Florida Cannabis Advertising Laws
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TL;DR
Florida prohibits cannabis advertising visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park or other public place, subject to two exceptions. Internet advertising is permitted but every advertisement must be approved by the Department of Health before it runs. Florida sets no audience composition percentage and requires no warning statement. The operative age for advertising content is 18, because "attractive to children" is defined against persons younger than 18.
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Florida Cannabis Advertising Summary
Is Cannabis Advertising Legal in Florida?
Advertising by licensed Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers is permitted within two exceptions to a general prohibition. Under §381.986(8)(h), a treatment center may not engage in advertising visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park or other public place. The exceptions are premises identification signage under (8)(h)1 and internet advertising under (8)(h)2, the latter conditioned on Department approval.
Legal Framework and Compliance Basics
Florida is medical only. Amendment 3 appeared on the November 2024 ballot and did not reach the sixty percent threshold required to amend the constitution.
The programme rests on Article X, Section 29 of the Florida Constitution and is implemented by §381.986, Florida Statutes. The regulator is the Office of Medical Marijuana Use within the Department of Health. Florida uses a vertically integrated model: a Medical Marijuana Treatment Center must cultivate, process, transport and dispense.
Advertising duties sit in §381.986(8)(h), with the definition of "attractive to children" at (1)(a) and mandatory website disclosures at (8)(i). Two departmental emergency rules remain in force and bear on advertising: 64ER22-2, MMTC Trade Name and Logo, and 64ER22-7, MMTC Website and Website Purchasing.
The 2026 repeal. Emergency Rule 64ER25-6 was published January 2, 2026 and in full effect from March 31, 2026. It limited marketing to three channels and prohibited depictions of celebrities and influencers, consumption imagery, and whole-flower imagery outside website product listings. It has been repealed by Chapter 2026-233, Laws of Florida, House Bill 5003-E (HB 5003-E). The Office's regulatory information page, last updated August 21, 2026, no longer lists it among active MMTC emergency rules. Guidance written between January and mid-2026 describes a rule that no longer applies.
This page is part of our state-by-state cannabis advertising laws library, covering all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Advertising Rules by Channel in Florida
Requirements That Apply to Every Channel
The general prohibition and its two exceptions
Under §381.986(8)(h), a medical marijuana treatment center may not engage in advertising that is visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park, or other public place, except:
- (8)(h)1 The dispensing location may have a sign affixed to the outside or hanging in the window of the premises which identifies the dispensary by the licensee's business name, a department-approved trade name, or a department-approved logo. That trade name and logo may not contain wording or images attractive to children or promoting recreational use.
- (8)(h)2 A treatment center may engage in internet advertising and marketing under four conditions: all advertisements must be approved by the department; an advertisement may not have content attractive to children or promoting recreational use; an advertisement may not be an unsolicited pop-up; and opt-in marketing must include an easy and permanent opt-out feature.
Business name and licence number
Not required. Section 381.986(8)(h) contains no requirement to display a licence number in advertising.
The required warning statements
None. Section 381.986 mandates no warning language in advertising. The warning requirements in §381.986 attach to packaging, labelling and the patient package insert.
How the warnings have to appear
Not applicable, as none are required in advertising.
When the warnings are not required
Not applicable. Section 381.986 contains no advertising disclosure requirement to disapply.
Hotline number
No. Section 381.986 requires no helpline, hotline or poison control number.
Prohibited content
Two conditions attach to both exceptions: no content attractive to children, and no content promoting the recreational use of marijuana.
"Attractive to children" is defined at §381.986(1)(a) as the use of any image or words designed or likely to appeal to persons younger than 18, including but not limited to cartoons, toys, animals, food, or depictions of persons younger than 18; any other likeness to images, characters, or phrases popularly used to advertise to persons younger than 18; or any reasonable likeness to commercially available candy.
The definition names animals and food expressly, and the age stated is 18. The same recreational-use phrase appears at §381.986(8)(e)11.f.(VI), which prohibits a product name containing wording commonly associated with products attractive to children or promoting recreational use.
Discounts, coupons, and price promotion
Section 381.986 contains no prohibition on price advertising or discounting. Under §381.986(8)(i), a treatment center that dispenses must make available to the public on its website each marijuana and low-THC product available for purchase, including form, strain, cannabidiol content, tetrahydrocannabinol content, dose unit, total doses available, and CBD to THC ratio; the price for a 30-day, 50-day, and 70-day supply at a standard dose for each product; the price for each marijuana delivery device; and, if applicable, any discount policies and the eligibility criteria for them.
Pre-approval
Required for internet advertising. Under §381.986(8)(h)2.a, all advertisements must be approved by the department. The requirement is statutory, so the repeal of 64ER25-6 did not affect it. Under §381.986(10), the Department may impose fines not exceeding $10,000 for violating the section or a department rule, and may suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew a licence.
Florida Display Advertising Laws
Florida writes no display-specific rule. Display sits within the internet advertising exception at (8)(h)2, so the approval condition applies.
What is allowed
Paid display, including programmatic, as internet advertising under (8)(h)2, where the Department has approved the advertisement.
What is not allowed
- Running an advertisement before Department approval — (8)(h)2.a
- Unsolicited pop-up advertisements — (8)(h)2.c
- Content attractive to children, including cartoons, toys, animals, food, depictions of persons under 18, and any reasonable likeness to commercially available candy — (8)(h)2.b and (1)(a)
- Content promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
Required warnings and disclosures
None. No warning statement, no licence number, no hotline. See Requirements That Apply to Every Channel above.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted. Section 381.986 contains no price advertising restriction.
Closing note
The definition at (1)(a) names food and animals expressly among images attractive to children. Check edible and beverage creative against that definition before submission, and build the approval window into the flight plan, since (8)(h)2.a conditions the advertisement on prior approval.
Florida Native Advertising Laws
Florida writes no native-specific rule. Native sits within the internet advertising exception, so the approval condition applies to each finished advertisement.
What is allowed
Native and sponsored content as internet advertising under (8)(h)2, approved by the Department.
What is not allowed
- Running before Department approval — (8)(h)2.a
- Content attractive to children — (8)(h)2.b and (1)(a)
- Content promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
- Unsolicited pop-up formats — (8)(h)2.c
Required warnings and disclosures
None under Florida law. Federal Trade Commission disclosure expectations for sponsored content apply independently.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted.
Closing note
Section 381.986(8)(h)2.a requires the advertisement to be approved. Where a publisher produces the creative, the finished advertisement is the item requiring approval. Build the publisher timeline around the approval window before committing spend.
Florida Online Video (OLV) Advertising Laws
Florida writes no video-specific rule and prescribes no on-screen or audio disclosure. Section 381.986 contains no prohibition on depicting consumption; the repealed 64ER25-6 did.
What is allowed
Pre-roll, mid-roll and in-feed video as internet advertising under (8)(h)2, approved by the Department.
What is not allowed
- Running before Department approval — (8)(h)2.a
- Content attractive to children, including cartoons, toys, animals, food and depictions of persons under 18 — (8)(h)2.b and (1)(a)
- Content promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
Required warnings and disclosures
None. Section 381.986 sets no on-screen or audio disclosure requirement for advertising.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted.
Closing note
With 64ER25-6 repealed, consumption imagery is governed by the attractive-to-children and recreational-promotion tests at (8)(h)2.b rather than by a standalone prohibition. Section 381.986 states no separate consumption provision.
Florida Connected TV (CTV) Advertising Laws
Section 381.986 distinguishes internet advertising from publicly visible advertising and states nothing about broadcast as a category.
What is allowed
CTV and OTT delivered over the internet, as internet advertising under (8)(h)2, approved by the Department. Section 381.986 imposes no daypart restriction.
What is not allowed
- Running before Department approval — (8)(h)2.a
- Content attractive to children — (8)(h)2.b and (1)(a)
- Content promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
Required warnings and disclosures
None.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted.
Closing note
Section 381.986(8)(h) names two categories: advertising visible to the public from a public place, and internet advertising. It does not define either term and does not state which applies to advertising delivered over the internet to a television. Submit the advertisement for Department approval before committing spend.
Florida Paid Search Advertising Laws
Florida writes no rule specific to paid search. Search sits within the internet advertising exception, so the approval condition applies.
What is allowed
Search advertising as internet advertising under (8)(h)2, approved by the Department.
What is not allowed
- Running before Department approval — (8)(h)2.a
- Content attractive to children or promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
Required warnings and disclosures
None. Section 381.986 imposes no disclosure that a character-limited format would need to carry.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted.
Closing note
Section 381.986(8)(h)2.a requires that all advertisements be approved by the department. Dynamic keyword insertion, responsive search ads and automatically generated copy produce no fixed advertisement before delivery. Confirm with the Department how the approval requirement applies to automatically generated formats before committing spend.
Florida SEO and Website Advertising Laws
Section 381.986(8)(i) requires specific product and price information to be published on the licensee's website, and (8)(h)2 conditions internet advertising on Department approval.
What is allowed
Website content and internet marketing, subject to Department approval under (8)(h)2.a. Emergency Rule 64ER22-7, MMTC Website and Website Purchasing, remains in force and governs website and website purchasing arrangements through a departmental request process.
What is required
Under §381.986(8)(i), each dispensing treatment center shall make available to the public on its website every product available for purchase with its form, strain, CBD content, THC content, dose unit, total doses available, and CBD to THC ratio; the price for a 30-day, 50-day, and 70-day supply at a standard dose for each product; the price for each marijuana delivery device; and any discount policies and eligibility criteria.
What is not allowed
- Content attractive to children or promoting recreational use — (8)(h)2.b
- Unsolicited pop-ups — (8)(h)2.c
- Running unapproved internet advertising — (8)(h)2.a
Required warnings and disclosures
No warning statement. The §381.986(8)(i) product and price disclosures are mandatory.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Permitted, and under (8)(i) any discount policies and their eligibility criteria must be published where they exist.
Closing note
Section 381.986 prescribes no website age gate. Two requirements operate on the same site: (8)(i) requires publication of product, potency and price information, and (8)(h)2.a conditions internet advertising on Department approval. Emergency Rule 64ER22-7 should be read for the conditions the Department attaches through that process.
Florida Out of Home and DOOH Advertising Laws
The public visibility prohibition at (8)(h) is drafted as a general clause rather than by format or distance.
What is allowed
Premises identification signage under (8)(h)1: a sign affixed to the outside or hanging in the window of the dispensing location, identifying the dispensary by business name, department-approved trade name, or department-approved logo.
What is not allowed
- Advertising visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park, or other public place — (8)(h)
- A trade name or logo containing wording or images attractive to children or promoting recreational use — (8)(h)1
- Display of products in the waiting area — (8)(f)3
Required warnings and disclosures
Not applicable to prohibited placements. Trade names and logos require Department approval under Emergency Rule 64ER22-2.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not applicable, as the channel is prohibited. Interior material not visible from a public place is outside (8)(h), subject to the waiting area restriction at (8)(f)3.
Closing note
Section 381.986 sets no numeric size cap on the identification sign. The exception at (8)(h)1 is framed by function: the sign identifies the dispensary by business name, approved trade name, or approved logo. Section 381.986 states no exception for out of home advertising and no discretionary petition route.
Platform Specific Advertising Restrictions
X (formerly Twitter)
Permits limited paid cannabis advertising in select U.S. jurisdictions subject to approval, licensing verification and 21-plus targeting.
Platform approval is not regulatory approval, and platform compliance does not protect against a state violation. In Florida a digital advertisement requires both platform acceptance and Department of Health approval under §381.986(8)(h)2.a, and §381.986(10) attaches fines not exceeding $10,000 to a violation of the section. With 64ER25-6 repealed, the prohibitions that rule imposed on depictions of celebrities, influencers and virtual influencers are no longer in force, and influencer content is governed by the attractive-to-children and recreational-promotion tests at (8)(h)2.b and by the approval requirement at (8)(h)2.a.
Audience Requirements for Cannabis Advertising in Florida
What the Law Requires
Florida's operative age for advertising content is 18. The definition of "attractive to children" at §381.986(1)(a) is framed around persons younger than 18.
Other ages appear elsewhere in the programme. Florida's medical programme includes qualified patients under 18, for whom only a caregiver may purchase or administer, under §381.986(6)(f). A treatment center may not dispense to a qualified patient younger than 18 under §381.986(8)(e)16.e. All employees must be 21 or older.
Audience Percentage Thresholds
Section 381.986 sets no audience composition percentage for any medium, whether expressed as a floor on adults or a cap on minors. This is an absence in the statute rather than an omission from this page. Other states do set one: Connecticut requires reliable evidence that at least 90 percent of the audience is 21 or older, and Delaware requires at least 85 percent. Section 381.986 contains no equivalent provision.
What the statute uses instead
Two mechanisms. The public visibility prohibition at (8)(h), which controls exposure by reference to what the public can see from public space. And Department approval at (8)(h)2.a, which controls content advertisement by advertisement.
Event sponsorship
Section 381.986 sets no audience threshold specific to event sponsorship.
Where the burden sits
Section 381.986 imposes no audience composition evidence or recordkeeping duty. The obligation it imposes is to obtain Department approval before running an internet advertisement.
Age Gating and Consent
Websites
Section 381.986 prescribes no website age gate and no age verification requirement.
Direct communication
Section 381.986 contains no age affirmation requirement for direct or individualized communication. Under (8)(h)2.d, opt-in marketing must include an easy and permanent opt-out feature.
Location-based devices
Section 381.986 contains no location-based device provision.
Established customers
The opt-in and opt-out language at (8)(h)2.d sits inside the internet advertising exception at (8)(h)2, which also contains the approval condition at (8)(h)2.a. Section 381.986 does not state whether an opt-in message is a separate advertisement requiring its own approval. Emergency Rule 64ER22-7 should be read for any conditions the Department attaches.
People Depicted in Ads
Under §381.986(1)(a), an advertisement may not include depictions of persons younger than 18, or any likeness to images, characters, or phrases popularly used to advertise to persons younger than 18.
Section 381.986 sets no minimum age for talent, contains no prohibition on depicting consumption, and contains no restriction on celebrity, influencer or virtual influencer depiction. Emergency Rule 64ER25-6 contained all three of those prohibitions and was repealed by Chapter 2026-233, Laws of Florida.
Geo Targeting Rules for Cannabis Advertising in Florida
Restricted Locations and Buffer Distances
Section 381.986(8)(h) states no advertising buffer. The provision states no distance around schools, parks, playgrounds, childcare facilities, libraries or places of worship. It controls placement through the public visibility prohibition instead. This is an absence in the statute rather than an omission from this page.
Licensing Buffers That Are Not Advertising Buffers
Florida has two 500 foot buffers. Both govern where a facility may be located.
- Under §381.986(11)(a), a cultivating or processing facility may not be located within 500 feet of the real property comprising a public or private elementary school, middle school, or secondary school.
- Under §381.986(11)(c), a dispensing facility may not be located within 500 feet of such real property unless the county or municipality approves the location through a formal public proceeding determining that it promotes public health, safety, and general welfare.
Both are measured to the real property comprising the school and cover elementary, middle and secondary schools. Neither names preschools, parks or playgrounds. Both govern the location of a facility, not the placement of an advertisement.
Local Ordinances
Under §381.986(11)(b)1, a county or municipality may ban dispensing facilities entirely within its boundaries, and one that does not ban them may not place specific limits on how many may locate there. Local permitting criteria may not be more restrictive than those applying to pharmacies licensed under Chapter 465. Regulation of cultivation, processing and delivery is otherwise preempted to the state.
Can You Run a Digital Out of Home Screen in Florida?
Section 381.986(8)(h) prohibits advertising visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park or other public place. A digital screen visible from those locations falls within the prohibition, and neither exception at (8)(h)1 or (8)(h)2 covers it. The exception at (8)(h)1 permits a sign identifying the dispensary by business name, approved trade name, or approved logo.
Compliant Use of Geotargeting
- Section 381.986(8)(h) states no advertising buffer, so there is no facility exclusion layer required by the statute.
- Do not apply the 500 foot figures from §381.986(11) to media placement. Those provisions govern where a facility may be located.
- For any physical placement, the operative question under (8)(h) is whether the advertising is visible to members of the public from a street, sidewalk, park or other public place.
- For internet channels the operative requirement is Department approval under (8)(h)2.a. Build the approval step into the flight plan.
- Check the local ordinance for the jurisdiction of each dispensing facility, since under §381.986(11)(b)1 a county or municipality may ban dispensing facilities outright.
Need Help Running Compliant Campaigns in Florida?
Knowing the rules is step one. Running campaigns that stay inside them and still grow patient volume is the harder part. MediaJel builds compliant media, search, and SEO programs for Florida operators and ties them to dispensed sales through DataJel.
What Are the Recreational and Medical Marijuana Rules in Florida?
One advertising rule set. Florida is medical only, and §381.986(8)(h) applies to Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers as vertically integrated licensees rather than to separate licence categories.
The medical framing is carried by the content rules: advertising may not promote recreational use under (8)(h)2.b, and a product name may not contain wording commonly associated with products attractive to children or promoting recreational use under (8)(e)11.f.(VI).
Under §381.986(8)(j), medical marijuana treatment centers are the sole source from which a qualified patient may legally obtain marijuana. Under §381.986(12)(d), acquisition from any other person or entity is a violation of §893.13.
What Are the Hemp and CBD Rules in Florida?
Who regulates hemp here
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, under §581.217, Florida Statutes, governing consumable hemp extract, with implementing rules in FDACS Rule 5K-4.034 covering packaging, labelling and testing. Medical marijuana sits with the Office of Medical Marijuana Use under §381.986.
Non-intoxicating hemp and CBD
Permitted and available through general retail. Hemp-derived cannabinoids including CBD, delta-8, delta-10, HHC and THCA are lawful provided the product does not exceed the statutory delta-9 THC threshold. Under §581.217(7)(d), consumable hemp extract intended for human ingestion or inhalation may not be sold to a person under 21, and the penalty falls on the seller. Rule 5K-4.034 requires child-resistant packaging, prohibits packaging attractive to children including humanoid shapes and candy-like forms, and requires a scannable code linking to a certificate of analysis.
Intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids
FDACS amended Rule 5K-4.034 to define total delta-9 THC as delta-9 plus 0.877 times THCA, with enforcement from June 16, 2025. Florida imposes no per-serving or per-package milligram cap, so the standard is percentage-based on the finished product. Senate Bill 1698 (SB 1698) in 2024 would have banned delta-8 and imposed per-serving caps and was vetoed on June 7, 2024. Senate Bill 1270 died in the Agriculture committee on March 13, 2026. The federal definition of hemp narrows on November 12, 2026, capping finished consumable hemp products at 0.4 milligrams total THC per container measured across isomers.
What it means for advertising
Section 381.986(8)(h) binds medical marijuana treatment centers. A consumable hemp extract product sold through general retail under §581.217 is not advertised by a treatment center, so the public visibility prohibition and the Department of Health approval requirement do not apply to it. FDACS packaging and labelling requirements, the 21-plus sales restriction at §581.217(7)(d), general consumer protection law and federal restrictions on health claims apply instead. The categories are kept apart at retail: under §381.986(8)(e)16.f a treatment center may not dispense or sell any other type of cannabis, or pipes or wrapping papers made with tobacco or hemp. Classify each product before building a media plan.
Florida Legislation and Source Regulations
Every statement on this page traces to one of the following:
- §381.986, Florida Statutes, medical use of marijuana, including the advertising provision at (8)(h), the definition of attractive to children at (1)(a), the website disclosure requirements at (8)(i), the penalties at (10), and the preemption and location provisions at (11)
- Office of Medical Marijuana Use, Regulatory Information, listing current MMTC rules and active emergency rules, last updated August 21, 2026
- Chapter 2026-233, Laws of Florida, House Bill 5003-E, repealing rule 64ER25-6
- Emergency Rule 64ER22-2, MMTC Trade Name and Logo
- Emergency Rule 64ER22-7, MMTC Website and Website Purchasing
- Office of Medical Marijuana Use, Notices, for rulemaking history
- §581.217, Florida Statutes, consumable hemp extract, and FDACS Rule 5K-4.034, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Disclaimer
Please note that we are not legal professionals, and the information provided in this article should not be interpreted as legal advice. Cannabis laws and regulations are subject to frequent changes and vary by state and locality. We strongly recommend consulting with qualified legal counsel to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and regulations. For the most up-to-date guidance on state-specific marketing rules, please reach out to the MediaJel team directly.
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