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Map of Hawaii eviction risk by county

Cannabis & Marijuana Rental Rules in Hawaii 2026

Landlord ban authority, possession and home-grow limits, medical patient housing rules, and federal Section 8 restrictions in Hawaii.

Medical Only Effective 2000
4 oz Adult-use possession limit
10 plants Home cultivation
No Medical patient housing protection
Federal baseline (uniform in Hawaii): Cannabis remains a Schedule I controlled substance under 21 U.S.C. § 812(c) Schedule I(c)(10) regardless of Hawaii's legalization status. HUD PIH Notice 2014-21 (re-issued PIH 2017-13) requires Public Housing Authorities to deny admission to public housing or HCV (Section 8) for any household member illegally using a controlled substance, including cannabis. Landlords may prohibit smoking of any substance as a private property interest in any state.

Hawaii is a medical-only cannabis state. There is no legal adult-use market as of 2026, and recreational possession above the decriminalized threshold remains illegal. But Hawaii also gives registered medical patients some of the strongest housing protections in the country, and two statutes, HRS 521-39 and HRS 329-125.5, directly limit what you can put in a lease and what you can evict for. Get the wording wrong and your no-cannabis clause is simply void. The practical takeaway: you retain broad authority over smoking and cultivation, but almost none over a patient's status, and federally assisted units answer to a different master entirely.

Hawaii Cannabis Legal Status

Hawaii is classified as Medical Cannabis Only (effective 2000). The governing statute is HRS § 329-121 et seq. (Act 228, 2000).

Landlord Authority in Hawaii

Landlords retain ban authority.

HRS § 329-122(b)(2): nothing requires a landlord to accommodate medical use of marijuana. Landlord may prohibit on rental property.

Where Hawaii stands: medical-only, no adult-use market

Hawaii legalized medical cannabis in 2000 (it was the first state to do so by legislature rather than ballot), and the program runs through the Department of Health's Medical Cannabis Registry under HRS Chapter 329, Part IX. Recreational legalization has repeatedly stalled, so as of 2026 there is no legal adult-use possession or sales. Possession of very small amounts was decriminalized by Act 273 (2019), which reduced possession of 3 grams or less to a civil violation carrying a fine of up to $130 and no jail time. That decriminalization matters for you only at the margins: a civil-fine-level infraction by a tenant is not the felony-grade lease breach that federal drug-activity clauses target, but it is also not protected activity. Treat non-patient cannabis use like any other lease-compliance issue, governed by your ordinary lease terms and the Residential Landlord-Tenant Code, not by the special patient protections below.

The eviction limit you must know: HRS 521-39

This is the clause that trips up Hawaii landlords. Under HRS 521-39, a provision in a rental agreement that allows eviction of a tenant who holds a valid medical cannabis certificate is void. A flat "no marijuana, medical or otherwise" eviction clause is unenforceable against a registered patient. There is one carve-out that hands you real authority: the clause is enforceable only if your rental agreement also allows eviction for smoking tobacco and the tenant's medical cannabis is used by means of smoking. In plain terms, if you run a no-smoking property that bans tobacco smoking, you can also prohibit smoked medical cannabis, because the statute treats them alike. What you cannot do is single out cannabis while permitting tobacco. If you want the power to act on smoked cannabis, your lease must contain a genuine no-tobacco-smoking provision, not just an anti-cannabis one.

You still control smoking and cultivation, not status

Two levers remain firmly in your hands. First, smoking: a lawful, evenhanded no-smoking policy (tobacco and cannabis alike) is enforceable under the HRS 521-39 tobacco carve-out, and it protects non-smoking tenants and your building from odor and secondhand smoke. Non-smoked forms, edibles, tinctures, vaporized oils, fall outside that smoking exception, so a no-smoking rule does not let you evict a patient who consumes without smoke. Second, cultivation: registered patients may grow up to an adequate supply, capped at 10 cannabis plants (mature or immature) and 4 ounces of usable cannabis at any time, at one location only. Home grows raise legitimate landlord concerns, humidity and mold, electrical load, ventilation, and unit alterations, and you can address those through neutral lease terms on modifications, moisture, and property condition. What you cannot do under HRS 329-125.5 is refuse to lease to, or otherwise penalize, someone solely because of their status as a qualifying patient or primary caregiver. Caregivers themselves gained reach in 2025: a primary caregiver may now serve up to 5 patients (raised from one), and caregiver cultivation rights were restored retroactively to January 1, 2025.

The federal wall: Section 8 and public housing

Everything above applies to private, unassisted Hawaii rentals. Federally assisted housing follows a different rule, and Hawaii's patient protections carry a built-in exception for exactly this reason: HRS 329-125.5 lets a landlord decline to protect a patient where doing otherwise would cost the landlord a monetary or licensing-related benefit under federal law. That exception exists because cannabis is still a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act. For public housing and Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) units, HUD, under the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998, requires housing authorities to deny admission to applicants who use marijuana, including state-registered medical patients. HUD has also stated that a PHA may not grant a reasonable accommodation for medical marijuana. For tenants already housed, HUD gives the authority discretion: it may terminate for controlled-substance use but is not required to. If you operate Section 8 or public housing in Hawaii, the state's void-clause and anti-discrimination rules do not override the federal admission bar.

Condo and HOA properties: the exception within the exception

If your rental sits inside a condominium property regime or planned community association, HRS 521-39's tenant protections do not apply where the association's governing documents, its articles, declaration, bylaws, administrative or house rules, or similar documents, prohibit the medical use of cannabis. In other words, a condo or HOA can ban medical cannabis at the association level, and where it has, you as the unit owner-landlord are not forced by HRS 521-39 to permit it. Pull your association's declaration and house rules before you write, or waive, a cannabis clause: the governing documents may already decide the question. Where the association is silent, the standard HRS 521-39 analysis, and its no-void-unless-you-also-ban-tobacco-smoking logic, controls.

Medical Patient Housing Rules in Hawaii

Hawaii does not have statewide medical patient housing protection.

Medical cannabis patients in Hawaii 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.

Section 8 / HCV in Hawaii, The Federal Trap

HUD PIH 2014-21 mandatory denial applies in Hawaii. Even though Hawaii has legalized medical cannabis, a Public Housing Authority in Hawaii must deny admission to any household where a member illegally uses a controlled substance, and cannabis remains federal-illegal. Existing Section 8 tenants who use cannabis may face termination at PHA discretion, though termination is not mandatory like denial is.

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 Hawaii, 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.

Cannabis Rental Compliance in Major Hawaii Cities

City-level landlord risk profiles often track cannabis-related lease enforcement. View the eviction-risk and tenant-law profile for the largest Hawaii rental markets:

Urban Honolulu East Honolulu Hilo Pearl City Waipahu Kaneohe

Sources & Methodology

Related Guides for Hawaii Landlords

← Hawaii Eviction Risk Overview Lawful Eviction Reasons Section 8 / HCV Landlord Guide Landlord Insurance & Hazards Fair Housing Protected Classes Tenant Rights Summary

This page reflects Hawaii's Residential Landlord-Tenant Code (HRS 521-39), the Medical Use of Cannabis provisions (HRS Chapter 329, Part IX, including the patient and caregiver protections of HRS 329-125.5), and the federal treatment of cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act and HUD's admission rules for federally assisted housing. Cannabis law changes quickly and enforcement turns on specific lease language and property type. This is general information for Hawaii landlords, not legal advice; confirm current statute text and consult a Hawaii landlord-tenant attorney before drafting a cannabis clause or acting on a tenant's status.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I put a no-marijuana clause in my Hawaii lease?

You can, but under HRS 521-39 it is void as an eviction ground against a tenant with a valid medical cannabis certificate, unless your lease also bans tobacco smoking and the patient's cannabis is smoked. A no-cannabis clause aimed only at cannabis, while allowing tobacco, does not give you the power to evict a registered patient.

Is recreational marijuana legal in Hawaii?

No. As of 2026 Hawaii has no legal adult-use market. Only registered medical patients are protected. Possession of 3 grams or less was decriminalized by Act 273 (2019) to a civil violation with a fine up to $130, but that is not legal or protected use.

Can I ban a tenant from growing cannabis in the unit?

You cannot penalize someone solely for being a qualifying patient or caregiver (HRS 329-125.5), and registered patients may grow up to 10 plants and 4 ounces of usable cannabis at one location. But you can enforce neutral lease terms on moisture and mold, electrical load, unit alterations, and property condition that a home grow may implicate.

Does this apply to my Section 8 tenants?

No. Because cannabis is a Schedule I substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act, HUD requires housing authorities to deny admission to marijuana users, including medical patients, in public housing and the Housing Choice Voucher program. HRS 329-125.5's own federal-benefit exception recognizes this. For existing tenants, HUD gives the authority discretion to terminate.

Can I stop a patient from smoking cannabis in the unit?

Yes, if you run a genuine no-smoking property. HRS 521-39 lets you treat smoked medical cannabis the same as smoked tobacco, so an evenhanded no-tobacco-smoking lease provision also reaches smoked cannabis. It does not, however, cover edibles, tinctures, or vaporized non-smoked forms.

Can my condo association ban medical cannabis?

Yes. HRS 521-39's tenant protections do not apply where a condominium property regime or planned community association's declaration, bylaws, house rules, or similar documents prohibit the medical use of cannabis. Check the governing documents before drafting or waiving a cannabis clause.

Federal authority: 21 U.S.C. § 812; HUD PIH 2014-21. State authority: HRS § 329-121 et seq. (Act 228, 2000). Last updated October 24, 2026. For informational purposes only, not legal advice. Cannabis law is rapidly evolving and federal/state conflict creates significant compliance risk; consult a licensed Hawaii attorney before making a lease, screening, or eviction decision involving cannabis.