Cannabis law in Massachusetts

Statute

M.G.L. c. 94G s. 4

Administrative code

935 CMR 500.000 (adult use); 935 CMR 501.000 (medical)

Agency

Home

Rules

Published rules

Licensing

Portal

Statute

M.G.L. c. 94I

Administrative code

935 CMR 501.000

Agency

Home

Rules

Published rules

Licensing

Portal

Administrative code

935 CMR 500.105

Agency

Home

Rules

Published rules

Bulletins

Notices

Agency

Home

Amount

10.75%

Applied to

Retail Price

Programs

Adult Use

Stacks with sales tax

Yes

Collected by

Marijuana Retailer At Point Of Sale; Remitted To The Commissioner Of Revenue (Massachusetts Department Of Revenue)

Filing

Monthly Marijuana Retail Tax Return, Due On Or Before The 30th Day Of The Following Calendar Month, Filed And Paid Electronically Through MassTaxConnect (830 CMR 64N.1.1(7)(B) And (C))

Amount

6.25%

Applied to

Retail Price

Programs

Adult Use

Stacks with sales tax

Yes

Collected by

Marijuana Retailer As A Vendor Under M.G.L. C. 64H S.1; Remitted To The Commissioner Of Revenue

Filing

Sales And Use Tax Return Under M.G.L. C. 62C S.16; Marijuana Sales Are Reported On The Marijuana Retail Tax Return And Non-Marijuana Tangible Personal Property On The Sales And Use Tax Return (830 CMR 64N.1.1(5)(B))

Amount

3%

Applied to

Retail Price

Programs

Adult Use

Stacks with sales tax

Yes

Collected by

Marijuana Retailer At Point Of Sale; Paid To The Commissioner Of Revenue At The Same Time And In The Same Manner As The Sales Tax Due To The Commonwealth, Then Distributed At Least Quarterly To The Accepting City Or Town

Filing

With The Monthly Marijuana Retail Tax Return (830 CMR 64N.1.1(7)(B))

Amount

0%

Applied to

Retail Price

Programs

Medical

Stacks with sales tax

No

Collected by

No Tax Collected; The Retailer Must Verify The Patient Registration Card And Government-Issued Identification At The Point Of Sale

Filing

Exempt Sales Are Still Reported On The Marijuana Retail Tax Return With Supporting Records Under 830 CMR 64N.1.1(6)

Massachusetts sets no statewide retail hours of sale; the host community governs the time, place and manner of operation by ordinance or by-law, so store hours must be loaded per municipality before a shift can be validated.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

No individual may be admitted to a Marijuana Retailer premises or sold or delivered marijuana unless verified to be 21 or older; the only exception is a qualifying patient holding a valid medical registration card at a colocated medical establishment.

Trigger

age_verify

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Microbusiness

Customer classes

Adult, Non Resident

Identification must be inspected twice, once immediately on entry to the premises to determine age before admission and again at the point of sale, and the retailer must refuse to sell to anyone unable to produce valid government-issued identification.

Trigger

age_verify

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A qualifying patient younger than 18 may not enter a medical establishment without their caregiver and may not possess marijuana at any time outside the caregiver's presence; the minor patient needs no separate identification of their own.

Trigger

patient_verify

Licence types

Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Customer classes

Minor Patient

A medical establishment may not sell a patient or caregiver more than the patient's 60-day supply in each 60-day period, which is ten ounces unless the Certifying Healthcare Provider certified a different amount.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Customer classes

Patient, Caregiver, Minor Patient

A verified medical sale carries no marijuana excise, no local option and no sales tax; the point of sale must zero all three tax lines once the registration card and government identification are verified, and must not zero them without that verification.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer

Customer classes

Patient, Caregiver, Minor Patient

Each of the marijuana excise, the local option and the sales tax must be separately stated from the total sales price on the receipt, and marijuana must be separately stated from non-marijuana goods at amounts reasonably reflecting retail value, or the marijuana taxes fall on the whole transaction.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement

Customer classes

Adult, Non Resident

Package tags must be attached to all finished marijuana and marijuana products and every acquisition and distribution tracked in the Seed-to-sale system of record, so a sale line without a package identifier cannot be completed; untracked distribution is grounds for suspension or revocation.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

No marijuana or marijuana product may be sold or marketed that has not first been tested by an Independent Testing Laboratory, and the potency levels from the cannabinoid profile must be recorded in the Seed-to-sale system of record before sale.

Trigger

sale

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Real-time inventory must be maintained in the Seed-to-sale system of record, covering plants, finished product and all damaged, defective, expired or contaminated stock awaiting disposal, with a monthly inventory and a comprehensive annual inventory recorded and signed.

Trigger

reporting

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Every adjustment needs a documented reason, and the discovery of an inventory discrepancy, diversion, theft, loss or unauthorized destruction must be reported to law enforcement and the Commission immediately and in no case more than 24 hours after discovery, with a written incident report within ten calendar days.

Trigger

inventory_adjust

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A manifest must be completed before marijuana moves between licensed establishments, securely transmitted to the destination by facsimile or email before transport, kept in the vehicle for the whole trip, and compared on arrival against the transmitted copy by an agent at the destination.

Trigger

transfer_in

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment, Ma-Third-Party-Transporter, Ma-Existing-Licensee-Transporter

All vehicles transporting marijuana between licensed establishments must be staffed with a minimum of two Marijuana Establishment Agents, and at least one agent must always remain with the vehicle while it contains marijuana; only testing transport under $5,000 wholesale value may use a single agent.

Trigger

transfer_out

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Craft-Marijuana-Cooperative, Ma-Marijuana-Cultivator, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment, Ma-Third-Party-Transporter, Ma-Existing-Licensee-Transporter

The originating location must have a Marijuana Establishment Agent assigned to monitoring the vehicle GPS unit and the secure form of communication, logging all official communications, and the vehicle must return to the origin if communications or GPS fail en route.

Trigger

transfer_out

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment, Ma-Third-Party-Transporter, Ma-Existing-Licensee-Transporter

Delivery directly to consumers requires a Delivery License (Marijuana Courier or Marijuana Delivery Operator) or a Delivery Endorsement, and every individual performing a delivery must be an employee of that licensee holding a valid Marijuana Establishment Agent registration.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A consumer delivery vehicle must be staffed with a minimum of one Marijuana Establishment Agent, and the agent or agents must remain inside the vehicle at all times that it contains marijuana except while completing a delivery; two agents are not required.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A delivery vehicle may carry marijuana with a maximum retail value of $5,000 at any one time, rising to $10,000 only when two agents are aboard, and every item must be associated with a specific individual order.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A consumer must pre-verify before the first delivery, in person or by Commission-approved electronic means, by presenting valid unexpired government-issued photo identification bearing a date of birth; delivery to a consumer without a pre-verified account is prohibited.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Microbusiness

Customer classes

Adult, Non Resident

Before handing over product the agent must view the recipient's government identification and confirm it matches the pre-verified identification, view the proof of order generated at the time of order, and take the recipient's signature verified against the photo identification; delivery to anyone other than the ordering consumer is prohibited.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Delivery may go only to the Residence address on the order, meaning a house, condominium or apartment, and never to a dormitory or other on-campus housing, a hotel, motel, bed and breakfast or other commercial hospitality operation, federal public housing, a shelter or a residential program.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

No more than one delivery to the same consumer at the same residence each calendar day, only one individual order per consumer per delivery, and only within authorized delivery hours.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Every consumer delivery needs a manifest produced by the originating establishment in duplicate, the original held at the premises and a copy carried in the vehicle for the whole route, signed by both the recipient and the delivering agent as the written record of completion.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

The delivering agent must wear an operational body camera, displayed conspicuously, at all times outside the vehicle while transacting a delivery; the camera records every delivery and the consumer must be told about it at the time of order, on the proof of order, and again on arrival.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Each delivery vehicle needs an exterior alarm, a non-removable locked compartment for product and a separate one for cash, secure two-way communication, a fixed GPS unit, and cameras in both the storage and driver areas, all inspected and tested at intervals no longer than 30 days, with the vehicle inspected and approved by the Commission before first use.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

The vehicle GPS must be monitored from a fixed location during the whole delivery run with location checks at least every 30 minutes, and the agent must contact that fixed location when completing any delivery or making any unscheduled stop; monitoring may be delegated to a contracted third-party technology platform provider.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Deliveries are limited to the licensee's own municipality, any municipality that allows retail within its borders whether or not a store is operating, and any municipality that has told the Commission delivery may operate there; a municipality that bars retail may obtain a two-year renewable waiver prohibiting delivery.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

A Marijuana Retailer using a courier must ensure a Registered Marijuana Agent remains at the premises to receive any undeliverable marijuana returned by that courier, and the return process must be a term of the Delivery Agreement.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Advertising through the marketing of free promotional items is prohibited, including gifts, giveaways, discounts, points-based reward systems, customer loyalty programs, coupons and free or donated marijuana; the only carve-outs are a registered employee discount program and brand-name take-away bags handed over after a purchase completes.

Trigger

discount

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Vendor Samples received from a cultivator or product manufacturer may go only to the retailer's own employees for quality assessment, never to another licensee or a consumer, never consumed on any licensed premises, and each issue must record the quantity reduction against the package identifier, the date and time, and the receiving agent's registration number and name.

Trigger

sample

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer

Massachusetts creates a consumer return right only under a Commission removal or prohibition order, where the establishment must accept returns of unused and unopened product for 30 days after the order takes effect; any marijuana returned by a consumer must be wasted under the disposal rules and may not be resold.

Trigger

return

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Marijuana waste must be ground up and mixed with other organic material until unusable for its original purpose, witnessed and documented by a Marijuana Establishment Agent, with an electronic record of the date, type and quantity, manner and location of disposal and the name and signature of the agent present, kept for at least three years.

Trigger

destruction

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Craft-Marijuana-Cooperative, Ma-Marijuana-Cultivator, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Any advertising created for public viewing must carry Please Consume Responsibly conspicuously on the face plus at least two of the five listed secondary warnings, and all advertising for marijuana must carry the full FDA-not-analyzed warning block in capitals as required by M.G.L. c. 94G s.4, subsection (a and one half), clause (xxvi).

Trigger

advertising

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Craft-Marijuana-Cooperative, Ma-Marijuana-Cultivator, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Advertising may not be deceptive, portray anyone under 21, appeal to minors through mascots, cartoons or celebrity endorsements, disparage other licensees, claim safety or curative effects, advertise price outside the in-store catalogue exception, appear on exterior signage or transit, use branded promotional goods, or run on any channel unless at least 85 per cent of the audience is reasonably expected to be 21 or older, and a licensee website must verify the entrant is 21 or older.

Trigger

advertising

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Craft-Marijuana-Cooperative, Ma-Marijuana-Cultivator, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

No provision of 935 CMR 500.000 was found that bars a cultivator or product manufacturer from paying a Massachusetts retailer for in-store advertising or placement; the nearest authorities are the third-party platform inducement bar, the advertising content rules, and the new credit and delinquency section, so Bloom holds such placements for counsel review before offering them.

Trigger

advertising

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement

Before sale or transfer every package must carry a firmly affixed legible label in type no smaller than one sixteenth of an inch with the producing and retail licensee details, the full FDA-not-analyzed warning in capitals, the Commission marijuana symbol and the Commission harmful-to-children symbol, and consumer packaging must be resealable child-resistant with KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN.

Trigger

labeling

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Cash deposits to a financial institution or a Department of Revenue facility must move by an armored transport provider licensed under M.G.L. c. 147 s.25 and approved by the receiving institution, unless the Commission approves an alternative security provision, which must itself require two registered agents in the vehicle at all times during the transport.

Trigger

shift_close

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

Retention runs on different clocks by record type, namely waste disposal records three years, transportation and delivery manifests one year, incident documentation one year or the length of an open investigation, surveillance video 90 days, delivery body camera video 30 days, training records four years, personnel records 12 months after an agent leaves, tax records under the DOR statute of limitations, and all records two years after a licence closes.

Trigger

record_retention

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Retailer, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Craft-Marijuana-Cooperative, Ma-Marijuana-Cultivator, Ma-Marijuana-Product-Manufacturer, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

All deliveries must be completed between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. local time; a host community may narrow the window by ordinance or by-law but may not start it earlier or end it later.

Trigger

delivery

Licence types

Ma-Marijuana-Courier, Ma-Marijuana-Delivery-Operator, Ma-Marijuana-Retailer-Delivery-Endorsement, Ma-Microbusiness, Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment

On entry to a medical establishment or on arrival at a residence for delivery, the agent must inspect the temporary or annual registration card and government photo identification, and must refuse the sale unless the patient holds a current valid certification in the Commission supported interoperable database.

Trigger

patient_verify

Licence types

Ma-Medical-Marijuana-Establishment, Ma-Marijuana-Courier

Customer classes

Patient, Caregiver, Minor Patient