Is Kratom Legal in Tennessee?

Kratom has a bizarre legal history in Tennessee. It was once outlawed in the state, but due to fallacious language in the ban bill, the law was overturned and replaced by regulations.

Many synthetic substances, including synthetic Kratom, are banned in the state of Tennessee. Back in 2014, when these regulations were passed, there was quite a lot of confusion concerning the status of pure Kratom, as many states had already made mistakes when banning Kratom under the assumption that it is a synthetic drug.

Later in 2017 and 2018 it was clarified by the Attorney General of the state that pure Kratom was completely legal as long as the product complies with two basic rules.

The first one is that it can’t be sold to people under 21 years of age. The second rule is that any Kratom product needs to be labeled with disclaimers that indicate that pregnant and nursing individuals, and people under 21 shouldn’t consume it. It should also indicate possible interactions with alcohol and drugs and it should encourage people to consult their health specialist regarding existing conditions such as high blood pressure, liver issues or other relevant circumstances.

Subsequent bills to update existing kratom regulations into full blown Kratom Consumer Protection Acts failed to pass.

However kratom remains legal in Tennessee for adults 21 and over, with the aforementioned label rules in place.