High-risk processing · CBD stores
Hemp products are legal at the federal level within strict limits, and those limits are about to tighten. Processors are reviewing every CBD file with that in mind.
✓ Matched to processors that approve your category. Rates are quoted to your business.
Short answer: Apply with a processor that approves hemp-derived CBD. Underwriting usually asks for certificates of analysis from accredited labs showing hemp-derived products within the legal THC limit, product labels and claims, supplier information and statements. Health claims on labels or websites are a common reason accounts are declined or closed.
Key facts
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The 2018 Farm Bill made hemp federally legal if it contains no more than 0.3% delta-9 THC by dry weight. That opened the door to CBD stores, but it also created a market for intoxicating hemp products such as delta-8 and THCA flower. In November 2025 Congress changed the definition: hemp will be measured by total THC, including THCA, and finished products will be capped at a tiny combined amount of THC and similar cannabinoids per container. Synthetic cannabinoids are excluded.
As of October 2026, the restrictions on natural hemp products are scheduled to take effect on December 11, 2026, after a short delay, and restrictions on synthetic products apply from November 12, 2026. Non-intoxicating CBD products are the category most likely to keep processing smoothly. Stores whose sales depend on intoxicating hemp should expect processors to ask hard questions now.
Merchant Fund Express works with processors that approve CBD and hemp retailers. We will tell you plainly which parts of your product mix a processor can accept.
The hemp definition change means some products legal today may not be legal after the effective date. Processors cannot risk handling sales of products that become controlled substances.
A product's legal status depends on its THC content, so lab results matter more here than in almost any other retail category.
FDA has not approved CBD as a dietary supplement or food additive, and it warns sellers against disease and treatment claims. Claims on your site are reviewed in underwriting.
Many CBD brands sell online with auto-renew, which drives disputes if billing is not crystal clear.
Underwriters read your website the way a regulator would. Statements that a product treats, cures or prevents a disease, or comparisons to prescription drugs, are a common reason CBD applications are declined. Describe what is in the product, how it was tested and how to use it, and leave medical claims out.
Keep your COAs one click away from every product page and on file at the register. It is the fastest way to answer a processor's questions and a customer's.
Call (305) 384-8391. Tell us what you sell, how you sell it (counter, online, delivery) and roughly how much card volume you run. If you already process, have a recent statement nearby for a free review.
We work with processors that knowingly accept this business type instead of ones that close accounts once they notice what you sell. Your equipment is matched to the processor that approves you.
We tell you exactly which licenses, IDs and statements the application needs, so underwriting is not a slow back-and-forth.
Once approved, your terminal or gateway is set up and tested, and you keep one number to call when something needs attention.
Merchant Fund Express also arranges business funding, and we would rather be straight with you about it on this page than on the phone. Funding eligibility is set by industry code (NAICS), and cannabis-related businesses are on the restricted list for the bank-style tier. Hemp and CBD retail is reviewed by its own code and product mix, and the revenue-based tier considers some restricted categories case by case.
The eligible industries page explains how codes are read, and funding requirements lists the revenue, time-in-business and bank-activity thresholds. If funding is not a fit, processing still is: the two are separate products, and we will tell you which one we can help with on the first call.
Rules summarized as of October 2026. Laws, card-network rules and processor policies change; this page is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current requirements for your state and city before you rely on them.
Hemp-derived CBD within the federal THC limit is federally legal, but state rules vary and FDA restricts health claims and use in food. The federal hemp definition is tightening, with natural-hemp restrictions scheduled for December 11, 2026.
Very likely. Those are the products most affected by the 2025 hemp definition change, and processors review them closely or decline them.
A certificate of analysis is an independent lab report showing what a product contains, including THC. It is how a processor confirms a product is legal hemp.
Yes, with clear billing, honest product descriptions, COAs on the site and attention to the rules of each state you ship to.
No one can honestly guarantee approval. We match you to processors that accept the category and tell you up front what they will need.
Call Merchant Fund Express. We match you to a processor that approves your category, prepare the application with you and stay reachable after you go live.
