Landlord ban authority, possession and home-grow limits, medical patient housing rules, and federal Section 8 restrictions in Florida.
Florida is a medical-only cannabis state, and that status shapes what you can control as a landlord. Registered patients can buy from licensed treatment centers under Fla. Stat. § 381.986, but recreational use stays illegal, and no Florida statute forces you to allow marijuana anywhere on your property. Where marijuana gets complicated is the gap between state tolerance and federal prohibition, which is absolute in Section 8 and public housing. This page lays out your authority to ban smoking and cultivation, the lease language that makes it enforceable, and the federal traps to avoid.
Florida is classified as Medical Cannabis Only (effective 2016). The governing statute is Fla. Const. art. X § 29 (Amendment 2, 2016).
No home cultivation allowed. Smokable flower legalized 2019 (SB 182). Landlord may ban use on premises.
Florida legalized medical marijuana for qualified patients who register with the Office of Medical Marijuana Use and buy from licensed Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers (MMTCs). The governing law is Fla. Stat. § 381.986. Patients are capped at a 35-day supply of smokable marijuana, not to exceed 2.5 ounces in any 35-day period, plus roughly a 70-day supply of non-smokable forms.
Recreational, adult-use marijuana remains illegal under Florida law. Amendment 3, which would have legalized adult use, drew about 56% support in November 2024 but failed because Florida requires 60% to pass a constitutional amendment. For a landlord, the practical takeaway is simple: outside a valid medical card, any marijuana on your property is an illegal-substance issue, and even with a card the state gives tenants no right to use it in your building.
Florida does not require landlords to permit smoking in private rental units, and it does not require them to permit marijuana use of any kind. The Florida Clean Indoor Air Act (Fla. Stat. Ch. 386) restricts smoking in enclosed indoor workplaces and public places but generally exempts private residences, which means the smoking rules for your units are set by your lease, not by the state.
That gives you broad authority. You may prohibit marijuana smoking exactly the way you prohibit cigarette or cigar smoking, and you may ban it even for card-carrying medical patients. You can also ban cultivation outright; home-growing is not authorized under Florida's medical program in the first place, so a no-grow clause simply restates state law and protects against the mold, electrical, and odor problems that indoor grows create. Vaping and edibles can be addressed the same way through your smoke-free and drug policies.
Authority means nothing without clear lease language. A defensible cannabis policy usually combines a smoke-free clause (covering tobacco, marijuana, and vapor in units, balconies, and common areas) with a separate no-illegal-drug-activity clause tied to federal law. Keeping them separate matters: a smoking violation is typically curable, while illegal drug activity is a non-curable ground for termination.
Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56, a curable lease violation such as smoking in a non-smoking unit is generally addressed with a 7-day notice to cure; if the tenant fixes it, the tenancy continues. Illegal drug activity, by contrast, supports a 7-day unconditional notice with no right to cure. Spell out that marijuana, even medical marijuana, is included, so a tenant cannot argue a card exempts them. Add the policy as a signed addendum for existing tenants rather than assuming a silent lease covers it.
This is where landlords get burned. Marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act, illegal to possess or use no matter what Florida's medical program says. In federally assisted housing, that federal status controls.
The Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998 (QHWRA) requires owners and public housing agencies to deny admission to any household with a member illegally using a controlled substance, and it permits eviction of current residents for marijuana use. HUD's January 20, 2011 memorandum confirmed that federally assisted housing may not admit new medical-marijuana users and is not required to allow medical marijuana as a reasonable accommodation, though existing users are not automatically required to be evicted. If you accept Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8) or operate public or other HUD-assisted housing, you cannot carve out an exception for a Florida medical card.
Landlords often ask whether a medical-marijuana patient can demand an accommodation to use cannabis in the unit. Under the federal Fair Housing Act, the ADA, and Section 504, current illegal drug users, including medical-marijuana users, are excluded from the definition of disability when the housing provider acts on the drug use itself. So you are not required to waive a no-smoking or no-drug policy as a reasonable accommodation, even for a documented patient with a qualifying condition.
Handle it carefully, though. You are declining to accommodate marijuana use, not refusing to rent to a disabled person, so your policy should be neutral and applied consistently to all tenants. If a patient uses a non-smokable form entirely off-site and never violates your lease, there is usually nothing to enforce. The friction almost always comes from smoking, odor, or possession in the unit, which your smoke-free and no-drug clauses already reach.
Medical cannabis patients in Florida may be treated identically to recreational users by landlords. There is no state-law anti-discrimination requirement; the federal Schedule I framework controls. Some local jurisdictions may have ordinances providing limited protection, check the city or county where the rental unit is located.
The practical impact: a tenant holding a Housing Choice Voucher who tests positive for cannabis or self-discloses use during recertification can lose their voucher in Florida, regardless of any state cannabis legalization or medical card status. This is the single most common point of confusion for tenants in adult-use states.
City-level landlord risk profiles often track cannabis-related lease enforcement. View the eviction-risk and tenant-law profile for the largest Florida rental markets:
This overview reflects Florida law as of 2026, including Fla. Stat. § 381.986 (medical marijuana), the Florida Clean Indoor Air Act (Ch. 386), the state landlord-tenant act (Ch. 83, Part II), and controlling federal authority: the Controlled Substances Act, the QHWRA of 1998, and HUD's January 20, 2011 medical-marijuana memorandum. Cannabis policy and enforcement can turn on lease specifics and property type. Verify current statutes and confirm your lease language with a Florida landlord-tenant attorney before acting on a specific tenant situation.
Yes. Florida does not require landlords to permit smoking of any kind in private units, and a valid card under Fla. Stat. § 381.986 does not override your lease. A clear smoke-free clause that names marijuana lets you prohibit it just as you would cigarettes, medical status included.
No. Only medical marijuana is legal, for registered patients buying from licensed treatment centers. Amendment 3 to legalize adult use drew about 56% support in November 2024 but failed because Florida requires 60% to pass a constitutional amendment.
Only if it violates the lease. Under Fla. Stat. § 83.56, a curable smoking violation typically gets a 7-day notice to cure, while illegal drug activity supports a 7-day unconditional notice with no right to cure. Without a lease clause addressing marijuana, enforcement is far weaker, so put the policy in writing.
No. Under the Fair Housing Act, ADA, and Section 504, current illegal drug users, including medical-marijuana users, are excluded from the disability definition when the provider acts on the drug use. You are not required to waive a no-smoking or no-drug policy for a medical patient.
Federal law controls, and it is stricter. Marijuana is a Schedule I substance under the Controlled Substances Act, and the QHWRA of 1998 requires denial of admission to illegal drug users and permits eviction. HUD's January 2011 memo confirmed medical marijuana is not a required accommodation in federally assisted housing. A Florida card provides no exception.
Yes, and you should. Home cultivation is not authorized under Florida's medical program, so a no-grow clause restates state law while protecting you from the mold, wiring, odor, and moisture damage indoor grows cause. Cover it in the same clause as your smoking and drug policies.
Federal authority: 21 U.S.C. § 812; HUD PIH 2014-21. State authority: Fla. Const. art. X § 29 (Amendment 2, 2016). Last updated July 14, 2026. For informational purposes only, not legal advice. Cannabis law is rapidly evolving and federal/state conflict creates significant compliance risk; consult a licensed Florida attorney before making a lease, screening, or eviction decision involving cannabis.
