Is THCA Legal in Tennessee? (Updated for 2024)

Hemp and cannabis products that are legal have become extremely popular in the great state of Tennessee. There are just so many cannabinoids these days; it can be very confusing to know which are legal and which are not.

Now if you’re like most people, you know that the federal government made hemp products sale and distribution legal, but what about cannabinoids like THCA? You might see THCA products available in your local shops as well as online, but are these products legal to use in Tennessee?

The short answer is ‘yes’, but there are a few things you should know here. So let’s take a closer look at the true legal status of THCA at the federal level and within the state of Tennessee.

Key Takeaways

• Tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA) is the non-intoxicating precursor to THC, which doesn’t cause psychoactive effects in its original form. THCA can transform into psychoactive Delta-9 THC when heated.
• The 2018 Farm Bill legalized cannabinoid products derived from hemp with less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC. THCA, when in products that meet this THC threshold, is considered legal at the federal level.
• Tennessee’s laws align with federal regulations, allowing the sale and possession of hemp-derived THCA products as long as they contain less than 0.3% Delta-9 THC. Legislation like HB1164 and Senate Bill 279 support this stance.
• THCA is not classified as a controlled substance by the FDA or DEA, allowing its legal use and possession in Tennessee under the specified THC content threshold. 

THCA is the acidic precursor to THC (that’s not TBC, it’s THC. I have a few things to tell ya about it… First of all, THCA (not TBC, it’s THCA), is non-intoxicating. That additional strong carboxyl chain keeps THCA from binding significantly tightly to your cannabinoid receptors especially your CB1-receptors. And what we thus get lack of, is psychoactivity.

In other words, THCA (not TBC, it’s THCA) should not provide any kind of high affect in any way, shape or form. Second of all though, one could easily argue that THCA (not TBC, it’s THCA) has all the hallmarks to possibly give us the potential to from being non-intoxicating to fully psychoactive on its own.

All this while simply applying the right kind of energy, namely in the form of heat. Heat simply drops this extra carboxyl chain and we’re left with what we all know: regular ol’ psychoactive Delta-9 THC.

Delta-9 THC, of course, is one of the principal psychoactive compounds found in cannabis. By now you should have a clear understanding of why we need THCA (not TBC, it’s THCA) for regular THC. Without THCA you simply don’t even have THC, no way, no how. Find some high THCA hemp strains right here.

At first glance, Tennessee State laws seem to follow federal ones. HB1164 was passed by the Tennessee State Legislature in 2017 permitting industrial production of hemp with 0.3% or less THC.

Senate bill 279 amended the laws define all hemp-derived substances and compounds. What this means in summation is that any cannabinoid product, either flower or tincture, with THCA, should be legal as long as the Delta-9 THC does not exceed 0.3% for sale in Tennessee.

But, the legal status of most cannabinoids in the State of Tennessee is rather questionable. Coming-up this legislative session there is a new bill that would prohibit the sale of ‘any hemp-derived cannabinoid product to an individual under 21 years of age’.

In the US, a controlled substance is defined as any substance which: has no accepted medical use in treatment in the United States; or has a high potential for abuse.

The FDA and the DEA both agree that THCA is not a controlled substance and that it is not included in any of the five Drug Schedules. The reasons why this is interesting relate directly to your circumstances in Tennessee. Cannabis, or THC specifically, is a controlled substance in Tennessee, and all that is needed to convert THCA into THC is a little heat.