{"id":85886,"date":"2026-04-29T09:56:40","date_gmt":"2026-04-29T17:56:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form\/"},"modified":"2026-04-29T19:45:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-30T03:45:31","slug":"state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form\/","title":{"rendered":"State-Licensed Marijuana Businesses Can Now Apply For Federal Protections Using New DEA Form"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n<p>State-licensed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/dea-will-start-accepting-applications-from-medical-marijuana-businesses-that-want-federal-rescheduling-protections-this-week\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">medical marijuana businesses can now apply for federal protections<\/a> in line with the Trump administration\u2019s cannabis rescheduling process.<\/p>\n<p>The Drug Enforcement Administration\u2019s \u201cMedical Marijuana Dispensary Registration Portal\u201d went live on Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n<p>The move follows last week\u2019s announcement by the Department of Justice that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/federal-marijuana-rescheduling-announced-by-department-of-justice-months-after-trump-executive-order\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">marijuana is being moved from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act<\/a> (CSA), in phases.<\/p>\n<p>Under an order signed by Acting Attorney General Blanche, marijuana products regulated by a state medical cannabis license immediately moved to Schedule III, as did any marijuana products that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).<\/p>\n<p>Medical cannabis dispensaries with state licenses that want to take advantage of new legal protections and tax benefits that come with Schedule III status will first have to fill out an application with DEA that asks for information about their processes for storage, ordering, dispensing, inventory, maintenance of records and other aspects of their businesses.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\">\u201cFor each activity below, indicate whether the firm has a standard operating procedure (SOP):<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li>Ordering<\/li>\n<li>Receiving<\/li>\n<li>Inventories<\/li>\n<li>Storage of Marijuana<\/li>\n<li>Security<\/li>\n<li>Dispensing (including delivery services)<\/li>\n<li>Distributing<\/li>\n<li>Destruction\/Disposal<\/li>\n<li>Theft\/Loss Reporting<\/li>\n<li>Due Diligence (including supplier\/patient\/practitioner verification)<\/li>\n<li>Corresponding Responsibility<\/li>\n<li>Maintenance of Records\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The application asks about specific details about security measures such as vaults, safes, secure storage rooms, access controls, alarm systems and on-site security personnel.<\/p>\n<p>Applicants can choose whether they are requesting to handle marijuana, marijuana extracts or naturally derived delta-9 THC.<\/p>\n<p>While only medical marijuana is currently being moved to Schedule III, the application also asks potential registrants whether their firms handle or dispense recreational marijuana.<\/p>\n<p>Under last week\u2019s DOJ order there will be an expedited administrative hearing process to consider the broader rescheduling of cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III, beginning on June 29.<\/p>\n<p>The DEA application, meanwhile, also asks businesses to submit information about their state cannabis licenses and to answer questions about criminal and disciplinary histories.<\/p>\n<p>It also asks: \u201cHas anyone who will be involved in the ownership or operation of the firm previously manufactured, distributed, and\/or dispensed any controlled substance without a DEA registration authorizing such activity?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Presumably, every currently operational state-legal cannabis business has key personnel who have done so, since medical marijuana was, until just days ago, a Schedule I controlled substance that DEA did not broadly authorize manufacturing, distribution and dispensation of.<\/p>\n<p>Applicants must additionally list suppliers from which they intend to procure marijuana, and to disclose whether they anticipate repackaging or relabeling cannabis products.<\/p>\n<div class=\"embed-twitter\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">If you are applying for registration as a medical marijuana dispensary, please use the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Registration Portal at: <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/b5QozQhhpr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/b5QozQhhpr<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/DEADiversion?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">#DEADiversion<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/TheJusticeDept?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">@TheJusticeDept<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9HtbSMynq3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/9HtbSMynq3<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 DEA HQ (@DEAHQ) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DEAHQ\/status\/2049590857003679861?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">April 29, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p \/><\/div>\n<p>They also need to provide lists of individuals with the business that are anticipated to have \u201caccess to controlled substances,\u201d including their dates of birth, social security numbers, criminal histories related to drugs.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\">\u201cProvide the following for each individual you anticipate having access to controlled substances:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none\">\n<ul>\n<li>Name<\/li>\n<li>Title(s)<\/li>\n<li>Date of birth<\/li>\n<li>Social Security number<\/li>\n<li>DEA registration numbers, if applicable<\/li>\n<li>State\/territorial authorizations to manufacture, distribute, dispense or otherwise handle controlled substances<\/li>\n<li>Has this person been the subject of one or more federal, state, territorial, or tribal disciplinary actions?<\/li>\n<li>Has this person been convicted of any federal, state, territorial, tribal, and local offenses related to controlled substances?\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There is also an annual $794 <a href=\"https:\/\/mmapplication.diversion.dea.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">application<\/a> fee, currently only payable via PayPal, though DEA says \u201cwe anticipate having additional forms of payment in the coming weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Application fees are not refundable.<\/p>\n<p>Separately, DEA has launched a new <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dea.gov\/marijuana-rescheduling-regulatory-actions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">webpage<\/a> on its site that houses key information about the new federal cannabis rescheduling move, including copies of Federal Register orders that detail the change and the process for the upcoming hearing on the issue.<\/p>\n<p>Blanche\u2019s rescheduling order last week said that to align with an international drug control treaty \u201crequirement that a government agency serve as the exclusive purchaser of cannabis production,\u201d DOJ is rolling out a process by which the federal government will technically purchase marijuana from producers and then sell it back to them or related entities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRegistered manufacturers must store crops in a facility to which DEA maintains access until that transaction is complete, and each manufacturer registration must specify the areas in which cultivation is permitted,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-left: 40px\">\u201cAll manufacturers registered under this subsection shall establish a nominal price for the purchase of their marijuana crops. The Administration shall then purchase the entity\u2019s crops at that price and sell the crops back to the entity, or a related or subsidiary entity, at the same price with the addition of the administrative fee as calculated under Part 1318.06(a).\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said they plan to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/feds-announce-marijuana-industry-tax-guidance-is-coming-as-rescheduling-takes-effect\/\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">issue new tax guidance for the marijuana industry<\/a>\u00a0following the rescheduling announcement.<\/p>\n<p>Rescheduling will benefit state-licensed marijuana businesses by allowing them to take federal tax deductions they\u2019re currently barred from under an IRS code known as 280E that doesn\u2019t apply to Schedule III substances.<\/p>\n<p>White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the administration is moving forward with marijuana rescheduling because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/trumps-marijuana-move-is-overwhelmingly-popular-with-voters-and-helps-patients-white-house-press-secretary-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">cannabis reform is \u201coverwhelmingly popular\u201d with voters<\/a> and because doing so will help people who need access to the drug for medical purposes.<\/p>\n<p>During a press event in the Oval Office last week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/trump-says-medical-marijuana-is-the-best-of-all-the-alternatives-for-people-suffering-with-illnesses\/\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">President Donald Trump spoke about the medical benefits of marijuana<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA lot of people are suffering from big problems, which this seems to be the best answer,\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re very happy about it. So the rescheduling is starting, and that\u2019s a big thing, rescheduling.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The president noted that his administration\u2019s actions on cannabis rescheduling came after his friend Howard Kessler told him about how he used medical marijuana.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe had some medical difficulties, and he came upon this by accident, in a way,\u201d he said. \u201cHe had to go through a lot of different medications, and he said this was the one that was much better than anything else. And so he experienced that. He didn\u2019t benefit by it, other than from the standpoint that he lives a much better life now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo hopefully you don\u2019t need it,\u201d Trump said. \u201cBut if you do need it, I hear it\u2019s the best of all the alternatives.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Separately, the president called on Congress to take action to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/trump-pushes-congress-to-keep-full-spectrum-cbd-legal-while-restricting-hemp-products-that-pose-health-risks\/\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">amend a law that threatens to federally recriminalize hemp-derived full-spectrum CBD products<\/a>\u00a0later this year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe must get this done RIGHT and FAST, especially for those who saw that CBD helps them,\u201d he said in a social media post. \u201cPlus, I am told it will also help our GREAT FARMERS, who we love, and will always be there for.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Days earlier, Trump had complained that\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/trump-complains-doj-is-slow-walking-marijuana-rescheduling-four-months-after-he-issued-an-order-to-get-it-done\/\" data-google-interstitial=\"false\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">federal officials were \u201cslow-walking\u201d following through on his cannabis order<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">State-Licensed Marijuana Businesses Can Now Apply For Federal Protections Using New DEA Form<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#013;<br \/>\n&#013;<br \/>\nRead More: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">State-Licensed Marijuana Businesses Can Now Apply For Federal Protections Using New DEA Form<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>State-licensed medical marijuana businesses can now apply for federal protections in line with the Trump administration\u2019s cannabis rescheduling process. The Drug Enforcement Administration\u2019s \u201cMedical Marijuana Dispensary Registration Portal\u201d went live on Wednesday morning. The move follows last week\u2019s announcement by the Department of Justice that marijuana is being moved from<span class=\"more-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2026\/04\/29\/state-licensed-marijuana-businesses-can-now-apply-for-federal-protections-using-new-dea-form\/\">Continue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":459,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85886"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/459"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85886"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85886\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85887,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85886\/revisions\/85887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85886"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85886"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85886"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}