Ohio cannabis rules for visitors

Adults 21 and older may possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana plant material and 15 grams of extract, counting what they bought and anything homegrown together (R.C. 3796.221(B)). The protection covers marijuana obtained from an Ohio-licensed dispensary or grown at home under the law, so cannabis bought in another state is not covered. At the register, the Division of Cannabis Control applies a daily cap of 2.5 ounces of plant material, 15,000 milligrams of total THC across all other products and 6 seeds, clones or live plants (OAC 1301:18-8-08). The possession section sets no separate limit for edibles or drinks. These rules have applied since March 20, 2026, when Senate Bill 56 repealed the voter-passed Chapter 3780, including the original possession section, R.C. 3780.36, and moved adult use into Chapter 3796.

Visitors 21 and older can buy at any licensed dispensary with a current, valid, government-issued photo ID showing date of birth; Ohio sets no residency rule for adult-use buyers (R.C. 3796.01, 3796.20). Smoking or vaping is legal only on privately owned property used mainly as a home or farm, so not in hotels, cars, boats, parks, bars or on the street, and no one may consume any form in an enclosed public place (R.C. 3796.04, 3796.06). There are no lounges and no adult-use delivery. In a car, purchases must stay in the original unopened package or in the trunk (R.C. 3796.062). Flights from CLE and CMH, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, the Perry's Victory memorial and every state line fall under federal law, where adult-use marijuana remains Schedule I.

The regulator is the Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Cannabis Control. Check any shop's license on the state license lookup before you buy.

Adults 21 and older may possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana plant material and 15 grams of extract, and the limit is cumulative: store-bought and homegrown marijuana count together (R.C. 3796.221(B)). Seeds, live plants and clones being grown legally at home do not count toward the plant-material figure. The law shields possession of adult-use marijuana obtained from a licensed dispensary, and of homegrown marijuana kept under the home-grow rules, from arrest and prosecution (R.C. 3796.221(D), 3796.04(D)). Cannabis bought in another state is neither, so it gets no protection in Ohio.

The register limit works per day. A licensed dispensary may not knowingly sell one adult-use consumer more than the legal possession amount in the same day (R.C. 3796.20(C)(2)). The Division of Cannabis Control applies that as up to 2.5 ounces of flower, shake or raw single-serving units, plus up to 15,000 milligrams of total THC across all other products, plus up to 6 seeds, clones or live plants, and it uses the same daily caps for medical patients. The statute counts extract by weight, 15 grams, and that is the figure that defines the possession offense.

The numbers are not new, but their legal home is. Ohio voters approved Issue 2 on November 7, 2023, and its Chapter 3780 took effect December 7, 2023; its R.C. 3780.36 capped possession at 2.5 ounces of cannabis in any form except extract and 15 grams of extract, while SB 56's R.C. 3796.221 caps 2.5 ounces of plant material and 15 grams of extract. Senate Bill 56, signed December 19, 2025, repealed all of Chapter 3780 effective March 20, 2026 and moved adult use into Chapter 3796, the former medical marijuana chapter, where the possession limit now sits in R.C. 3796.221. Some official pages, including DCC's FAQ answer on possession and the Department of Taxation's tax page, still cite the initiated statute.

Sharing has narrow terms. One adult may give another adult up to 2.5 ounces of plant material and 15 grams of extract in a day only if nothing is paid and the hand-off happens on privately owned residential or agricultural property (R.C. 3796.221(A)(4)); any other transfer by someone who is not a licensee is charged as trafficking (R.C. 3796.99(F)). Product rules cap what each package holds: under the version of DCC's package rule effective October 5, 2026, adult-use edibles may carry no more than 10 milligrams of THC per serving and 100 milligrams per package, and no product may exceed 90 percent THC (OAC 1301:18-4-06).

You must be 21 or older. Ohio defines an adult-use consumer simply as an individual who is at least 21 (R.C. 3796.01(A)(8)), and a dispensary may sell adult-use marijuana only to a consumer who presents a current, valid, government-issued identification card proving that age (R.C. 3796.20(C)(1)). There is no residency requirement for adult-use buyers, so visitors from other states and countries shop under the same 2.5-ounce and 15-gram limits as Ohioans. Registered medical patients under 21 may enter only with valid patient identification, and patients under 18 must come with their registered caregiver (OAC 1301:18-8-02).

The ID check happens more than once. DCC's dispensary rule requires every member of the public to show valid, government-issued photographic identification containing a date of birth before entering the retail area, before any sale and before any purchase is handed over, and the employee must confirm that the card matches the person and the order (OAC 1301:18-8-02). The statute requires a current, valid, government-issued identification card proving the buyer is 21 (R.C. 3796.20(C)(1)), and DCC's rule asks for valid, government-issued photographic identification with a date of birth (OAC 1301:18-8-02); neither lists accepted documents, so whether a foreign passport is accepted is the store's call.

Lying about age is a crime. Giving false information about name or age to buy adult-use marijuana is a first-degree misdemeanor, and presenting a fake or altered ID or driver's license to a dispensary is a first-degree misdemeanor with a fine of $250 to $1,000; repeat offenders face fines of $500 to $1,000 and possible license suspension (R.C. 3796.99(G)). For someone under 21, asking another person to buy is a fourth-degree misdemeanor on a first offense (R.C. 3796.99(H)). No one under 21 may knowingly purchase, use or possess adult-use or homegrown marijuana (R.C. 3796.06(G)).

Adults who supply minors face more. Knowingly giving, selling or distributing adult-use or homegrown marijuana to anyone under 21 is a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, and a second offense is a fifth-degree felony; a licensee convicted of it loses its license immediately (R.C. 3796.06(F), 3796.99(C), 2929.24, 2929.28). DCC says licensees that sell to youth face sanctions up to license revocation and criminal prosecution, and that its rules require ID checks on entry and again at the point of sale.

On private residential or farm property, and almost nowhere else. Ohio bars smoking, combusting or vaporizing adult-use or homegrown marijuana anywhere other than privately owned real property used primarily for residential or agricultural purposes, including its dwellings and outbuildings (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)). Even there, smoking is barred in a type A or type B family child care home, a halfway house or similar facility, and a rental whose agreement prohibits it (R.C. 3796.06(C)(3)). Smoking or vaping outside private residential or farm property, or in a child care home, halfway house, public place or place of employment, is a minor misdemeanor with a fine of up to $150 (R.C. 3796.99(B), 2929.28); R.C. 3796.99 sets no penalty for smoking in a rental whose agreement bans it, which is a lease matter.

A second rule covers every form, edibles and drinks included. No person may knowingly consume adult-use or homegrown marijuana in a public place, and no one operating a public place may knowingly permit it (R.C. 3796.04(C)). Ohio borrows the Smoke-Free Workplace Act's definition: a public place is an enclosed area to which the public is invited or in which it is permitted, and that is not a private residence (R.C. 3796.01(A)(15), 3794.01(B)). That reaches bars, restaurants, stores, lobbies and arenas. DCC's FAQ answers the question of public use with a plain no.

The law also bars smoking cannabis in any public place or place of employment as the Smoke-Free Workplace Act defines them (R.C. 3796.06(C)(3)(d)). A place of employment is any enclosed area employees use for work, including offices, hallways, restrooms and vehicles, whether or not workers are present at the time (R.C. 3794.01(C)), and smoking under that Act includes heated plant products and electronic smoking devices (R.C. 3794.01(A)). The Act's exemptions for designated hotel rooms, older tobacco stores and private clubs are tobacco rules; the cannabis statute borrows only its definitions (R.C. 3794.03).

Outdoors, the smoking ban does the work. Sidewalks in Columbus's Short North, the Flats in Cleveland and Over-the-Rhine in Cincinnati are not residential property, so lighting up or vaping there is illegal. The consumption ban is written for enclosed public areas, and whether a city also bans eating an edible on the street depends on local ordinances, which we could not read for Columbus, Cleveland or Cincinnati for this guide. The law requires edibles to stay in their original packaging whenever they are not actively in use (R.C. 3796.06(H)).

Not by smoking or vaping it, on our reading of the law. Ohio allows smoking and vaporizing adult-use marijuana only on privately owned real property used primarily for residential or agricultural purposes, and the statute names no exception for hotels, motels or inns (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)). It separately bars smoking marijuana in any place of employment as the Smoke-Free Workplace Act defines it: any enclosed area that employees use for work, without regard to the time of day or whether employees are present (R.C. 3796.06(C)(3)(d), 3794.01(C)). Ohio law does not mention hotel rooms and no agency page addresses them, so this is our reading of the statute rather than a stated rule.

Designated smoking rooms do not change that. The Smoke-Free Workplace Act lets hotels, motels and other lodging facilities designate up to 20 percent of their sleeping rooms as smoking rooms (R.C. 3794.03(B)), but the cannabis statute borrows only the Act's definitions of public place and place of employment, not its exemptions, so a room set aside for smoking under that Act is still not a place where the cannabis law allows smoking. A violation of the smoking rule is a minor misdemeanor with a fine of up to $150 (R.C. 3796.99(B), 2929.28), and the hotel can enforce its own house rules as well.

Edibles and drinks are a different question. The consumption ban applies to public places, which the law defines as enclosed areas the public is invited into, such as lobbies, restaurants and hotel bars (R.C. 3796.04(C)(2), 3794.01(B)). A guest room rented to you is not open to the public in that sense, so state law does not clearly bar eating an edible there, but the hotel may prohibit cannabis as a condition of your stay. The law requires edibles to stay in their original packaging when not in use (R.C. 3796.06(H)), and common areas are public places.

A privately owned house rented through a vacation listing sits closer to the line the statute draws, because the smoking rule turns on property used primarily for residential purposes and separately bars smoking in a residential premises whose rental agreement prohibits it (R.C. 3796.06(C)). The law does not say how a short-term rental is classified, and the rental agreement decides whether smoking is barred. Delivery to a room is not an option either: Ohio authorizes delivery of medical marijuana only, to registered patients and caregivers (R.C. 3796.20(A)(1)(e)).

No. Ohio law creates no lounge or on-site consumption license, and its rules leave no room for one: smoking and vaping are confined to privately owned residential or agricultural property (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)), consuming any form in an enclosed public place is barred, and no person operating a public place may knowingly permit it (R.C. 3796.04(C)). The rewritten Chapter 3796 contains no provision for cannabis cafes, social clubs or tasting rooms, and we found no DCC page describing a licensed lounge anywhere in Ohio as of October 16, 2026.

Dispensaries cannot fill the gap. A dispensary's sales floor is an enclosed area open to the public, so the consumption ban applies there, and DCC's operating rule says that unless otherwise authorized a dispensary may distribute cannabis, paraphernalia and other inventory only at its licensed premises, with the sales counter, curbside pickup and drive-up windows as the approved channels (OAC 1301:18-8-02). DCC adds that a cannabis facility may not be within 500 feet of a school, church, public library, public playground or public park (R.C. 3796.30, as quoted by DCC).

Private clubs are not a workaround either. The smoking rule turns on property used primarily for residential or agricultural purposes, not on membership, and the Smoke-Free Workplace Act's private club exemption is a tobacco rule that the cannabis statute does not borrow (R.C. 3796.06(C), 3794.03(G)). An event space, bar patio or hotel ballroom is commercial property where smoking cannabis is illegal, and any enclosed part of it open to guests is a public place, so a host who allows use there risks charges under R.C. 3796.04(C)(3). For visitors, a private home where the owner allows it is the legal option.

No one may smoke or vape cannabis in a car in Ohio, driver or passenger, because a vehicle is not residential or agricultural property (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)). SB 56 set the penalties: a driver who does it is handled under the OVI and physical-control statutes, and a passenger who does it while the driver is operating or in physical control of the vehicle commits a third-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine (R.C. 3796.99(A), 2929.24, 2929.28). A taxi or rideshare is also a place of employment under the Smoke-Free Workplace Act, which lists vehicles (R.C. 3794.01(C)).

Carrying it has its own rule since March 20, 2026. Adult-use or medical marijuana may ride in a motor vehicle only in its original, unopened packaging or, once opened, in the trunk or, in a vehicle without one, behind the last upright seat or in another area not normally occupied by the driver or passengers and not easily accessible by the driver (R.C. 3796.062(B)). Homegrown marijuana always goes in the trunk or that equivalent space (R.C. 3796.062(C)). Each violation is a minor misdemeanor (R.C. 3796.99(I)), and opened paraphernalia must follow the same rule or it is charged as illegal possession of marihuana drug paraphernalia (R.C. 3796.062(D), 3796.99(J), 2925.141).

The same section bars transporting any marijuana other than adult-use, medical or homegrown marijuana in a motor vehicle (R.C. 3796.062(A)). Adult-use marijuana is defined by reference to Ohio's own chapter, and possession is protected only for marijuana obtained from a licensed dispensary or grown at home under the rules (R.C. 3796.01(A)(9), 3796.221). A bag bought in Michigan or a gift of unknown origin therefore has no protection in the car, and DCC's FAQ says federal and state law prohibit traveling across state lines with cannabis.

Driving impaired is an OVI. Ohio also sets per se levels: 2 nanograms of marihuana per milliliter of whole blood, serum or plasma, or 10 nanograms per milliliter of urine, plus separate thresholds for marihuana metabolite (R.C. 4511.19(A)(1)(j)). A first OVI is a first-degree misdemeanor with a mandatory three consecutive days in jail or a three-day driver intervention program, a fine of $565 to $1,075 and a license suspension of one to three years (R.C. 4511.19(G)). The adult-use statute gives no one a right to drive under the influence (R.C. 3796.221(E)).

Not legally. Cleveland Hopkins (CLE), owned and operated by the City of Cleveland, and John Glenn Columbus International (CMH), run by the Columbus Regional Airport Authority, have enclosed terminals open to the public, which makes them public places where any consumption is barred (R.C. 3796.04(C), 3794.01(B)), and smoking or vaping is barred everywhere outside private residential or farm property (R.C. 3796.06). We found nothing about cannabis rules or disposal on either airport's FAQ or security pages. Cincinnati's main airport, CVG, describes itself as based in Kentucky, so driving there from Ohio crosses a state line.

The flight is a federal matter. TSA says its officers do not search for illegal drugs, but if any illegal substance is discovered during screening, TSA will refer the matter to a law enforcement officer, and the final decision on any item rests with the TSA officer. The FAA's 2022 compliance letter, internal guidance for FAA staff, says the cultivation, storage or distribution of marijuana is prohibited on federally obligated airport property regardless of state law; it predates the April 2026 DEA rule that moved state-licensed medical marijuana to Schedule III. Federal simple possession carries up to a year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine for a first offense (21 U.S.C. 844).

Every land border is a problem, in both directions. DCC's FAQ says federal and state law prohibit traveling across state lines with cannabis, and Ohio protects only marijuana obtained from an Ohio-licensed dispensary or grown at home (R.C. 3796.221). Michigan lets adults possess and transport 2.5 ounces, no more than 15 grams of it as concentrate (MCL 333.27955), but Ohio's possession protection covers only marijuana obtained from an Ohio-licensed dispensary or grown at home (R.C. 3796.221(A), 3796.04), so a Michigan purchase has no protection in Ohio. R.C. 3796.062(A) separately bars transporting marijuana other than adult-use, medical or homegrown marijuana in a vehicle, a minor misdemeanor (R.C. 3796.99(I)); R.C. 3796.01(A)(9) defines adult-use marijuana as marijuana possessed by an adult 'in accordance with this chapter', and we read Michigan cannabis as outside that definition.

Ohio's other neighbors offer no legal route either. In Indiana, possessing marijuana is a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days and a $1,000 fine, and a Level 6 felony for someone with a prior drug conviction who has at least 30 grams (Ind. Code 35-48-4-11, 35-50-3-3). West Virginia treats possession as a misdemeanor carrying 90 days to six months in jail or a fine of up to $1,000, though a first offense involving less than 15 grams must be disposed of under section 60A-4-407 (W. Va. Code 60A-4-401). Pennsylvania's Department of Health describes only a medical program limited to Pennsylvania residents. Kentucky's statutes could not be read for this guide.

No. Cuyahoga Valley National Park, a short distance from Cleveland and Akron, and Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial at Put-in-Bay on South Bass Island are National Park Service units; Cuyahoga Valley's laws page says rangers there enforce Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations and Titles 16, 18 and 21 of the U.S. Code. Park regulations prohibit possessing a controlled substance unless it was obtained from a practitioner or is otherwise allowed by Federal or State law (36 CFR 2.35(b)(2)), and the park pages read for this guide state no marijuana rule. The answer rests on federal law: adult-use marijuana remains Schedule I, and simple possession carries up to a year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine for a first offense (21 U.S.C. 844).

State legalization does not reach federal ground. A Drug Enforcement Administration final rule effective April 28, 2026 moved FDA-approved marijuana products, and marijuana subject to a state-issued medical license, into Schedule III, while stating that marijuana outside those categories remains a Schedule I controlled substance. Ohio adult-use purchases fall in that second group. DEA's separate rescheduling hearing ran from June 29 to July 15, 2026, and on September 29, 2026 the Chief Administrative Law Judge stayed the case pending a motion; no final rule has rescheduled adult-use marijuana.

The islands mix federal, state and private ground. Perry's Victory, a Doric column rising 352 feet over Lake Erie, stands 5 miles from the U.S. and Canada border, the Park Service says, and its compendium lists park rules under 36 CFR 2.35. South Bass Island State Park, a few miles from Put-in-Bay, and Kelleys Island State Park are state land where smoking or vaping cannabis is barred because neither is private residential property (R.C. 3796.06(C)(2)). Anyone boating to the islands is covered by Ohio's watercraft OVI law, including its marihuana thresholds (R.C. 1547.11).

Tribal land is not covered in detail. We found no tribal government or Interior Department page describing tribal trust land in Ohio, so this guide makes no tribal-land statement beyond the federal law that applies everywhere (21 U.S.C. 844). Federal law, under which adult-use marijuana remains in Schedule I, also governs other federal property in Ohio, from federal buildings to military installations, and Canada's border agency says it is illegal to take cannabis across the Canadian border in either direction, a point for boaters on Lake Erie.

Not as an adult-use customer. Ohio's statute lets a licensed dispensary provide delivery of medical marijuana under DCC rules, and SB 56 directs DCC to set standards for delivery to registered medical patients and caregivers; nothing comparable is written for adult-use sales (R.C. 3796.20(A)(1)(e), 3796.03). DCC's operating rule says that unless otherwise authorized, a dispensary may distribute cannabis, paraphernalia and other inventory only at its licensed premises (OAC 1301:18-8-02). An app or website offering to bring cannabis to a hotel or a house is not making a licensed Ohio delivery.

Ordering ahead is allowed. A dispensary may accept orders and payment online and may use self-serve ordering kiosks inside the store, but a registered employee must check the buyer's valid, government-issued photo ID, confirm that it matches the person and the order, and only then hand over the purchase (OAC 1301:18-8-02). SB 56 also tells DCC to set standards for online and mobile ordering of both adult-use and medical marijuana (R.C. 3796.03). An online order counts against the same daily cap as any other sale (R.C. 3796.20(C)(2)).

Curbside pickup and drive-up windows are the closest thing to delivery. A dispensary may petition DCC to distribute purchases through a drive-up window attached to the store or through curbside pickup, in an area it controls that is secured and video surveilled, with an employee checking ID before anything changes hands (OAC 1301:18-8-02). Dispensaries may operate between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. and must post their hours. Once the bag is in the car, it stays in the original unopened package or goes in the trunk (R.C. 3796.062).

Yes, if you are 21 or older and growing at your own primary residence, which rules it out for a visit. Each adult may cultivate up to 6 plants, with no more than 12 at a single residence, inside a secured closet, room, greenhouse or other enclosed area that keeps out anyone under 21 and is not visible by normal unaided vision from a public space (R.C. 3796.04(A)(1)). The law does not authorize growing anywhere except the grower's primary residence (R.C. 3796.04(B)(1)), so a hotel room, rental cabin or friend's house is not an option for a visitor.

Some homes are off limits. Cultivation may not take place in a type A or type B family child care home, a halfway house or similar facility, or a rental whose agreement prohibits it (R.C. 3796.04(A)(1)(d)), and a landlord may ban growing in the lease (R.C. 3796.24(F)). Growers may process homegrown marijuana by manual or mechanical means but not by hydrocarbon-based extraction, may not sell or profit from it, and may not grow on behalf of another person (R.C. 3796.04(A)(2), (B)). DCC's FAQ repeats the 6-plant and 12-plant limits.

Breaking those rules is charged as illegal cultivation of marihuana (R.C. 3796.99(E)). Under the drug code, illegal cultivation involving less than 100 grams is a minor misdemeanor, or a fourth-degree misdemeanor in the vicinity of a school or a juvenile; 100 to 200 grams is a fourth-degree misdemeanor; and 200 to 1,000 grams is a fifth-degree felony (R.C. 2925.04(C)(5)). Homegrown marijuana counts toward the 2.5-ounce and 15-gram possession limit and may be given away only on the same no-payment, private-property terms as store-bought cannabis (R.C. 3796.221).

Seeds, clones and live plants are sold in dispensaries. DCC lets a customer buy up to 6 of them in total per day, in any combination, and its package rule effective October 5, 2026 limits each package to 6 seeds, 6 clones or 6 live plants, with clones and live plants sold only in a vegetative state (OAC 1301:18-4-06). Homegrown marijuana must ride in the trunk or an equivalent space, never in the passenger area (R.C. 3796.062(C)).

Ohio adds a 10 percent excise tax to the price of adult-use marijuana, paid by the consumer to the dispensary at the time of sale, in addition to state and local sales tax (R.C. 3796.40(B), (C)). The Department of Taxation says sales tax is also charged to adult-use consumers and collected by the dispensary, that sales tax is not part of the price on which the excise is figured, and that delivery charges and other fees count as part of that price. Purchases by registered medical patients are exempt from the 10 percent excise, according to DCC.

Sales tax depends on the county. The state rate is 5.75 percent, and counties and transit authorities may add local tax in steps of 0.05 percent, with the overall rate capped at 8.75 percent, the Department of Taxation says. Its table for October 1 to December 31, 2026 lists 8.00 percent in Franklin County (Columbus) and Cuyahoga County (Cleveland), 7.80 percent in Hamilton County (Cincinnati), 7.50 percent in Montgomery County (Dayton), 6.75 percent in Summit County (Akron) and 7.75 percent in Lucas County (Toledo). The Columbus figure applies to the parts of the city in Franklin County.

Put together, an adult-use purchase in Columbus or Cleveland carries the 10 percent excise plus 8.00 percent sales tax, and one in Cincinnati carries the excise plus 7.80 percent. Cities cannot add a cannabis tax of their own: R.C. 3796.31, as quoted by DCC, bars political subdivisions from levying a tax or fee on license holders based on gross receipts or similar to a state tax. SB 56 kept the 10 percent rate but changed where the money goes: 64 percent to the general revenue fund and 36 percent to municipalities and townships that host at least one licensed dispensary (R.C. 3796.40(F)).

Some official pages lag the law. The Department of Taxation's Adult Use Marijuana Tax page, dated February 5, 2026, still cites R.C. 3780.22 and Chapter 3780, both repealed on March 20, 2026, and DCC's FAQ still describes the excise as part of the initiated statute. The tax now lives in R.C. 3796.40 at the same 10 percent rate, so the amount a visitor pays did not change with the rewrite. The statute controls where the pages and the law differ.

No, not today. DCC's patient registration rule requires an applicant to be an Ohio resident unless a reciprocal agreement under R.C. 3796.16 provides otherwise (OAC 1301:18-10-01), and the statute directs DCC to attempt in good faith to negotiate such agreements with states whose eligibility rules are substantially comparable and that recognize Ohio's card (R.C. 3796.16). We found no reciprocity agreement on DCC's patient pages. A visiting patient 21 or older buys as an adult-use customer instead, under the 2.5-ounce and 15-gram limits, paying the 10 percent excise.

Ohio's medical program dates to House Bill 523, whose Chapter 3796 sections took effect September 8, 2016 (codes.ohio.gov), and DCC says medical sales began January 14, 2019; DCC now runs both the medical and adult-use programs. A dispensary sells medical marijuana on a current, valid government ID and a written recommendation from a physician holding a certificate to recommend from the State Medical Board (R.C. 3796.20(B)), for a qualifying condition listed in R.C. 3796.01(A)(6). DCC says registration has no activation or renewal cost and exempts purchases from the 10 percent excise.

Patients follow different limits. DCC applies the same daily transaction cap of 2.5 ounces of plant material and 15,000 milligrams of total THC in other products, but only patients may buy up to four days' worth at once, and a patient may not possess more than a 90-day supply (DCC; R.C. 3796.22(B)). DCC's table puts the 90-day maximum at 14.06 pounds of plant material and 1,350 grams of total THC in other products. Smoking or combusting medical marijuana is prohibited outright, and vaporizing it is allowed only on private residential or farm property (R.C. 3796.06(C)).

Federal status now differs by program. Since April 28, 2026, marijuana subject to a state medical marijuana license has been in Schedule III, while other marijuana, including adult-use, remains in Schedule I (DEA final rule); we read Ohio medical marijuana sold to registered patients as falling in the first group, though the rule does not name Ohio's program. SB 56 also authorizes medical delivery to registered patients and caregivers under DCC rules (R.C. 3796.20(A)(1)(e)), a service adult-use customers cannot use. Registered patients under 21 may enter dispensaries with valid patient identification (OAC 1301:18-8-02).

Most visitor mistakes are minor misdemeanors, which carry a fine of up to $150 (R.C. 2929.28). Smoking or vaping outside private residential or farm property, or in a public place or place of employment, is one (R.C. 3796.99(B)), and so is carrying marijuana in a vehicle outside its unopened package or the trunk, or transporting non-Ohio marijuana in a vehicle (R.C. 3796.99(I)). A passenger who smokes or vapes while the vehicle is being driven commits a third-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 60 days and a $500 fine (R.C. 3796.99(A)(2), 2929.24, 2929.28).

Going over the limit is charged under the drug-possession statute (R.C. 3796.99(D), 2925.11). For plant material, under 100 grams is a minor misdemeanor, 100 to 200 grams a fourth-degree misdemeanor (up to 30 days and $250) and 200 to 1,000 grams a fifth-degree felony; R.C. 2925.11 grades hashish, which covers cannabis resin and concentrates, on a much lower scale, with felony charges from 10 grams of solid or 2 grams of liquid (R.C. 2925.11(C)(7)), and the statute does not say which scale applies to extract over the 15-gram limit.; and larger amounts rise to third- and second-degree felonies (R.C. 2925.11(C)(3), 2929.24, 2929.28). An arrest or conviction for a minor misdemeanor under that section does not constitute a criminal record and need not be reported in answer to questions about a criminal record, including on job and license applications (R.C. 2925.11(D)).

Selling or sharing outside the rules is treated more harshly. A transfer by anyone other than a license holder, except a free gift of up to the legal amount on private residential or farm property, is trafficking in marihuana (R.C. 3796.221(C), 3796.99(F)), generally a fifth-degree felony, though a gift of 20 grams or less is a minor misdemeanor on a first offense (R.C. 2925.03(C)(3)). Supplying anyone under 21 is a first-degree misdemeanor, and a second offense is a fifth-degree felony (R.C. 3796.99(C)).

Fake IDs and impaired driving carry some of the heaviest penalties a visitor is likely to face. Presenting a false or altered ID at a dispensary is a first-degree misdemeanor with a fine of $250 to $1,000 (R.C. 3796.99(G)), and a first OVI brings at least three days in jail or a driver intervention program, a fine of $565 to $1,075 and a one- to three-year license suspension (R.C. 4511.19(G)). SB 56 also lets people apply to expunge pre-March 20, 2026 records, including dismissed charges, for minor-misdemeanor marihuana possession, lower-level hashish possession and hashish possession of 15 grams or less (R.C. 2953.321).

Check the name against DCC's own list. The Division publishes a page of every dispensary holding a certificate of operation, grouped by county with address and phone, and an interactive map backed by a state ArcGIS layer that adds each license number, in the form CCD000072-00. On October 16, 2026 the layer held 231 dispensaries, all marked active and dual use, meaning licensed to sell both medical and adult-use cannabis, and its latest record edit was dated October 13, 2026. DCC says a dispensary may not sell until it holds a certificate of operation.

A licensed store looks a certain way. DCC tells shoppers to look for its seal displayed in the dispensary's entryway and on individual product packaging (DCC release, March 24, 2026). The operating rule requires the certificate of operation and license seal to be prominently displayed, ID checks at the door and at the counter, employees wearing their DCC badges at all times and hours between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. (OAC 1301:18-8-02). Under the package rule as amended effective October 5, 2026, no product may exceed 90 percent THC, and adult-use edibles are capped at 10 milligrams per serving (OAC 1301:18-4-06).

Hemp shops are not dispensaries. SB 56's ban on intoxicating hemp took effect March 20, 2026, and DCC says any product with more than 0.4 milligrams of total THC per container is considered marijuana that may be sold only in a DCC-licensed dispensary (R.C. 928.01). SB 56 as passed would have let certain liquor permit holders sell single-serving hemp drinks of up to 5 milligrams of THC until December 31, 2026, but Governor DeWine vetoed those sections (R.C. 3779.21 to 3779.30 and 3779.99) when he signed the bill on December 19, 2025, so intoxicating hemp drinks are banned outside licensed dispensaries, as DCC's March 24, 2026 release says. DCC calls the products once sold outside dispensaries untested and unregulated.

The market grows within set limits. SB 56 caps Ohio at 400 licensed dispensaries, bars new or relocated stores within one mile of another dispensary or at a site with a beer and liquor permit, and limits any owner to eight dispensaries (R.C. 3796.05). A city or township may prohibit or limit new dispensaries by ordinance, but may not restrict stores licensed before March 20, 2026 unless its ordinance predates that day (R.C. 3796.29). DCC expects about 305 dispensaries once its current licensing is complete.