MA Industrial Hemp Program Licensing

Any person proposing to plant, grow, harvest, or process Industrial Hemp in Massachusetts must obtain a license issued by the Department of Agricultural Resources. License applications are available between December 1 - April 30.

To submit an Industrial Hemp License application, you will need to complete the following steps:

1. Review the Hemp Production Regulation (330 CMR 32.00) and the 2022 Hemp Processor Policy to understand the program requirements, risks and additional considerations.
2. Review the United States Department of Agriculture Final Rule for U.S. Domestic Hemp Production 
3. Download, complete, and sign the appropriate application form. There are three types, see below. 
4. Provide a map for each growing and/or processing site. See instructions in Downloads section of this page. 
5. If you are applying for a Producer or Dual License, provide a criminal history report for each Individual Applicant and/or Key Participant current to within 60 days of your application submission. Criminal history reports may be obtained via this page from the Federal Bureau of Investigations and should be included with your application: https://www.fbi.gov/services/cjis/identity-history-summary-checks. Processor-only applicants are not required to submit a criminal history report. For more information on obtaining your criminal history report, please see the guidance document in Downloads section of this page. 
6. Submit a $100 application fee by check or money order, payable to "Commonwealth of Massachusetts."

Table 1. Hemp License Applications and Associated Fees

Hemp license applications are available from December 1 - April 30. To be notified when license applications are available, please sign up for the MDAR Hemp Program mailing list: 
https://www.mass.gov/forms/join-the-hemp-program-mailing-list