of this\nregulation.\nNote See the Legislation Act, s 127 (1), (4) and (5) for the legal status of notes.\n3A Offence notice penalty—Act, s 171A (3) (c) (i)\nThe prescribed penalty is $100.\n4 Drugs of dependence—Act, dict, def drug of dependence\nEach of the following substances is a drug of dependence for the Act:\n(a) a substance mentioned in the Criminal Code Regulation 2005,\nschedule 1 (Controlled drugs), part 1.1 (Controlled medicines);\n(b) a related drug (within the meaning of that regulation,\nsection 5 (2)) of a substance mentioned in that part.\n5 Prohibited substances—Act, dict, def prohibited\nsubstance\nEach of the following substances is a prohibited substance for the\nAct:\n(a) a substance mentioned in the Criminal Code Regulation 2005,\nschedule 1 (Controlled drugs), part 1.2 (Prohibited substances);\n(b) a related drug (within the meaning of that regulation,\nsection 5 (2)) of a substance mentioned in that part.\n\nSection 6\nR3\n28/10/23\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\npage 3\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n6 Small quantity—Act, dict, def small quantity\n(1) For the Act—\n(a) the small quantity mentioned in table 6.1, column 3 for a drug\nof dependence mentioned in column 2, whether in pure form or\na mixture containing the drug, is prescribed; and\n(b) the small quantity mentioned in table 6.2, column 3 for a\nprohibited substance mentioned in column 2, other than items 5\nand 6, whether in pure form or a mixture containing the\nsubstance, is prescribed; and\n(c) the small quantity mentioned in table 6.2, column 3 for a\nprohibited substance mentioned in column 2, items 5 and 6, in a\npure form of the substance, is prescribed.\nTable 6.1 Small quantity—drugs of dependence\ncolumn 1\nitem\ncolumn 2\ndrug of dependence\ncolumn 3\nsmall quantity\ncolumn 4\ndiscrete dosage\nunit (DDU)\n1 amphetamine 1.5g\n2 cocaine 1.5g\n3 methylamphetamine 1.5g\nTable 6.2 Small quantity—prohibited substances\ncolumn 1\nitem\ncolumn 2\nprohibited substance\ncolumn 3\nsmall quantity\ncolumn 4\ndiscrete dosage\nunit (DDU)\n1 3,4-\nMethylenedioxymethyla\nmphetamine (MDMA)\n5 DDU or 1.5g 0.3g\n2 cannabis (dried cannabis) 50g\n3 cannabis (harvested\ncannabis)\n150g\n\nSection 6\npage 4 Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\nR3\n28/10/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\ncolumn 1\nitem\ncolumn 2\nprohibited substance\ncolumn 3\nsmall quantity\ncolumn 4\ndiscrete dosage\nunit (DDU)\n4 heroin 1g\n5 lysergic acid 5 DDU or 0.001g 0.0002g\n6 lysergide (LSD, LSD-25) 5 DDU or 0.001g 0.0002g\n7 psilocybine 1.5g\n(2) In this section:\ndiscrete dosage unit (or DDU), for a drug of dependence or a\nprohibited substance, means the drug or substance in a form—\n(a) prepared, or apparently prepared, to be administered as a single\ndose; and\n(b) containing not more than—\n(i) for a drug of dependence—the quantity mentioned in\ntable 6.1, column 4 for a drug mentioned in column 2,\nwhether in pure form or a mixture containing the drug; and\n(ii) for a prohibited substance—the quantity mentioned in table\n6.2, column 4 for a substance mentioned in column 2, other\nthan items 5 and 6, whether in pure form or a mixture\ncontaining the substance; and\n(iii) for a prohibited substance—the quantity mentioned in table\n6.2, column 4 for a substance mentioned in column 2, items\n5 and 6, in a pure form of the substance.\nExamples—par (a)\ntablet, capsule\ndried cannabis means cannabis that has been subjected to a drying\nprocess.\n\nSection 6\nR3\n28/10/23\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\npage 5\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nharvested cannabis means cannabis that has been harvested and—\n(a) is not dried cannabis; or\n(b) is a mixture of dried cannabis and cannabis that is not dried\ncannabis.\n\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes\npage 6 Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\nR3\n28/10/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\nEndnotes\n1 About the endnotes\nAmending and modifying laws are annotated in the legislation history and the\namendment history. Current modifications are not included in the republished law\nbut are set out in the endnotes.\nNot all editorial amendments made under the Legislation Act 2001, part 11.3 are\nannotated in the amendment history. Full details of any amendments can be\nobtained from the Parliamentary Counsel’s Office.\nUncommenced amending laws are not included in the republished law. The details\nof these laws are underlined in the legislation history. Uncommenced expiries are\nunderlined in the legislation history and amendment history.\nIf all the provisions of the law have been renumbered, a table of renumbered\nprovisions gives details of previous and current numbering.\nThe endnotes also include a table of earlier republications.\n2 Abbreviation key\nA = Act NI = Notifiable instrument\nAF = Approved form o = order\nam = amended om = omitted/repealed\namdt = amendment ord = ordinance\nAR = Assembly resolution orig = original\nch = chapter par = paragraph/subparagraph\nCN = Commencement notice pres = present\ndef = definition prev = previous\nDI = Disallowable instrument (prev...) = previously\ndict = dictionary pt = part\ndisallowed = disallowed by the Legislative r = rule/subrule\nAssembly reloc = relocated\ndiv = division renum = renumbered\nexp = expires/expired R[X] = Republication No\nGaz = gazette RI = reissue\nhdg = heading s = section/subsection\nIA = Interpretation Act 1967 sch = schedule\nins = inserted/added sdiv = subdivision\nLA = Legislation Act 2001 SL = Subordinate law\nLR = legislation register sub = substituted\nLRA = Legislation (Republication) Act 1996 underlining = whole or part not commenced\nmod = modified/modification or to be expired\n\nEndnotes\nLegislation history 3\nR3\n28/10/23\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\npage 7\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n3 Legislation history\nDrugs of Dependence Regulation 2009 SL2009-5\nnotified LR 26 February 2009\ns 1, s 2 commenced 26 February 2009 (LA s 75 (1))\nremainder commenced 27 February 2009 (s 2)\nas amended by\nCriminal Code (Controlled Drugs) Legislation Amendment Regulation\n2014 (No 1) SL2014-6 pt 3\nnotified LR 10 April 2014\ns 1, s 2 commenced 10 April 2014 (LA s 75 (1))\npt 3 commenced 17 April 2014 (s 2)\nDrugs of Dependence (Personal Use) Amendment Act 2022 A2022-20\npt 3\nnotified LR 28 October 2022\ns 1, s 2 commenced 28 October 2022 (LA s 75 (1))\npt 3 commenced 28 October 2023 (s 2)\n4 Amendment history\nCommencement\ns 2 om LA s 89 (4)\nOffence notice penalty—Act, s 171A (3) (c) (i)\ns 3A ins A2022-20 s 13\nDrugs of dependence—Act, dict, def drug of dependence\ns 4 am SL2014-6 s 8, s 9\nProhibited substances—Act, dict, def prohibited substance\ns 5 am SL2014-6 s 10, s 11\nSmall quantity—Act, dict, def small quantity\ns 6 om LA s 89 (3)\nins A2022-20 s 14\n\nEndnotes\n5 Earlier republications\npage 8 Drugs of Dependence Regulation 2009\nEffective: 28/10/23\nR3\n28/10/23\nAuthorised by the ACT Parliamentary Counsel—also accessible at www.legislation.act.gov.au\n5 Earlier republications\nSome earlier republications were not numbered. The number in column 1 refers to\nthe publication order.\nSince 12 September 2001 every authorised republication has been published in\nelectronic pdf format on the ACT legislation register. A selection of authorised\nrepublications have also been published in printed format. These republications are\nmarked with an asterisk (*) in column 1. Electronic and printed versions of an\nauthorised republication are identical.\nRepublication\nNo and date\nEffective Last\namendment\nmade by\nRepublication\nfor\nR1\n27 Feb 2009\n27 Feb 2009–\n16 Apr 2014\nnot amended new regulation\nR2\n17 Apr 2014\n17 Apr 2014–\n27 Oct 2023\nSL2014-6 amendments by\nSL2014-6\n© Australian Capital Territory 2023","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 2009 regulation appears to have been a straightforward machinery provision setting penalty notice amounts and cross-referencing drug schedules. The 2022 amendments (commencing October 2023) significantly expanded its scope by inserting the detailed 'small quantity' thresholds (section 6) following the ACT's drug decriminalisation reforms. This transformed the regulation from a simple penalty-setting instrument into a substantive definitional tool that determines threshold quantities for personal use versus trafficking offences."},"complexity_factors":["Short document (only 6 substantive sections)","Heavy reliance on external legislation (Criminal Code Regulation 2005) for the actual drug lists—this regulation merely cross-references rather than listing drugs directly","Two-tiered definition system requiring readers to look up definitions in another regulation","Technical measurement concepts requiring careful parsing (pure form vs mixture, discrete dosage units vs raw weight)","Conditional logic in section 6 distinguishing between items 5-6 (lysergic acid/LSD) and other items regarding pure form vs mixture calculations","Nested definitions: 'small quantity' depends on 'discrete dosage unit' which has its own multi-part definition"],"plain_english_summary":"This regulation provides the practical detail for the ACT’s drug laws: it defines which controlled drugs and prohibited substances are covered, sets the exact “small quantity” thresholds that change legal consequences, and fixes a $100 infringement fine for certain minor offences. \n\nThat matters for anyone dealing with or enforcing drug laws—police, courts, and the public—because these precise amounts (e.g., 50g dried cannabis, 1.5g MDMA, 1g heroin) determine whether possession attracts lesser or more serious penalties."},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"A positive credit balance is required for all requests, including BYOK, so fallback providers remain available. Add credits at https://vercel.com/d?to=%2F%5Bteam%5D%2F%7E%2Fai%3Fmodal%3Dtop-up to continue.","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The regulation’s scope has been modified since enactment: ss 4–5 were amended in 2014 to align drug lists with the Criminal Code Regulation 2005 (see amendment history for SL2014-6), and 2022 amendments inserted the $100 offence‑notice penalty (s 3A) and the prescribed 'small quantity' and DDU rules (s 6) that define personal‑use thresholds (A2022-20, pt 3)."},"complexity_factors":["Short, tightly focused instrument with few provisions (ss 1, 3A, 4–6).","Cross‑references to the Criminal Code Regulation 2005 for substance lists (ss 4–5) add dependency on external schedules.","Numerical thresholds and discrete dosage unit (DDU) definitions require precise measurement and forensic interpretation (s 6).","Amendment history and republishing increase tracing requirements for legal practitioners and regulators.","Simple enforcement mechanism (fixed $100 offence notice) reduces sentencing complexity but creates administrative enforcement choice (s 3A)."],"plain_english_summary":"This Regulation lists which substances count as “drugs of dependence” or “prohibited substances” for the Drugs of Dependence Act (ss 4–5), prescribes “small quantity” thresholds and discrete dosage‑unit sizes used to identify personal‑use amounts (s 6), and sets an offence‑notice penalty of $100 (s 3A). It affects people who possess, sell or regulate listed substances by changing when criminal charges or infringement notices can be issued, thereby shifting compliance and enforcement triggers."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009","history":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009/history","analysis":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/drugs-of-dependence-regulation-2009/documents"}}