North Dakota
North Dakota's medical cannabis program was established by the Compassionate Care Act in 2016. The state caps manufacturing licenses at two and dispensary locations at eight statewide, with oversight by the Department of Health and Human Services.
- Program
- Medical use only
- Regulator
- North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- Manufacturing licenses
- Capped at 2 statewide
- Dispensary locations
- Capped at 8 statewide
Compliance resources
Official portal links for the North Dakota medical cannabis program.
Regulatory framework
The medical cannabis program in North Dakota was formally established after voters passed the Compassionate Care Act (Statutory Measure 5) in 2016. The state's guidelines, patient registry records, and licensee enforcement are managed by the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Commercial adult-use cannabis cultivation, distribution, and retail sales remain prohibited under state law.
License scopes and market caps
North Dakota maintains a restricted commercial market with statutory caps on the number of active licenses. Two separate license types exist:
- Manufacturing facilities
- Authorized to cultivate, harvest, extract, and process raw medical cannabis into approved consumable formats. The state caps this tier at two active licenses statewide.
- Dispensary facilities
- Authorized to acquire finished, packaged medical cannabis from licensed manufacturers and sell it to qualified patients and registered caregivers. The state restricts the total number of dispensary locations to eight, distributed across distinct geographic zones.
Compliance and traceability
To maintain active licensing, all operators must record and report facility activity into the state's universal tracking system. Required milestones include:
- Batch propagation tracking
- Documenting agricultural distributions from seed, clone, or tissue culture to verify plant inventory counts, waste disposal, and pesticide and chemical application logs.
- Quality assurance testing
- Logging independent, certified third-party laboratory results for full cannabinoid profiles and screening for prohibited microbials, molds, heavy metals, and residual pesticides before any transit can occur.
- Inventory reconciliation
- Completing physical inventory audits on a routine basis to confirm that vault stock matches the state reporting ledger balance.
Technical support for the North Dakota systemLicensees and integrators can open a ticket with our support team.
Open a support ticket