Cannabis Processing License

Variations of the Processing License

The Micro-Processing Licence

Generally reserved for smaller manufacturers, as it only permits up to 600 kg of dried flower (or the equivalent) to be handled each year. This option is ideal for businesses that do not intend on expanding their market reach in the near future. Keep in mind, micro-processors who also have a micro-cultivation licence are permitted to process more than the 600 kg cap, given that they are processing the cannabis cultivated from their own site

Prerequisites For License

Regardless of which licence you choose, Standard or Micro-Processing, a prerequisite to being licensed is that a production-ready facility must be built prior to submitting a licence application to Health Canada. This requirement was announced in May 2019 and replaced the former two-step review process, which included an extensive assessment of a paper application with feedback from Health Canada, followed by submission of a site evidence package for review. The site evidence package used to be one of the final steps in proving a facility was operationally ready – but now, it is one of the first.

Deciding Between Standard Processing and Micro-Processing

License Overview

Who is A Processing License For?

micro licence health canada

What Can You Do With A Processing License?

What Isn’t Covered Under A Processing License?

Both Standard and Micro-Processing Licenses permit the holder to produce, retain, sell and distribute cannabis – but only within the guidelines that the license’s terms provide for (described above).

    These licenses do not authorize the holder to give the general public any kind of access to the cannabis, or cannabis materials, that they work with. Furthermore, cultivation is not permitted with a Processing licence. For that, you would require a Cultivation (Standard, Micro, Nursery) license.

    Cannabis Processing License Requirements

    marijuana permit

    Cannabis Processing License Requirements

    Additional Standard Processing Requirements

    • Access controls are required around operations areas, and a record must be made of everyone who exits and enters from storage areas.
    • The site perimeter, operations areas, and storage areas are required to be monitored by visual recording devices at all times to detect and record any unauthorized attempts, successful or unsuccessful, to access the site.
    • The site perimeter, operations areas, and storage areas must have an intrusion detection system operating 24/7 to discover any unauthorized attempts to access the site or tamper with the system. It must also be possible to detect unauthorized movement within operations and storage areas.
    • The intrusion detection system is required to be monitored at all times, and the license holder is responsible for determining what measures are appropriate in response to any incidents. In cases of an incident, the holder must retain a document that contains the date and time of the occurrence, how it was responded to, and the date and time of when that response took place.

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    Frequently Asked Questions

    A cannabis processing license is similar to a micro-processing license except there is no limit on the amount of cannabis you can handle year to year. The standard processing license allows you to manufacture, distribute and sell unlimited amounts of cannabis. With this license, you can sell cannabis products to other license holders or to provincial/territorial retailers.

    Micro-processing includes all of the same activities as standard processing, except on a smaller scale. Processing activities included finished product packaging of dried flower, as well as manufacturing and packaging other cannabis products such as edibles, extracts and topicals. Micro-processing allows for processing of up to 600 kg of dried flower (or the equivalent) annually.

    A cannabis micro-processing license is typically used by smaller manufacturers because it only permits up to 600kg of dried cannabis (or the equivalent) to be handled each year. This license is very useful for businesses that aren’t looking to extend their market reach and are okay with those limitations. If you are a micro-cultivator that also has a micro-processing license, you are also permitted to process more than the 600 kg maximum because you are processing the cannabis from your own site.

    In Canada, CBD products can only be sold to adults over the age of 19 through authorized retail stores or a federally-licensed seller of cannabis for medical purposes.  You are required to have a processing license to manufacture any products containing CBD for sale according to Health Canada. 

    A cannabis production facility is any land or building that is used for processing, testing, packaging, producing, storing, or shipping cannabis.

    No, the ACMPR license is for personal use only. This license only allows you to cultivate a limited amount of cannabis at home to treat your medical needs. Cannabis cannot be sold to other individuals once produced.