Tennessee’s Hemp Switchover to the TABC: Your Questions Answered

The Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (the TABC). For years the Department of Agriculture oversaw HDCP licensing. That oversight has moved to the TABC, which handles HDCP licensing and enforcement going forward.

July 1, 2026. The TABC was originally slated to take over at the start of 2026 and has been active under emergency rules since December 2025. Litigation extended the transition by six months, so July 1, 2026 is when the permanent rules take full effect and a TABC license becomes the requirement to operate.

TDA licenses issued before the end of 2025 remain valid through June 30, 2026. The Department of Agriculture is no longer issuing or renewing HDCP licenses, so to operate on or after July 1, 2026 you need a license from the TABC.

A handful of documents are worth knowing by name. Public Chapter 526 created Tennessee’s HDCP framework in Title 57, Chapter 7. Public Chapter 698 (HB1503), enacted in 2026, amended that framework, rewriting the HDCP supplier definition, setting the QR and certificate-of-analysis rules, lowering the warning-statement minimum to six-point font, and barring the Department of Agriculture from issuing or renewing HDCP licenses after its effective date. Rule Chapter 0100-15 (suppliers and wholesalers) and Chapter 0100-16 (retail sale) were filed as emergency rules on December 26, 2025, and a permanent rule package filed with the Secretary of State in March 2026 took effect in 2026. Where the statute and a rule conflict, the statute controls.

Yes. As of July 1, 2026, a license from the TABC is required to operate as an HDCP supplier, wholesaler, or retailer in Tennessee.

Yes. The move to the TABC applies to hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Hemp farming is regulated separately, and growing the crop stays under the Tennessee Department of Agriculture’s hemp producer program, which follows the federal Farm Bill and the USDA-approved state plan. The TDA has confirmed its requirements for licensed hemp producers are unchanged. A grower who also makes, distributes, or sells finished HDCPs needs the matching TABC license for that activity.

Three. A supplier sells finished, packaged HDCPs to wholesalers; manufacturers fall here, and so do out-of-state companies that contract for manufacturing and sell into Tennessee. A wholesaler distributes HDCPs to retailers. A retailer sells HDCPs to the public. A business that performs more than one role needs the license for each role.

Each hemp license application carries a non-refundable $500 application fee. The annual license fee then depends on the type: $1,000 for a retailer, $2,500 for a supplier, and $5,000 for a wholesaler (per warehouse location). Licenses run for one year and renew annually at the same fee, with an added fee for each additional location. A business that performs more than one role pays for each license it needs. Current figures: the TABC fee schedule.

Hemp license applications go through the TABC’s online licensing system, Mockingbird. The TABC’s applicant guides walk through the process for each license type: the Retail Applicant Guide and the Supplier and Wholesaler Applicant Guide. If an event also needs an associated LBD license, that application is submitted through the TABC’s RLPS system.

No. As of January 1, 2026, gas stations are no longer eligible for HDCP retail licenses in Tennessee.

Yes. The license is tied to the role. A business that both wholesales and retails, for example, needs the license for each function it performs.

Wholesaler applications carry extra requirements, including a security plan, an owner affidavit confirming the warehouse space, and proof of financial eligibility: documented access to at least $750,000, which an applicant can show through a bond, a line of credit, or financial statements. The warehouse must be at least 1,000 square feet and dedicated to HDCPs.

The TABC has published a surety bond form on its Public Information and Forms page. A surety bond is one way a wholesaler applicant can show the financial eligibility the rules require.

No. The TABC confirmed that one temporary HDCP retail license can cover the same event held at the same location across multiple non-consecutive dates. That covers one application, one $500 application fee, one $1,000 license fee, and one license for the date range. Apply as early as you can and tell the TABC’s staff up front that the event recurs.

No. The TABC confirmed there is no requirement to “reverse-distribute” product purchased before July 1. Inventory bought on or before June 30, 2026 can stay on the shelf and sell after July 1, even if it did not come through a licensed wholesaler, as long as it is fully compliant with the rules and you can show proof of the purchase date on request. The relief is about how product moves, not about whether it meets the standard. Any product bought after June 30 must come through a TABC-licensed wholesaler.

It depends on age restriction. A temporary event that is open to the public and not restricted by age qualifies for an HDCP retail license only under the provision that also requires an LBD license, and the only LBD licenses available to temporary events are the LBD Festival license and the Special Occasion license. A temporary event that controls the premises and restricts entry to attendees 21 and older can apply under a provision that requires no LBD license at all. For many operators, restricting the event to 21 and up is the cleaner route.

Total THC must remain at or under 0.3%. It is measured as total THC, not delta-9 alone, and the 0.3% figure includes THCa.

Tennessee defines legal hemp by total THC at or under 0.3% on a dry-weight basis, and that figure includes THCa, since THCa converts to delta-9 THC. Flower that exceeds 0.3% total THC is not classified as legal hemp in Tennessee.

Flower can be sold at retail only if it tests at or under 0.3% total THC, the same total-THC standard that governs every HDCP, and flower or plant-part packages are capped at one-half ounce. The TABC has signaled that more guidance on flower, including items like pre-rolls, is expected.

A retail HDCP package can hold no more than 20 servings or 300 milligrams of hemp-derived cannabinoids in the aggregate, and the finished product must still test at or under 0.3% total THC. Hemp flower and plant parts are capped at one-half ounce per package, and an ingestible serving cannot exceed 15 milligrams.

The plus-or-minus 15% labeling tolerance applies only when a product is labeled before the wholesaler takes possession for compliance testing.

Rule 0100-15-.07 is the operative section. It prohibits imagery that appeals to minors, packaging that mimics commercial food, snack, candy, or beverage brands, government-style seals or insignia, and false or unsupported health claims. Every HDCP must carry a conspicuous warning statement in at least six-point font (the minimum set by the 2026 statutory amendment, Public Chapter 698), with the word “WARNING” in bold capital letters, and inhalable products require an additional lung-injury warning.

A single landing page can serve multiple products and batches, but the certificate of analysis for any given batch must be reachable within three navigational steps of that landing page, and no landing page can carry more than 150 links or options. The required information must stay publicly accessible for the longer of 12 months after a product is no longer offered for sale in Tennessee or 90 days past its stated expiration date. A QR code that does not resolve to a valid COA is itself a violation. These requirements come from Public Chapter 698.

Yes. Under the rules, “distribute” includes holding HDCPs for subsequent sale or manufacturing, so storing or warehousing product for later sale requires a license even when storage is the only activity at the location.

The TABC has administrative oversight of HDCPs, including inspections and the assessment of civil penalties. The Department of Revenue enforces the wholesale tax and related provisions and can confiscate noncompliant product. For the criminal offenses in the statute, state and local law enforcement officers have concurrent jurisdiction with the TABC.

For each violation of the chapter or a TABC rule, the statute sets an escalating schedule: $1,000 for a first violation, $2,500 for a second violation within two years of the first, $5,000 for a third violation within two years of the first, and revocation of the license for a fourth violation within two years of the first. The TABC can also require the licensee’s employees to be retrained on top of the civil penalty. The same schedule applies to suppliers, retailers, and wholesalers.

Manufacturing, wholesaling, or selling HDCPs without a valid license is a Class A misdemeanor, and product made, sold, or offered for sale without a license is subject to seizure in the same manner as beer. The age and point-of-sale offenses in the statute, such as selling to someone under 21 or selling without checking proof of age, are also Class A misdemeanors.

Direct-to-consumer shipping and delivery of HDCPs is prohibited, and all retail sales must happen face to face at a licensed retail location. The TABC may levy a civil penalty of $1,000 for a first offense, $5,000 for a second offense, and $10,000 for a third or subsequent offense.

Yes. Noncompliant HDCPs can be confiscated as contraband and are subject to seizure and forfeiture in the same manner as beer. The state treats product made or sold without a license the same way.

Yes. It is an offense to manufacture, cultivate, produce, or sell hemp, hemp plant parts, or any product with a total THC or total theoretical THC content over 0.3% on a dry-weight basis, along with synthetic cannabinoids and THCp. A violation is a Class A misdemeanor.

After June 30, 2026, only TABC-licensed retailers may offer HDC products for sale, and everything offered must be fully compliant with Title 57, Chapter 7 and the rules. A retailer who cannot show that non-wholesaler-sourced product was purchased before July 1, or whose product does not meet the standard, may face a citation or other consequence under the applicable statutes and rules.

Yes. Compliant HDCPs remain available from licensed retailers. What changes is who regulates and licenses those businesses, the TABC, and the standards the products must meet.

Yes. Under Tennessee law, it is an offense for a person under 21 to purchase, possess, or accept an HDCP.

Look for a scannable QR code that links to a valid certificate of analysis and a warning label. Compliant products do not use packaging that mimics candy, snacks, or familiar food and drink brands, and they do not make unsupported health claims. If the QR code does not pull up a valid COA, treat that as a red flag.