Florida Cannabis Laws: Medical Card, Penalties, and Hemp Products

Florida cannabis laws permit only one legal path to marijuana: a registered medical patient buying from a state-licensed dispensary. Everything else — recreational possession, sharing, growing a plant at home, buying from a friend, carrying a card from another state — is a criminal offense that can range from a misdemeanor to a first-degree felony with mandatory prison time. A 2024 ballot measure to legalize recreational use drew nearly 56 percent support but fell short of the 60 percent supermajority Florida requires to amend its constitution, so the medical-only framework stays in place.

Cannabis sits on Florida’s Schedule I controlled substance list alongside heroin and LSD.¹ That classification drives both the penalties below and the restrictions on what registered patients can do.

Penalties If You Don’t Have a Medical Card

The amount you possess and the form it takes determine the charge.

20 Grams or Less of Plant Material

Possession of 20 grams or less of cannabis flower or leaf is a first-degree misdemeanor.²³⁴ On top of any sentence, the court must direct a six-month driver’s license suspension, though a judge may grant a restricted license for work when compelling circumstances exist.⁵

More Than 20 Grams

Anything over 20 grams of plant material is a third-degree felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine up to $5,000.²³ The same license suspension applies.

Concentrates Are Charged Differently

This is where people get caught out. Florida’s 20-gram misdemeanor threshold applies to plant material only; the statute’s definition of “cannabis” for that threshold specifically excludes resin and any compound or preparation made from resin.² Any amount of hashish, wax, shatter, or THC oil without a medical card is automatically a third-degree felony. One gram of concentrate carries the same classification as a pound of flower.

Sale, Delivery, and Trafficking

Selling or delivering cannabis without authorization is a third-degree felony, and even giving away 20 grams or less without payment is a first-degree misdemeanor.² A sale within 1,000 feet of a school, park, or other protected location is charged more severely.

Possessing more than 25 pounds of cannabis or 300 or more plants is trafficking, a first-degree felony with mandatory minimum sentences the judge cannot shorten:⁶

25 to 2,000 pounds (or 300–2,000 plants): 3-year mandatory minimum and $25,000 fine
2,000 to 10,000 pounds (or 2,000–10,000 plants): 7-year mandatory minimum and $50,000 fine
10,000 pounds or more (or 10,000+ plants): 15-year mandatory minimum and $200,000 fine

The fines are mandatory, not caps.

Who Qualifies for a Medical Marijuana Card

Florida’s medical program, created after voters approved Amendment 2 in November 2016, is run by the Florida Department of Health’s Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU).⁷ You need a diagnosis of at least one qualifying condition:⁸

Cancer
Epilepsy
Glaucoma
HIV/AIDS
Post-traumatic stress disorder
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Crohn’s disease
Parkinson’s disease
Multiple sclerosis
Chronic nonmalignant pain
A terminal condition diagnosed by a physician other than the one issuing the certification

Physicians also have discretion to certify patients whose conditions are comparable in kind or class to those listed. In practice, this can cover severe anxiety, fibromyalgia, or migraines, depending on the certifying physician’s judgment.⁸

Getting Certified and Registered

Your regular doctor cannot do this unless they are specifically registered with the OMMU. A qualified physician must perform a physical exam, review your medical history, and document that the benefits of cannabis treatment outweigh the risks in your situation. Expect to pay $75 to $250 out of pocket for the evaluation; insurance will not cover it.

Once certified, you apply to the OMMU for a Medical Marijuana Use Registry Identification Card. The application takes a photo, proof of Florida residency, and a $75 non-refundable fee. The card lasts one year and must be renewed annually. Without a current card, you have no legal authority to possess cannabis even if your condition still qualifies.

Residency

Only Florida residents qualify. Permanent residents need a Florida driver’s license or state ID. Seasonal residents have to show they spend at least 31 consecutive days a year in the state, with two documents proving a Florida address.⁸ Florida does not honor out-of-state medical cards. If you are visiting from a state where you are a registered patient, you cannot legally buy or possess cannabis here.

What a Patient Can Buy and Possess

Registered patients can purchase smokable flower, vape cartridges, oils, tinctures, edibles, topicals, capsules, and suppositories. Everything must come from a licensed Medical Marijuana Treatment Center and stay in its original packaging.⁸ Home cultivation is prohibited for patients and caregivers alike.

Possession caps run on rolling windows:

Smokable flower: up to 2.5 ounces per 35 days, with no more than 4 ounces on hand at any time.⁸
Non-smokable forms: up to a 70-day supply in any 70-day period, with THC milligram caps that vary by delivery method (for example, up to 24,500 mg for vaporized products and 4,200 mg for edibles).⁹
Edibles: no single product may exceed 200 mg of THC, and each serving is capped at 10 mg.⁸

Every dispensary purchase is logged in the Medical Marijuana Use Registry. If you hit a cap, the system blocks further sales until the window resets. Bring cash: most banks and credit card networks will not touch dispensary transactions because of the federal classification, so Florida dispensaries typically take cash, PIN-debit through cashless ATM systems, or app-based payment platforms.

Where and How You Can Use It

A medical card does not let you use cannabis wherever you want. Use is restricted to private property. Consumption in public places, on school grounds, and on public transportation is illegal even with a valid card. Driving under the influence of cannabis is treated like alcohol-impaired driving. Home cultivation remains off-limits.

Air travel is its own problem. TSA officers are not looking for marijuana, but if they find it during a screening they must refer the matter to local law enforcement, and crossing state lines with cannabis is a federal offense regardless of your Florida patient status or where you are headed.

Caregivers

A patient who cannot visit a dispensary or administer their own medication can designate a caregiver to buy and assist with cannabis. The caregiver must:⁸

Be at least 21 and a Florida resident
Not be a physician or hold a financial interest in a dispensary or testing lab
Complete a department-administered certification course (up to $100) and renew every two years
Pass a Level 2 FDLE and FBI background screening, unless the patient is a close relative
Generally serve only one patient at a time

The caregiver gets their own OMMU card and is bound by the same possession limits and use restrictions as the patient.

Where State Legality Still Collides With Federal Law

A Florida medical card does not shield you from federal consequences, and those collisions matter in a handful of places.

Firearms

Federal law prohibits anyone who uses a controlled substance from possessing a firearm. ATF Form 4473, which you fill out when buying from a licensed dealer, asks whether you are an unlawful user of marijuana and warns that cannabis use remains illegal federally regardless of state law. Saying “no” while holding a medical card risks federal prosecution for a false statement; saying “yes” blocks the sale. The U.S. Supreme Court was hearing arguments in early 2026 on whether that federal firearms restriction is constitutional, but the prohibition remains in effect.

Insurance Won’t Cover It

No private insurer, Medicare, or Medicaid plan pays for medical marijuana, because federal law prevents reimbursement for a Schedule I substance. A narrow 2026 Medicare innovation pilot allows up to $500 per year in hemp-derived CBD products containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC, but it does not reach the cannabis products sold in Florida dispensaries.¹⁰ Every dispensary dollar is out of pocket.

Your Job

Florida law gives medical patients no employment protections. An employer can refuse to hire you or fire you for a positive THC test even if you hold a valid card and only use at home. Legislation has been proposed in the 2026 session to protect public employees, but it is not law. Federal contractors and safety-sensitive roles face additional federal drug-free workplace rules that override any future state protection.

Hemp-Derived Products and Delta-8

The 2018 federal Farm Bill legalized hemp containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC, which produced a market of Delta-8 gummies, vapes, and tinctures that have sat in a Florida gray area. As of 2026, federal legislation advancing through Congress would redefine hemp by total THC (including THCA), which would effectively ban most psychoactive hemp-derived products, and Florida has considered its own restrictions. If you buy these products, assume the ground can shift quickly at both the state and federal level.

1
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 893.03 – Standards and Schedules
2
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 893.13 – Prohibited Acts; Penalties
3
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 775.082 – Penalties; Applicability of Sentencing Structures
4
Florida Senate. Florida Code 775.083 – Fines
5
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 322.055 – Revocation or Suspension of Driver License for Drug Offenses
6
Florida Senate. Florida Code 893.135 – Trafficking; Mandatory Sentences
7
Office of Medical Marijuana Use. Office of Medical Marijuana Use
8
Online Sunshine. Florida Code 381.986 – Medical Use of Marijuana
9
NORML. Florida Medical Marijuana Law
10
Marijuana Moment. Feds Detail Plan to Cover Up to $500 in Hemp CBD and THC Products for Medicare Patients