Reviewed by the Old World Leaf team. Educational information only — not medical advice.
Reviewed by the Old World Leaf team. Educational information only — not medical advice.
In the river country of Southeast Asia, the kratom tree has stood beside farms and villages for a very long time, and the people there knew it as part of the landscape. Its story under American law is much shorter and is still being written. A leaf with a deep local past has landed in a country that is working out, one statehouse and sometimes one county board at a time, which rules ought to govern it.
That is why there is no single answer to the question in the title. Most of the country permits kratom. A handful of states forbid it outright. Here and there a county or city adds its own limits. Below, each of those layers is set out in turn, followed by a short routine for checking your own address before placing an order.
Begin With Your Own Front Door
Asking whether kratom is legal “in America” gets you only halfway. What a buyer truly needs to know is narrower: is it allowed at my address, this year? Crossing a state line can change the reply, and so, inside one state, can crossing into the next county. Readers who are new to the leaf may like to start with our page on what kratom is before going further.
We also publish a current summary on our kratom legality page. Our shipping is restricted to follow the law, so whatever that page says about where an order may go is what we follow.
The Federal Picture
At the national level the matter is fairly quiet. As of this writing, kratom has not been placed on any federal schedule, which means federal law does not forbid it. The real choices are made lower down, by state legislatures first and then by counties and cities. Every rule that follows comes from one of those two levels.
Six States Where It Is Banned Outright
At the time of writing, six states forbid kratom everywhere within their borders. Selling it and possessing it are both against the law in each of them, and we send no orders to any of the six. Alabama goes furthest and lists kratom as a controlled substance. The other five, Arkansas, Indiana, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin, prohibit it across the whole state.
Those six make up the complete statewide list. Outside them, adults may generally buy kratom. Note the word “generally,” though. It is doing honest work, as the next part shows.
Local Rules Inside Legal States
Permission at the state level does not settle things for every town. The case most often mentioned is Sarasota County, Florida, which restricts kratom while Florida as a whole allows it. Over the years, a scattering of other cities and counties have written ordinances of their own.
Put simply, your state’s stance is only part of the answer. A county or city may be tighter than the state around it, and when that happens, the tighter local rule is what binds you. If you are unsure, search for your county and your town as well as your state.
Age and the KCPA
Where kratom is allowed, two further matters come into play. One is the buyer’s age. Plenty of states fix a lowest legal age for purchase. Our own rule is firmer and does not bend to the local figure: we serve customers aged 21 or older, and nobody younger.
The other is a type of state law called the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, usually shortened to KCPA. A number of states have passed one. Such an act leaves kratom lawful but lays down requirements on how it is labeled, how pure it must be, and how it is tested. Living in a KCPA state therefore means kratom is permitted and also overseen. A careful shopper tends to welcome that, because these laws usually lean on outside lab reports and truthful packaging. To see what one of those reports contains, read our walk-through on reading a kratom COA.
A Patient Way to Check Your Address
Laws shift, so regard no printed list as final, ours included. Instead, keep to a short, unhurried routine:
- The stateConfirm that your state is not among the six named above.
- The county and townSearch your local ordinances, as these can be stricter than the state.
- Our legality pageSee what our current page says about where we can ship.
- Each new orderLook again from time to time, since a state may change its mind either way.
A word of caution about this page itself. We are a kratom shop and not lawyers, and what you are reading is not legal advice. It is meant only as a plain map to help you get your bearings. When a question depends on the exact wording of your own local law, take it to an official local source.
A Map Still Being Drawn
Kratom’s place in American public life is recent, and the states have not marched in step. A few chose bans. Far more chose oversight through a KCPA. Some have changed course more than once in a short span. New bills appear, get altered, pass or fail, and occasionally get undone, while counties and towns act on their own timetables.
Seen from a distance, it can all look fixed. Seen closely, it is lively. There is little point trying to learn every detail by heart. A lighter habit works better: check before each order, as you might check the shipping limits on any product that varies by place. Over recent years most states have leaned toward regulating kratom, keeping it lawful while asking for honest labels and lab work, rather than banning it. A broad trend still promises nothing about any one state, which is why we keep watch on the changes and update our legality page as they come.
Living in One of the Six
For readers in a ban state, the position is clear. Kratom cannot lawfully be bought or kept where you live at present, and we will not send it. Should your state’s law change, that would change too, and several advocacy groups keep track of bills in each state for anyone who wants to follow along. Until then we hold to the law as it stands. Turning an order away is far better, to our minds, than leaving a customer in breach of local rules.
If you are weighing kratom against other old botanicals, our piece on kava and kratom explains that the two are governed quite differently.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many states have a statewide kratom ban?
Six, as of this writing. They are the six named in this guide, and we do not ship to any of them.
Does federal law forbid kratom?
No. Kratom has not been federally scheduled. The limits that exist come from states, counties and cities.
Could my town restrict kratom even if my state allows it?
Yes. Sarasota County in Florida is the example most often given, and other localities have passed rules of their own.
What changes in a state with a KCPA?
Kratom stays lawful, but the state sets rules on labeling, purity and testing, so it is both permitted and overseen.
What age do I have to be to buy from Old World Leaf?
You must be 21 or older, whatever lower age your state might allow.
Old World Leaf products are for adults 21 and over, in states where kratom is legal. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Our products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.