At least eleven counties in Mississippi have banned kratom through local ordinances, and when city-level bans are added in, more than 30 local jurisdictions across the state restrict or prohibit it. Kratom remains legal under state law elsewhere in Mississippi, but a local ban can make simple possession a misdemeanor the moment you cross a county or city line.
The Eleven Counties with Kratom Bans
The following Mississippi counties have enacted ordinances banning kratom. The bans generally cover sale, distribution, and possession of kratom products within the county:
- Alcorn County
- Calhoun County
- Itawamba County
- Jones County
- Lowndes County
- Monroe County
- Noxubee County
- Prentiss County
- Tippah County
- Tishomingo County
- Union County
Most of these ordinances were adopted between roughly 2017 and 2019, and the bulk of them cluster in the northeastern corner of the state. Several banned counties share borders, which turns a stretch of northeast Mississippi into effectively kratom-free territory.
This list should not be treated as final. Additional counties may have passed bans since those early waves, and state law expressly allows new local bans going forward. If you have any doubt about a specific county, call its board of supervisors before buying or carrying kratom there.
Cities and Towns Have Their Own Bans
Counties are only part of the map. Cities and towns in Mississippi can pass kratom ordinances on their own, independent of the surrounding county. Oxford and Ridgeland are among the municipalities known to have local bans, and many smaller towns have followed. As of early 2025, more than 30 local jurisdictions in total restrict or ban kratom.
The overlap works both ways. A city ban applies inside city limits even if the surrounding county has no ban. A county ban always applies in unincorporated areas, and depending on how the ordinance is written it may or may not reach incorporated municipalities inside the county. Before you buy or carry kratom anywhere in Mississippi, check both the county and the city.
What a Local Ban Actually Prohibits
Each ordinance sets its own scope, but Mississippi kratom bans typically prohibit the purchase, sale, distribution, use, and possession of kratom products. The possession piece is what catches most people off guard. You don’t have to be selling kratom to violate a local ban. Having it on you, or in your car, inside a banned jurisdiction is enough.
Penalties come from the local ordinance, not from state law, so fine amounts and any jail exposure vary from one place to the next. Violations are usually charged as misdemeanors under the local code, but the exact consequences depend on the specific ordinance you’re charged under.
Why the List Can Keep Growing
Mississippi’s 2025 kratom law, House Bill 1077, explicitly preserves every local kratom ban or restriction that was in place before July 1, 2025, and it confirms that cities and counties can adopt new bans or restrictions after that date.1Mississippi Legislature. House Bill 1077 – 2025 Regular Session A competing bill introduced the same session, HB 1553, would have blocked local governments from adding restrictions beyond the state baseline. It did not become law. The practical result is a patchwork that remains fully enforceable and can expand at any time.
Driving Through Mississippi with Kratom
The patchwork creates a real problem for anyone traveling with kratom. Because many county ordinances prohibit possession, keeping kratom in your car as you pass through a banned county can technically violate that county’s law. The cluster in northeast Mississippi is the hardest to avoid, since there is no clean route around it.
State law does not carve out a safe harbor for travelers passing through. If you drive across the state with kratom, you carry the risk of a local possession charge in any banned jurisdiction you cross. The safest approach is to leave the product out of banned counties entirely. If that isn’t practical, know your route and check each county along it.
Air travel is a slightly different picture. TSA doesn’t specifically prohibit kratom and treats it like any other powder, with no domestic quantity limit for carry-on and no restriction on checked luggage.2Transportation Security Administration. What Is the Policy on Powders? Are They Allowed? Screening only governs what gets on the plane, though. If you land at an airport inside a municipality with a local ban, that local law applies the moment you leave the secure area.
Where Kratom Is Still Legal in Mississippi
Outside the banned counties and cities, kratom is legal to buy and use in Mississippi, subject to statewide rules that took effect July 1, 2025. HB 1077 restricts sales to adults 21 and older and bans two categories of product: any product containing synthesized kratom alkaloids, and any product where 7-hydroxymitragynine exceeds 1% of total alkaloid content or 0.5 milligrams per container.1Mississippi Legislature. House Bill 1077 – 2025 Regular Session A separate law, HB 1896, adds a 25% excise tax on the manufacturer’s list price, and products must carry a label with the manufacturer’s name, address, and phone number.3Mississippi Department of Revenue. Notice 72-25-12 Updated Notice Regarding Kratom Products
None of that changes the county-level picture. Statewide legality does not override a local ban, and a legally purchased product becomes contraband the moment it enters a jurisdiction that has banned it.