Kratom has been illegal in Massachusetts since August 28, 2026. It did not get there through the Legislature. The Commissioner of Public Health put it on Schedule I by order, at the Governor’s direction, using an emergency power that most people did not know the state had. The order lasts up to a year, it reaches possession as well as sale, and cities and towns are already using it to pull products off shelves.
Here is what the order does, what the penalties are, and what remains unsettled.
What kratom is
Kratom is a Southeast Asian plant whose leaves contain mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, compounds that act on opioid receptors. It has been sold for years in smoke shops, gas stations and convenience stores as powder, capsules, extracts and drinks, marketed for energy, pain and opioid withdrawal. The federal government has never scheduled it. Concentrated 7-hydroxymitragynine products, sold as “7-OH,” are the newer and stronger end of the market, and they are what pushed several states to act in 2025 and 2026.
What the order says
On August 13, 2026, Department of Public Health Commissioner Robbie Goldstein signed an order designating kratom a Schedule I controlled substance under chapter 94C, section 2A. The order was issued at the direction of Governor Maura Healey and cites the widespread sale of unregulated products in retail stores. After the statute’s 14-day notice period it took effect on August 28. It can remain in effect for up to one year.
Section 2A allows the commissioner to place a substance in Schedule I temporarily on five findings, including that scheduling is “necessary to avoid an imminent hazard to the public safety” and necessary “for the preservation of the public health, safety or general welfare,” and that the substance is not already scheduled or exempted. Before declaring an imminent hazard the commissioner must consider “the substance’s actual or relative potential for abuse and its history and current patterns of abuse.” The order is an emergency regulation, not a statute. Making the ban permanent requires the Legislature or a formal rulemaking.
What is now illegal
As of August 28, the possession, distribution and sale of kratom in Massachusetts are prohibited. That includes personal possession. A consumer holding a bag of powder bought lawfully on August 27 was in possession of a controlled substance on August 28.
The penalties are those in chapter 94C, section 34, which apply to controlled substances generally. Which tier of that section applies to a substance placed on Schedule I by emergency order is a question the order does not settle and no court has answered. For reference, first-offense possession of a Class A substance carries up to two years in a house of correction or a $2,000 fine. No kratom possession prosecution has been reported, and enforcement to date has been aimed at retailers, not customers.
How it is being enforced
The order authorizes municipalities to act against licensed businesses that keep selling. Local boards of health and inspectional services departments may issue cease-and-desist notices, citations, and suspensions of municipal licenses and permits. That is the enforcement tool actually in use. Towns from Shrewsbury to Norwood have posted notices to retailers, and some, like Hanover, had adopted their own board-of-health bans before the state acted. Reporting since the effective date describes quiet compliance: shops clearing shelves rather than testing the order.
Anyone who bought kratom from a Massachusetts retailer after August 28 was sold a controlled substance. Anyone still selling it is exposed to both criminal liability and the loss of a tobacco, food or business license, which for a convenience store is the sanction that matters.
What is unsettled
The legislative track. Bills to regulate rather than ban kratom, including a Kratom Consumer Protection Act model that would set age limits and product standards, have been filed in past sessions and are pending again. The emergency order runs out in August 2027 unless renewed or replaced. What the Legislature does before then decides whether Massachusetts stays a ban state or becomes a regulated one.
A challenge to the order. Section 2A orders can be challenged on the findings. The kratom industry has litigated scheduling in other states. Nothing has been filed here that we can find.
Treatment and possession. People who used kratom to manage opioid withdrawal or chronic pain lost access on two weeks’ notice. Physicians cannot prescribe a Schedule I substance. The state’s guidance directs them to substance use treatment resources, and anyone in that position should talk to a clinician about alternatives before running out.
What to do
- If you use it: possession is illegal. Dispose of it. If you used it for withdrawal or pain, contact a clinician; the Massachusetts Substance Use Helpline is 800-327-5050.
- If you sell it: stop. The exposure is not only a criminal charge but the license your business runs on.
- If you were cited: board-of-health citations and license suspensions have their own appeal procedures and deadlines, usually short. Get a lawyer before the deadline, not after.
Is kratom legal in Massachusetts?
No. Since August 28, 2026, kratom is a Schedule I controlled substance under an emergency order of the Commissioner of Public Health. Possession, sale and distribution are prohibited.
How long does the ban last?
An order under G.L. c. 94C, § 2A may remain in effect for up to one year. This one expires in August 2027 unless renewed or replaced by a statute or permanent regulation.
Is possession a crime, or only selling?
Both. The order prohibits possession as well as distribution and sale. Enforcement so far has targeted retailers through cease-and-desist notices and license actions rather than consumers.
What is 7-OH?
Concentrated 7-hydroxymitragynine, one of kratom’s active compounds, sold as tablets and shots. It falls within the order.
Can a doctor prescribe kratom?
No. Schedule I substances have no accepted medical use under Massachusetts law and cannot be prescribed.
Did the Legislature vote on this?
No. The ban is an emergency administrative order. Bills to regulate kratom instead are pending on Beacon Hill.
Order details from the Department of Public Health’s announcement as republished by the Towns of Shrewsbury and Hanover and reported by WWLP and Hoodline, August and September 2026. Statutory text of G.L. c. 94C, §§ 2A and 34 read at malegislature.gov. General information about Massachusetts law, not legal or medical advice.