Tennessee cannabis licensing, facility design and equipment.
Tennessee cannabis has no state license: no medical or adult use program exists as of Nov. 2026, and the 2025 Tennessee Medical Cannabis Act (SB 489) was not enacted. What Tennessee licenses is hemp derived cannabinoid products, which moved under the Alcoholic Beverage Commission on Jan. 1, 2026 with supplier, wholesaler and retailer licenses and a 0.3% total THC cap.
No TN cannabis license as of Nov. 8, 2026; TABC licenses hemp THC suppliers and retailers since Jan. 1, 2026
Syncing and validating with
Where Tennessee is today
Tennessee issues no cannabis business license. Medical access is a CBD oil exclusion with no in state supply, and the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Act (SB 489 / HB 872, filed Feb. 4, 2025) with 12 urban and 12 rural vertically integrated licenses was not enacted. The licensed market is hemp: under Public Chapter 526 the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission took over hemp derived cannabinoid products on Jan. 1, 2026 with three license tiers, and legacy Department of Agriculture licenses expired June 30, 2026.
Total THC, counting 0.877 of THCA, may not exceed 0.3%, so THCA flower and THCp products are out. Compare cannabis licensing in every state.
- July 1, 2024. TDA launches hemp derived cannabinoid (HDC) supplier and retailer licensing; permanent rules take effect Dec. 26, 2024.
- Feb. 4, 2025. SB 489 / HB 872, the Tennessee Medical Cannabis Act, is filed with $85,000 and $45,000 application fees; it is not enacted.
- May 21, 2025. HB 1376 becomes Public Chapter 526, moving HDC products to the TABC and setting the 0.3% total THC formula.
- Dec. 20, 2025. TABC starts accepting supplier, wholesaler and retailer applications; TDA stops taking applications Dec. 22.
- Jan. 1, 2026. TABC oversight begins; THCp and synthetic cannabinoids banned in any amount; retail limited to 21+ premises.
- June 30, 2026. Legacy TDA licenses expire; from July 1, 2026 retailers may buy only from TABC licensed wholesalers.
How to get a Tennessee cannabis license
- Pick the TABC tier. Supplier if you extract or formulate, wholesaler if you distribute, retailer only on 21+ premises; a supplier can add a retail license at the same address.
- Assemble the file. Background check, deed or lease, certificate of occupancy, business plan, and for wholesalers proof of $750,000 and the 1,000 sq ft warehouse; TABC inspects at application, renewal and at random.
- Design to 0.3% total THC. Every batch must hold delta-9 plus 0.877 times THCA at or below 0.3%, tested by a state registered third party lab with a QR code to the COA on the label.
- Build next door for cannabis. Virginia is a neighboring state with a cannabis license; keep a facility design ready for a Tennessee program.
- Pick your starting point. Dispensary plans: SB 489 ties retail to cultivation, so model a vertically integrated license with cannabis financial modeling. Cultivation and processing plans: start new license facility planning.
What the state issues, and what each one needs built
- Cannabis: none. No cultivation, processing, dispensary or lab license exists; SB 489's 24 vertically integrated licenses are a bill, not a program.
- HDC supplier, wholesaler and retailer (TABC). $500 application fee for each; annual fees $2,500 supplier, $5,000 wholesaler, $1,000 retailer. Wholesalers need a 1,000 sq ft dedicated warehouse and access to $750,000. One owner may hold more than one tier, and anyone processing hemp with any THC must be licensed.
- Hemp producer (TDA). Cultivation stays with the Department of Agriculture under Tenn. Code 43-27; a grower selling only raw hemp needs no TABC license.
What a Tennessee facility costs to design and build.
A TABC supplier site is a hemp processing plant, not a grow, so the spend is extraction, formulation and a compliant warehouse. If SB 489 or a successor passes, a vertically integrated license at $150 to $500+ per sq ft puts a 30,000 sq ft grow and processing building at $4.5 million to $15 million or more; design takes 30 to 60 days and the build 3 to 6 months after permits.
Tennessee's commercial electricity averaged 12.87 cents per kWh in 2025 against 13.37 cents nationally, and industrial rates averaged 6.59 cents, per EIA Electric Power Annual, Table 2.10. Hot, humid summers make dehumidification the HVAC budget driver. Siting today follows the TABC retail rules: 21+ premises and the 1,000 foot school restriction.
Tennessee specifics
Hemp THC testing. Public Chapter 526 caps total THC at 0.3% dry weight, calculated as delta-9 THC plus 0.877 times THCA, so THCA flower above that line is marijuana. A third party lab registered with the state tests THC, heavy metals, residual solvents, pesticides and other contaminants, and each label carries ingredients, batch number, warnings and a QR code to a valid COA.
Hemp product limits. Products containing THCp or synthetic cannabinoids are prohibited in any amount. Sales are in person only, to 21+, with no delivery, shipping, vending or self checkout, and retailers within 1,000 feet of a school are restricted unless they documented sales before Dec. 31, 2023.
Fire code. Confirm the adopted fire code edition and its plant extraction chapter with the local fire marshal and the State Fire Marshal's Office before you spec a solvent room.
| Topic | Tennessee rule | Design response |
|---|---|---|
| Hemp extraction | TABC supplier license ($500 application, $2,500 a year); total THC at or below 0.3% with THCA counted at 0.877 | Closed loop suite on used Precision Extraction systems with inline potency from Orange Photonics, sized from our extraction equipment guide |
| Product testing | State registered third party lab; COA by QR code on every product; THCp and synthetics banned | Release testing bench laid out from our testing lab equipment guide |
| Wholesale and storage | Wholesaler license $5,000 a year; 1,000 sq ft dedicated warehouse; $750,000 in access to capital | Secure warehouse and vault drawn into the processing facility layout |
| A future program | SB 489: 12 urban omni and 12 rural vertically integrated licenses, 3 dispensaries each, TDA inspections | Sealed flower rooms with Anden dehumidifiers sized per our cannabis HVAC design guide |
What the same work did for an operator like you
What a Tennessee applicant gets from the design desk.
- A Tennessee compliance review of your TABC supplier or wholesaler file: total THC testing plan, labeling and warehouse layout
- Facility design for hemp extraction today and a vertically integrated cannabis license if SB 489 returns
- A facility design package in 30 to 60 days
- Extraction and refinement rooms specified from our distillation guide
Tennessee questions
Is weed legal in Tennessee in 2026?
No. Tennessee has no medical or adult use cannabis law as of Nov. 2026, and possession remains a crime. The only legal THC products are hemp derived products at or below 0.3% total THC, sold by TABC licensed retailers to buyers 21 and older. THCA flower above that line is marijuana under Public Chapter 526.
Can I open a dispensary in Tennessee?
Not a cannabis dispensary. You can hold a TABC hemp retailer license ($500 application, $1,000 a year) if your premises bar anyone under 21 or you already hold a package store or on premises liquor license. One neighboring state with a cannabis dispensary license is Virginia.
Does Tennessee have medical marijuana?
No program. A CBD oil exclusion protects patients with listed conditions but gives them no in state supply. The Tennessee Medical Cannabis Act (SB 489 / HB 872, 2025) would have licensed 12 urban and 12 rural vertically integrated operators with up to 3 dispensaries each and was not enacted.
How do I get a Tennessee hemp derived cannabinoid license?
Apply to the TABC, which has taken applications since Dec. 20, 2025: $500 application fee, then $2,500 a year for a supplier, $5,000 for a wholesaler (1,000 sq ft warehouse, $750,000 in capital access) or $1,000 for a retailer. Expect a background check, lease or deed, certificate of occupancy, business plan and inspections at application and renewal.
Where the Tennessee rules on this page come from
- TABC information release, June 11, 2025, Public Chapter 526, Jan. 1, 2026 transfer, total THC formula, THCp ban
- TABC: Frequently Asked Questions, license tiers, $500 application and annual fees, warehouse and capital rules, school restriction, Dec. 20, 2025 and June 30, 2026 dates
- TDA: Hemp-Derived Cannabinoids Licensing, July 1, 2024 program launch, Dec. 26, 2024 rules, Dec. 22, 2025 cutoff
- TDA: Hemp-Derived Cannabinoids, T.C.A. 43-27-205, rule chapters, pending rule repeal
- SB 489 / HB 872 (2025), Tennessee Medical Cannabis Act, bill text, 12 urban omni and 12 RUVI licenses, $85,000 and $45,000 fees
- EIA Electric Power Annual, Table 2.10 (2025), average commercial and industrial electricity price by state
Regulator: Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (hemp derived cannabinoid products); no state cannabis regulator. Last reviewed November 7, 2026.
Record last reviewed