Is Kratom Legal in North Carolina? HB 468 and Federal Rules

Kratom is legal in North Carolina. Anyone 18 or older can buy, possess, and use it, and neither mitragynine nor 7-hydroxymitragynine appears on the state’s controlled substances schedules. Selling kratom to someone under 18 is a Class 2 misdemeanor. That has been the rule since December 1, 2016, but it may not be the rule much longer: House Bill 468, introduced in 2025, would raise the minimum age to 21, license retailers, and cap concentrations of the compound known as 7-OH, with most provisions taking effect July 1, 2026, if the bill becomes law.

The Law That Governs Kratom Today

North Carolina has repeatedly considered banning kratom and repeatedly declined. In 2015, Senate Bill 830 would have added mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine to the state’s Schedule I list alongside heroin and LSD.¹ It never passed. In 2023, House Bill 563 tried again, this time proposing to treat kratom on par with marijuana, and it also failed.²

What did pass was House Bill 747 in 2016. That law makes it illegal to sell or distribute kratom to anyone under 18 and makes it an infraction for a minor to purchase or accept a kratom product.³ Selling to a minor is a Class 2 misdemeanor. Beyond that age restriction, the state does not require licensing, testing, labeling, or any specific product standards.

What House Bill 468 Would Change

HB 468 is the most substantial kratom legislation the state has considered. It regulates rather than bans, treating kratom closer to how North Carolina treats alcohol and tobacco. As of its last recorded action on June 24, 2025, the bill was re-referred to the House Rules, Calendar, and Operations Committee and had not become law.⁴ If enacted, most of its provisions take effect July 1, 2026.⁵

Minimum Age Would Rise to 21

The bill raises the purchase, possession, and receipt age from 18 to 21. Retailers would have to verify the age of any customer who looks under 30. Online sellers would have to use age-verification tools or require an adult signature at delivery.⁵

Retailers Would Need a License

Anyone manufacturing, distributing, or selling kratom in the state would need a license from the Alcohol Law Enforcement Division by July 1, 2026, or before starting business, whichever is later. Licenses run one year and must be renewed annually. Applicants must be at least 21, have no felony controlled-substance convictions in the past ten years, consent to ALE inspections, and be current on state taxes.⁵

Product Limits and Prohibited Ingredients

Synthetic kratom alkaloids would be banned outright. The concentration of 7-hydroxymitragynine, often called 7-OH, would be capped at 2% of a product’s total alkaloid content, or 0.4 milligrams on a dry-matter basis.⁵ Concentrated 7-OH products such as shots, gummies, and vapes have drawn the most regulatory scrutiny at both the state and federal levels.² Products would also carry mandatory consumer warnings.

Penalties for Consumers and Retailers

Under HB 468, underage purchase or possession would be a Class 2 misdemeanor for anyone under 21. An adult 21 or older who helps a minor obtain kratom could face a Class 1 misdemeanor.⁵

Retailer penalties escalate over a rolling three-year window:

First violation: up to $500 civil penalty.
Second within three years: up to $750.
Third within three years: up to $1,000 plus a one-year license suspension.
Fourth or more within three years: up to $2,000 plus license revocation.

Manufacturers and distributors face steeper fines on a similar three-year schedule, up to $7,500 for a third violation.⁵

Federal Rules Still Apply

Kratom and its natural alkaloids are not scheduled under the federal Controlled Substances Act. The DEA moved to place mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine on Schedule I in August 2016, then withdrew the notice after public pushback. In July 2025, the FDA and the Department of Health and Human Services recommended that the DEA schedule certain high-concentration or semi-synthetic 7-OH products; no scheduling rule had been finalized as of early 2026.⁶

The FDA treats kratom-containing dietary supplements and bulk dietary ingredients as adulterated under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act because, in the agency’s view, there is inadequate evidence of safety.⁷ The agency has also sent warning letters to companies marketing 7-OH products, stating that 7-OH is not lawful in dietary supplements or conventional foods and that no FDA-approved drugs contain it.⁸ Buying kratom leaf powder for personal use in North Carolina is unlikely to trigger federal action. Retailers making health claims or selling concentrated 7-OH products face real exposure.

Driving, Work, and Travel

Impaired Driving

Legal does not mean risk-free behind the wheel. North Carolina’s impaired driving statute covers any substance that appreciably impairs your physical or mental faculties, not just alcohol or controlled substances. An officer who observes impaired driving and suspects kratom can charge you with DWI. The state still has to prove actual impairment through field sobriety tests, observations, and other behavioral evidence rather than a blood test alone.

Employment

North Carolina is an at-will state, and there is no state law restricting what employers can test for. Standard drug panels do not screen for mitragynine, but specialized panels can detect it. If your employer’s policy prohibits impairing substances broadly or uses expanded testing, a positive result can put your job at risk even though kratom is legal.

Travel

Carrying kratom within North Carolina is legal. For domestic flights, the TSA does not restrict kratom powder in carry-on bags. On international flights arriving in the U.S., powder containers larger than 12 ounces (350 mL) in carry-on luggage may require extra screening and can be confiscated if the issue is not resolved at the checkpoint.⁹ Checked bags avoid the powder issue. If you are traveling to another state, check that state’s law first. Several states and a few municipalities have banned kratom outright, and possession there can bring criminal charges regardless of where the product was purchased.

Buying Kratom in North Carolina

Kratom is sold at smoke shops, vape stores, herbal retailers, some convenience stores and gas stations, and by online vendors that ship to North Carolina addresses. Some cities have kava and kratom bars serving prepared drinks.

Because the state currently requires no testing or labeling, product quality varies widely. Some products contain contaminants, undisclosed additives, or 7-OH concentrations well above what natural leaf provides. Filling that gap is the point of HB 468.

Until state rules exist, the American Kratom Association runs a voluntary Good Manufacturing Practice Standards Program. Vendors who participate undergo an independent third-party audit of their facilities, documentation, and labeling based on federal GMP requirements for dietary supplement manufacturers.¹⁰ Look for vendors who can produce current certificates of analysis from independent labs showing alkaloid content and testing for heavy metals, microbials, and pesticides. A retailer who cannot say where a product was tested or what it contains is a warning sign.

If HB 468 passes, the retail picture shifts by July 1, 2026. Unlicensed sellers would have to stop, and products above the 7-OH limits or containing synthetic alkaloids would come off shelves.⁴ Until then, the 2016 law is what governs you: 18 to buy, no state product standards, and federal rules that apply to sellers more than to personal users.

1
North Carolina General Assembly. North Carolina Code 90-89 – Schedule I Controlled Substances
2
WRAL. NC Lawmakers Seek to Regulate Kratom, Ban Synthetic Versions
3
North Carolina General Assembly. House Bill 747 – Youth Access to Kratom/Study Abuse OTC Subs
4
North Carolina General Assembly. House Bill 468 – Regulate Kratom Products
5
North Carolina General Assembly. House Bill 468 Version 3 – Full Text
6
PTTC Network. Kratom and 7-Hydroxymitragynine Federal and Iowa Legal Status
7
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Import Alert 54-15
8
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Issues Warning Letters to Firms Marketing Products Containing 7-Hydroxymitragynine
9
Transportation Security Administration. What Is the Policy on Powders? Are They Allowed?
10
American Kratom Association. GMP Standards Program