Illegal use of any substance or plant classified as a narcotic is punishable by one year’s imprisonment and a fine of €3,750.
If the offence is committed in the course of or in connection with the performance of his or her duties by a person acting on behalf of the public authority or entrusted with a public service mission, or by the staff of a road, rail, sea or air freight or passenger transport company performing duties involving transport safety, the list of which is set by decree in the Council of State, the penalties are increased to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of 75,000 euros. For the purposes of this paragraph, workers made available to the transport company by an external company are treated in the same way as staff of a transport company.
For the offence provided for in the first paragraph of this article, including in the event of a repeat offence, the public prosecution may be extinguished, under the conditions provided for in articles 495-17 to 495-25 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, by the payment of a fixed fine of €200. The amount of the reduced fixed fine is €150 and the amount of the increased fixed fine is €450.