Marijuana has been a Schedule I drug since the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, the category for substances the federal government says have a high potential for abuse and no accepted medical use, and in 2026 that finally began to change. In April 2026 the Justice Department moved marijuana held under a state medical marijuana license, and FDA-approved marijuana products, to Schedule III. Adult-use marijuana is still Schedule I, and a DEA proceeding to reschedule all marijuana was stayed on September 29, 2026, with no decision as of mid-October.
For more than 50 years, patients, scientists, governors and advocacy groups petitioned the government to reclassify marijuana, and for most of that time the answer was no. This guide explains how drug scheduling works, why marijuana landed in Schedule I, the long history of rescheduling fights, and exactly where the process stands as of October 2026. For how federal law affects consumers day to day, see our federal marijuana law guide.
Marijuana’s Federal Status at a Glance
| Category | Status as of October 2026 |
|---|---|
| Adult-use (recreational) marijuana | Schedule I |
| Unlicensed marijuana | Schedule I |
| Marijuana held under a state medical marijuana license | Schedule III (April 2026 order) |
| FDA-approved marijuana products | Schedule III (April 2026 order) |
| Rescheduling all marijuana | DEA hearing held June 29 to July 15, 2026; stayed September 29, 2026 |
| Court challenges | Challenges to the April 2026 order pending in the D.C. Circuit |
What Is a Schedule I Drug?
The Controlled Substances Act sorts regulated drugs into five schedules. To be placed in Schedule I, a drug must be found to have a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use under medical supervision.
| Schedule | What it means | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| I | High abuse potential, no accepted medical use | Heroin, LSD, adult-use marijuana |
| II | High abuse potential, accepted medical use with severe restrictions | Cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, oxycodone |
| III | Moderate abuse potential, accepted medical use | Ketamine, anabolic steroids, products with less than 90 mg of codeine per dose, state-licensed medical marijuana |
| IV | Lower abuse potential | Benzodiazepines such as alprazolam (Xanax) |
| V | Lowest abuse potential | Some cough medicines with small amounts of codeine |
The schedule matters because it sets criminal penalties, research rules, how a drug can be dispensed, and, through Section 280E of the tax code, whether businesses selling it can deduct ordinary expenses.
Why Was Marijuana Put in Schedule I?
When Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, it placed marijuana in Schedule I itself, pending further study. A national commission appointed under the act, known as the Shafer Commission, recommended in 1972 that possession for personal use be decriminalized, but that advice was not adopted, and marijuana stayed in Schedule I.
After that, changing a drug’s schedule became an administrative process. The DEA makes the decision, but it must first get a scientific and medical evaluation from the Department of Health and Human Services, which weighs eight factors set out in the law, including abuse potential, pharmacology, public health risk and the state of scientific knowledge. U.S. treaty obligations, mainly the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, also limit how far marijuana can be loosened. For decades, HHS and the DEA concluded that marijuana did not have an accepted medical use as the agencies defined it, largely because there were no large, well-controlled clinical trials, which Schedule I status itself made hard to run.
A Half-Century of Rescheduling Petitions
The fight over marijuana’s classification is one of the longest in federal drug policy. Key moments:
- 1972: A petition to remove marijuana from control or move it to Schedule V was filed. It bounced between the DEA and the courts for years.
- September 6, 1988: DEA Administrative Law Judge Francis Young, after extensive hearings, ruled that marijuana did not meet the Schedule I criteria and should be moved to Schedule II, finding it had accepted safety for use under medical supervision. The DEA Administrator overruled him, and a federal appeals court later upheld the agency’s power to do so.
- April 2001: The DEA denied another petition.
- October 9, 2002: The Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis, a group of patient and reform organizations, filed a new petition. After nearly nine years without an answer, the coalition sued in 2011 to force a decision.
- July 8, 2011: The DEA denied the coalition’s petition, concluding marijuana had a high potential for abuse, no accepted medical use and lacked accepted safety.
- November 2011: Washington Governor Christine Gregoire and Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee petitioned the DEA to move marijuana to Schedule II. Other state officials, including Colorado’s revenue director, later made similar requests.
- 2012: Researchers from the University of California’s Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research published a review in the Open Neurology Journal arguing that the Schedule I classification was not supported by the evidence.
- January 22, 2013: In Americans for Safe Access v. DEA, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the DEA’s 2011 denial.
- August 12, 2016: The DEA denied two more petitions, including the governors’ petition, with HHS agreeing marijuana should remain in Schedule I.
How Rescheduling Finally Moved: 2022 to 2026
- October 6, 2022: President Biden asked the attorney general and the HHS secretary to review how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.
- August 29, 2023: HHS recommended moving marijuana to Schedule III, reversing its 2016 position that marijuana should stay in Schedule I.
- May 21, 2024: The DEA published a proposed rule to move marijuana to Schedule III, drawing a large volume of public comments and requests for a hearing. The hearing process then stalled.
- December 18, 2025: President Trump signed an executive order directing the attorney general to complete rescheduling to Schedule III as quickly as possible.
- April 2026: A Justice Department and DEA final order moved FDA-approved marijuana products and marijuana held under a state medical marijuana license to Schedule III, using the government’s treaty-obligation authority under 21 U.S.C. 811(d)(1) rather than a full rulemaking. Adult-use and unlicensed marijuana stayed in Schedule I.
- June 29 to July 15, 2026: The DEA held a hearing on moving all marijuana to Schedule III. Final briefs were filed August 17.
- September 29, 2026: The chief administrative law judge stayed the proceeding over a Government Accountability Office report. No recommended decision had been issued as of October 14, 2026, and the DEA Administrator makes the final call.
Separately, lawsuits challenging the April 2026 order are pending in the D.C. Circuit, so even the partial change could still be revised by a court.
What Schedule III Changes, and What It Doesn’t
Rescheduling is often described as legalization. It is not. Schedule III drugs are still controlled substances. The main effects:
- Business taxes. Section 280E bars businesses that traffic in Schedule I or II substances from deducting ordinary business expenses. State-licensed medical operators now fall outside it for that marijuana, while adult-use stores remain covered. Our guide to why dispensaries are cash-only covers the related banking problem.
- Research. Studying Schedule III substances involves fewer regulatory hurdles than Schedule I, which should make clinical trials easier.
- Criminal law. Possessing, selling or transporting adult-use cannabis outside federal rules remains a federal crime. Crossing state lines, flying and federal land rules do not change.
- State markets. Recreational stores in states such as Washington and Oregon still operate in conflict with federal law.
What About CBD and Hemp?
Hemp, cannabis with very low THC, was removed from the Controlled Substances Act by the 2018 Farm Bill. A federal law signed November 12, 2025, narrows that definition: it switches to a total-THC standard, caps finished products at 0.4 mg of total THC per container and excludes synthesized or converted cannabinoids such as delta-8 made from CBD. Synthetic cannabinoids lose hemp status on November 12, 2026, and the limits for naturally occurring cannabinoids take effect December 11, 2026. Our hemp flower guide explains what that means for buyers.
From the editor, James Buddsey: We first wrote about marijuana’s Schedule I status in the early 2010s, when petitions sat unanswered for nine years and courts sided with the DEA every time. Watching HHS, the DEA and two presidents move toward Schedule III has been remarkable. But the change so far covers medical marijuana, and the recreational market most readers shop in is still Schedule I.
Marijuana Rescheduling FAQ
Is marijuana still a Schedule I drug?
Adult-use and unlicensed marijuana are. Since an April 2026 Justice Department order, marijuana held under a state medical marijuana license and FDA-approved marijuana products are Schedule III.
Why is marijuana Schedule I?
Congress placed it there in 1970, and for decades the DEA and HHS concluded it had a high potential for abuse, no accepted medical use and no accepted safety under medical supervision, in part because large clinical trials were lacking.
Has marijuana been rescheduled to Schedule III?
Partly. State-licensed medical marijuana and FDA-approved products moved in April 2026. A DEA proceeding to move all marijuana was stayed on September 29, 2026, with no decision yet.
Does rescheduling make marijuana legal?
No. Schedule III drugs remain federally controlled. Rescheduling mainly changes business taxes under Section 280E and eases research; it does not legalize recreational sales or interstate transport.
Who decides marijuana’s schedule?
The DEA, after a scientific and medical evaluation from HHS. Congress can also change a drug’s schedule by passing a law.
When will all marijuana be rescheduled?
There is no date. The hearing on full rescheduling is stayed, the administrative law judge’s recommendation is not binding, and the DEA Administrator makes the final decision.
For adults 21+ in legal states. General information about federal law as of October 2026, not legal advice.
