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Dash/Process

Regulated products

Standard program

CBD and hemp payment processing

Hemp-derived CBD is legal under the 2018 Farm Bill and still declined by most mainstream processors. Our acquiring partners write it, against lab documentation and claims language rather than the category label.

Commonly assigned MCC

5499 · 5912 · 5993

The category actually assigned is set at boarding and can differ from these.

Reviewed

The short version

The 2018 Farm Bill removed hemp containing under 0.3% delta-9 THC from the Controlled Substances Act. That changed the law and did not change most banks' appetite. The card brands permit CBD; individual acquiring banks decide whether to write the policy, and the list of banks that have is short and moves.

The practical consequence is that a CBD merchant's account is only as stable as its acquiring bank's current position. Accounts close not because the merchant did anything wrong but because a bank exited the vertical. We work with acquiring programs that write CBD as stated policy, and structure accounts so a policy change upstream is a routing change rather than an outage.

What is actually being priced

What underwriting is looking at.

Policy risk sits above you

An acquiring bank can exit CBD on notice regardless of your processing history. This is the dominant risk in the vertical, and a clean chargeback ratio does not protect you from it.

Product claims are underwritten

Health claims on a product page can fail underwriting on their own. FDA warning letters in this category are public and acquirers read them.

Lab documentation is mandatory

Certificates of analysis showing under 0.3% delta-9 THC per batch are a condition of most CBD policies, not a nice-to-have.

What their lists say

Stripe, Square and PayPal on cbd & hemp.

Their own published policies, quoted verbatim and dated, next to where the category stands with our acquiring partners.

Stripe

Restricted · approval required

“CBD products containing only negligible amounts of THC, per local limits”

CBD edibles and products above the local THC limit are listed as prohibited.

Square

Restricted · approval required

“Hemp and hemp-derived CBD products that have less than 0.3% THC in all states excluding Idaho and South Dakota.”

By application to Square's CBD program, not under the Payment Terms. No hemp flower; items cannot make health claims.

Square Community, official answer · 2019-10-03

PayPal

Not listed

Not named. The policy prohibits 'controlled substances or other products that present a risk to consumer safety'.

Dash Process

Standard program

Written by our acquiring partner against lab documentation and claims language, inside a program that names the category.

What we ask for
All twenty categories, with sources

In the product

What your application looks like from your side.

The same five stages we publish on the site, a named contact, and the document list for cbd & hemp in one place — received, requested, or not needed.

How it works
Meridian Botanicals/Application
Sandbox
  1. Apply
  2. Underwriting
  3. Approve
  4. Integrate
  5. Live

Underwriting in progress

Acquiring review · CBD and hemp program · MCC 5499

In review

Documents · 3 of 4 received

  • Certificates of analysis for the products you sellReceived
  • Supplier agreements or a documented supply chainReceived
  • Live product pages, including any claims languageReceived
  • Three to six months of processing statements if you have themRequested
Illustrative · figures are fictional, not a quote

What we put in place

  • An acquiring program that writes CBD as a stated category
  • A second, separately banked MID so one bank exit does not stop your revenue
  • Compliance review of product pages and claims before submission
  • COA and supply-chain documents handled as part of the file

What underwriting will ask you for

Assemble these before you apply anywhere. The list does not get shorter by waiting, and having it ready is the single biggest thing you control about how long this takes.

  • Certificates of analysis for the products you sell
  • Supplier agreements or a documented supply chain
  • Live product pages, including any claims language
  • Three to six months of processing statements if you have them
Why each document is on the list

Questions

About cbd & hemp.

A third-party lab report for a specific batch showing cannabinoid content, including delta-9 THC under 0.3%, and usually contaminants. We need a current one per product line, from an accredited lab, matching the product pages you sell from. A COA for a different batch or an in-house test does not settle the question underwriting is asking.

On this account

What an account in this vertical usually runs on.

Next

Vape, e-cigarettes and tobacco

Tell us about your cbd & hemp business.

We will tell you which of our acquiring partners writes it and what your file needs before it goes anywhere.

Get approvedAsk a questionor call (347) 594-9686