DEA Issues First Federal Registrations to More Than 900 Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Sets Nov. 29 Supply-Chain Deadline

The Drug Enforcement Administration has issued its first federal registrations to state-licensed medical marijuana dispensaries, covering more than 900 dispensaries in seven states, the Justice Department announced Friday.

The registrations are the first phase of the Attorney General's April order that placed medical marijuana sold under a qualifying state license in Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. The first group covers dispensaries in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia, according to the department.

"The American people deserve access to the best medical treatments in the world," Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the announcement. He said the department "will continue prosecuting illegal marijuana trafficking and related criminal activity in accordance with federal law."

What DEA Told Medical Marijuana Applicants

Alongside the announcement, DEA posted a guidance document, dated Oct. 30, for businesses still waiting on their applications. The Digital Free Press read the document, which spells out what those businesses may and may not do in the meantime.

Under the rule, businesses that filed a complete application and paid the fee between April 28 and June 26, 2026, the first 60 days after the rule was published, are "Timely Applicants." They may keep dispensing, manufacturing or distributing medical marijuana under their state license while DEA reviews them, according to the guidance.

They may trade with each other and with DEA registrants. But the document says neither group may lawfully do business with any company that did not apply in that window, and that doing so "could be potential grounds for denial" of an application or revocation of a registration.

A Nov. 29 Deadline for Supply Chains

The guidance gives Timely Applicants until Nov. 29, 2026, to "establish compliant supply chains." Dispensaries and distributors may keep selling inventory they already hold, including product bought from companies that do not qualify, the document says.

DEA lists the minimum checks it expects before a business trades with a partner. They include getting a copy of the partner's DEA application confirmation and checking its document control number on DEA's Diversion Control website, getting a copy of a registrant's DEA certificate, confirming the partner's state license is active, and keeping records of every check.

The document also addresses product testing. Some states require samples to go to state-licensed labs, and DEA says some businesses may not have access to a DEA-registered lab. DEA says it does not intend to penalize businesses that send "de minimis quantities" to an unregistered lab in the same state, as long as they keep detailed records, and only when using a DEA-registered lab is not possible under state law.

Registered dispensaries must keep the same records required for other Schedule III drugs, the guidance says. DEA added that the document "does not have the force and effect of law."

What the Order Does Not Cover

The Justice Department said state licensure alone does not bring federal registration. Each dispensary had to pass DEA's pre-registration investigation first. DEA is still reviewing applications from medical marijuana manufacturers and distributors, which require facility inspections, production controls and quota decisions, the department said.

The order does not authorize recreational marijuana. Marijuana outside the order stays in Schedule I, and a broader proposal to move marijuana to Schedule III is being handled in a separate administrative proceeding, according to the department.

The April order followed President Trump's Dec. 18, 2025, executive order on medical marijuana and cannabidiol research, the department said when it was issued.

Sources: U.S. Department of Justice, "Justice Department Announces Issuance of Federal Registrations for Medical Marijuana Dispensaries" (Oct. 30, 2026): https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-announces-issuance-federal-registrations-medical-marijuana-dispensaries ; DEA Diversion Control Division, "DEA Medical Marijuana Timely Applicant Information" (Oct. 30, 2026): https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drugreg/Timely-Applicant-Information-for-Medical-Marijuana-Applicants-10302026.pdf ; U.S. Department of Justice, April 23, 2026 announcement of the Schedule III order: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-places-fda-approved-marijuana-products-and-products-containing-marijuana . Cover photo: Curaleaf medical cannabis dispensary, Newburgh, N.Y., by Daniel Case via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0.