New York Marijuana Licensing

What License Types Exist in New York?

New York currently issues 12 adult-use cannabis license types through its Office of Cannabis Management (OCM). Under its medical cannabis law, New York registers organizations interested in manufacturing and dispensing medical marijuana. Its 2015 medical marijuana organization license application process allows for up to five registered organizations with each of them authorized to operate up to four dispensing facilities. In addition to this business license, New York also issues a cannabis research license under its medical marijuana program.

The different Adult-use cannabis license types in New York are discussed below,

Adult-Use Cultivator

The adult-use cultivator license permits the licensee to acquire, possess, distribute, cultivate, and sell cannabis from the authorized premises of the licensee to another licensed processor.

Adult-Use Conditional Cultivator

Established by the recently signed S8084A bill, the adult-use conditional cultivator license permits the licensee to cultivate cannabis outdoors or in a greenhouse for a period of two years from the date of issuance of the license.

Adult-Use Nursery

An adult-use nursery license allows for the production, sale, and distribution of cannabis clones, immature plants, seeds, and other agricultural products used in cannabis planting, propagation, and cultivation by licensed registered organizations, microbusinesses, adult-use cultivators, or cooperatives.

Adult-Use Processor

An adult-use processor license permits the licensee to acquire, possess, process, and sell cannabis from the licensed premises of adult-use cultivators to licensed premises of adult-use cannabis cultivators to licensed distributors.

Adult-Use Distributor

An adult-use distributor license permits the licensee to acquire, possess, distribute, and sell cannabis from the licensed premises of a licensed adult-use processor, adult-use cooperative, microbusiness, or registered cannabis organization in order to sell adult-use cannabis, to duly certified retail dispensaries, adult-use delivery, and onsite consumption site licensees.

Adult-Use Cooperative

This license authorizes the licensee to acquire, possess, cultivate, process, and sell from the licensed premises of the cooperative to duly licensed registered organizations, on-site consumption sites, distributors, and retail dispensaries. However, the cooperative cannabis license does not authorize the sale of cannabis directly to consumers of cannabis.

Adult-Use Microbusiness

An adult-use microbusiness license allows the licensee to act as a producer, cultivator, processor, distributor, and retailer of cannabis. Under this license, licensees are authorized to carry out limited cultivation, processing, distribution, delivery, and sale of their own recreational cannabis and cannabis products.

Adult-Use Retail Dispensary

This license permits the licensee to legally acquire, possess, sell, and deliver cannabis from the licensee's licensed premises to cannabis consumers.

Adult-Use On-Site Consumption

An adult-use on-site consumption license authorizes the licensee to acquire, possess, and sell cannabis from the licensed premises of the on-site consumption site to cannabis consumers for use at the same location of the adult-use consumption site.

Adult-Use Delivery

An adult-use delivery license allows the licensee to deliver cannabis and cannabis products, independent of any other adult-use cannabis license, to cannabis consumers.

Registered Organization Adult-Use Cultivator Processor Distributor Retail Dispensary

This license authorizes a registered organization to obtain the same privileges and conditions of business operations as afforded adult-use cannabis cultivator, processor, distributor, and retail dispensary licensees. The location of an establishment operating under this license is restricted to three of the organization's medical dispensaries. Only the distribution of the registered organization's own cannabis products is authorized in these dispensaries.

Registered Organization Adult-Use Cultivator Processor Distributor

This license provides the licensee with the same privileges as the adult-use cultivator, processor, and distributor licenses.

Testing Certification

Testing certification is required before a marijuana testing laboratory can analyze cannabis samples for impurities or contaminants. Marijuana testing certifications are issued to marijuana testing laboratories to ensure that licensed cannabis operators in the state comply with all safety regulations in the manufacture of cannabis products. New York testing laboratory certifications are issued by the New York State Department of Health Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement (BNE).