Virginia Cannabis Advertising Laws
Want to run cannabis ads in Virginia? We will tell you what is compliant here.
Talk to usYou can legally advertise on these cannabis marketing channels
Each channel has its own rules in this state. Pick one to jump straight to what is allowed.
TL;DR
Virginia prohibits billboards outright, closes the transit environment, and permits television and radio only during regular school hours for elementary and secondary schools. Its audience threshold is 85 percent aged 18 or older. Its buffer is 500 linear feet measured along one side of a road rather than as a radius, and it includes substance use disorder treatment facilities. A retail market arrives July 1, 2027.
Working with a partner that already knows these rules shortens the launch cycle. See how we run campaigns as a cannabis marketing agency in Virginia.
Virginia Cannabis Advertising Summary
Is Cannabis Advertising Legal in Virginia?
Medical cannabis facilities may advertise, with no pre-approval requirement. Several channels are closed outright, and the permitted ones carry the 85 percent audience threshold and a mandatory age-screening mechanism.
Legal Framework and Compliance Basics
Possession has been legal for adults in Virginia since 2021. The only lawful retail channel is the medical cannabis programme, run through pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities. Advertising is governed by 3VAC10-40, Part IV, administered by the Cannabis Control Authority, which took over from the Board of Pharmacy. The rules took effect January 1, 2024 and have been amended three times since, most recently effective March 9, 2026.
The General Assembly enacted a retail framework through House Bill 30 (HB 30) in June 2026, with retail sales to begin July 1, 2027. The Authority released draft regulations on September 9, 2026. Those drafts are not law, and the rules described on this page are the ones in force.
One point to carry forward: the September draft does not only add retail rules. It also rewrites the medical cannabis rules and the rules for regulated hemp product retail facilities, so the 3VAC10-40 Part IV provisions on this page are themselves slated for change rather than being a stable baseline that retail rules will sit alongside.
This page describes the medical rules in force.
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 Virginia
Requirements That Apply to Every Channel
Business name and licence number
Under 190(A), advertising must accurately and legibly identify the medical cannabis facility responsible for its content. No licence number is required.
The required disclosures
Two under 190(A): identification of the responsible facility, and a statement that cannabis products are for use by patients only.
How the disclosures have to appear
Accurately and legibly. Part IV prescribes no size, font, colour or percentage standard.
When the disclosures are not required
Section 190(A) states no exception.
Hotline number
Not required.
Claims and the balance requirement
Under 190(B), any advertisement related to the benefits, safety, or efficacy, including therapeutic or medical claims, shall be supported by substantial, current clinical evidence or data and shall include information on side effects or risks associated with the use of cannabis. Both limbs apply together.
Prohibited marketing activities
Under 3VAC10-40-160, a facility may market its products, the programme, the company and related communications, except marketing that includes false or misleading statements; promotes excessive consumption; depicts a person younger than 21 consuming cannabis; appeals to minors; or contains any seal, flag, crest, coat of arms or other insignia likely to mislead people into believing the product has been endorsed, made or used by the Commonwealth or its representatives.
The appeal-to-minors limb names cartoons or mascots; bubble-type or other cartoon-like font; similarities to or words referring to products commonly associated with or attractive to under-21s, including any imitation of food, candy, soda, drinks, cookies, or cereal, with an exception for cultivar names; the terms "candy" or "candies" or variants in spelling such as "kandy" or "kandeez", again excepting cultivar names; symbols, images, characters, public figures, phrases, toys or games commonly used to market to under-21s; and audio that may be attractive to individuals younger than 21, including audio using children's voices or cartoon voices.
Discounts, coupons, and price promotion
Under 170(B)(2), advertising shall not include coupons, giveaways of free cannabis products, or distribution of merchandise that displays anything other than the facility name and contact information. Under 170(G), no advertising through the marketing of free promotional items, including gifts and free or donated cannabis.
Branded merchandise may carry the facility name and contact information and nothing else.
Pre-approval
Not required.
Virginia Display Advertising Laws
Section 180(A) prohibits pop-up digital advertisements, and 170(B)(1) attaches a placement trigger to product imagery.
What is allowed
Digital display where at least 85 percent of the audience is reasonably expected to be 18 or older, on reliable, up-to-date composition data.
What is not allowed
- Pop-up digital advertisements — 180(A)
- Displaying cannabis products or images of products where the advertisement is visible to members of the public from any street, sidewalk, park or other public place — 170(B)(1)
- Coupons and giveaways — 170(B)(2)
- Delivery below the 85 percent threshold — 170(A)(i)
Required warnings and disclosures
Identification of the responsible facility and the patients-only statement. See Requirements That Apply to Every Channel above.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
Section 170(B)(1) is a content rule with a placement trigger: product imagery is prohibited where the advertisement is visible to the public from a street, sidewalk, park or other public place. A screen in a window, or any placement readable from public space, falls within it.
Virginia Native Advertising Laws
Section 180(C) expressly permits educational communication, including with the general public.
What is allowed
Native and sponsored content above the 85 percent threshold. Under 180(C), facilities may provide communication and engagement for educational purposes with health care practitioners, patients, parents, legal guardians, registered agents and the general public.
What is not allowed
- Benefit, safety or efficacy claims without substantial, current clinical evidence or data and without accompanying side effect and risk information — 190(B)
- False or misleading statements — 160
- The appeal-to-minors list at 160
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement. Federal Trade Commission disclosure expectations for sponsored content apply independently.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
Section 190(B) states a two-limb test: substantial, current clinical evidence or data, and side effect and risk information presented alongside. Both are required for any benefit, safety or efficacy claim.
Virginia Online Video (OLV) Advertising Laws
The appeal-to-minors limb at 160 reaches audio as well as imagery.
What is allowed
Video advertising above the 85 percent threshold. Section 160 prohibits depicting a person younger than 21 consuming cannabis, and states no prohibition on depicting adult consumption.
What is not allowed
- Depicting a person younger than 21 consuming cannabis — 160
- Audio that may be attractive to individuals younger than 21, including audio using children's voices or cartoon voices — 160
- Product imagery where the advertisement is visible from public space — 170(B)(1)
- Delivery below the 85 percent threshold — 170(A)(i)
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
The audio limb at 160 reaches voice casting: no audio that may be attractive to individuals younger than 21, including children's voices or cartoon voices. Brief production against it before recording.
Virginia Connected TV (CTV) Advertising Laws
Section 170(A)(ii) sets a daypart restriction framed around school hours.
What is allowed
Television and radio advertising during regular school hours for elementary and secondary schools, above the 85 percent threshold.
What is not allowed
- Television or radio at any time outside regular school hours for elementary and secondary schools — 170(A)(ii)
- Delivery below the 85 percent threshold — 170(A)(i)
- The content list at 160
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
The window at 170(A)(ii) is regular school hours, which produces a weekday daytime window on school days and excludes evenings, weekends and school holidays. Part IV does not define whether the provision reaches streaming television, and the Authority has published no guidance. Obtain the Authority's position before committing CTV spend.
Virginia Paid Search Advertising Laws
Section 180(A) names search engines expressly in the permitted informational presence.
What is allowed
Under 180(A), a facility may list its business in public telephone books, business directories, search engines, or other places where it is reasonable for a business to maintain an informational presence of its existence and a description of the nature of the business.
What is not allowed
- Pop-up digital advertisements — 180(A)
- Delivery below the 85 percent threshold — 170(A)(i)
- The content list at 160
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
Section 180(A) expressly permits maintaining an informational presence in search engines and business directories, covering the facility's existence and a description of the nature of the business.
Virginia SEO and Website Advertising Laws
Section 180(B) enumerates what a website or social media site may display, and 190(C) imposes the age screen.
What is allowed
Under 180(B), a facility may display on its website or social media site: the name and location of the facility; contact information; hours and days open for dispensing; laboratory results; product information and pricing; directions to the facility; and educational materials regarding the use of cannabis products supported by substantial, current clinical evidence or data.
What is not allowed
- Operating a website or social media site without a neutral age-screening mechanism verifying the user is at least 18 — 190(C)
- Coupons and giveaways — 170(B)(2)
- The content list at 160
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement on advertising.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Pricing may be displayed under 180(B). Coupons and giveaways are prohibited under 170(B)(2).
Closing note
Section 180(B) is drafted as a list of what a facility may display, and Part IV does not state whether content outside the list is permitted. Map site content to the enumerated categories and take advice on anything beyond them. Note that pricing is expressly permitted while coupons are prohibited. Section 190(C) uses the word neutral and prescribes no mechanism; the Authority has published no guidance on what satisfies it.
Virginia Out of Home and DOOH Advertising Laws
Billboards and transit are closed. Premises signage is permitted with content limits.
What is allowed
Signs on the property of a medical cannabis facility. Under 170(D), such signs may be designed to assist patients, parents, legal guardians and registered agents to find the facility.
What is not allowed
- Any billboard advertisements, and advertising at any sporting event — 170(E)
- Advertising on or in a public transit vehicle, public transit shelter, bus stop, taxi stand, transportation waiting area, train station, airport, or any similar transit-related location — 170(F)
- Display of products or product images where the advertisement is visible to the public from any street, sidewalk, park or other public place — 170(B)(1)
- Signs on the facility's property displaying imagery of cannabis or the use of cannabis, or drawing undue attention to the facility — 170(D)
- Outdoor cannabis product advertising within the buffer — 170(C)
The buffer
Under 170(C), no outdoor cannabis product advertising within 500 linear feet on the same side of the road, and parallel to such road, measured from the nearest edge of the sign face to the nearest edge of a building or structure located on the real property of a school or daycare; a public or private playground or similar recreational or child-centred facility; or a substance use disorder treatment facility.
Two refinements: where there is no building or structure on a playground or similar recreational facility, measurement runs to the property line; and where a K-12 school is across the road from a sign, measurement runs to the nearest edge of a building or structure on that property across the road.
Required warnings and disclosures
Facility identification and the patients-only statement. Under 190(D), all outdoor signage must comply with local or state requirements.
Hotline number required
No.
Discounts and promotions on this channel
Not permitted.
Closing note
The buffer at 170(C) is linear rather than radial: 500 feet along the same side of the road, parallel to it, measured sign face to building edge. A radial exclusion will not match that geometry, so clear out of home sites by survey. Substance use disorder treatment facilities are named in the list and are generally absent from standard points-of-interest datasets.
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. Virginia applies the same rules to a facility's social media site as to its website: the permitted content categories at 180(B), and the neutral age-screening requirement at 190(C), which reaches any website or social media site owned, managed, or operated by the facility. Part IV does not address whether platform-level age controls satisfy 190(C), and the Authority has published no guidance. Document what age-restriction controls the platform makes available and how they are configured, and take advice on whether they satisfy the provision.
Audience Requirements for Cannabis Advertising in Virginia
What the Law Requires
Virginia uses two ages in Part IV. The audience threshold at 170(A)(i) and the age-screening requirement at 190(C) both use 18. The content tests at 160 use 21: no depiction of a person younger than 21 consuming cannabis, and the appeal-to-minors list is framed around individuals younger than 21.
Virginia's medical programme serves registered patients of any age, and patients younger than 21 may qualify.
Record which figure applies to which requirement when building a compliance checklist, since the two govern different provisions.
Audience Percentage Thresholds
85 percent aged 18 or older
Under 170(A)(i), a medical cannabis facility shall not advertise through any means unless at least 85 percent of the audience is reasonably expected to be 18 or older, as determined by reliable, up-to-date audience composition data.
"Through any means" reaches every channel without stated exception, including outdoor and premises signage.
Event sponsorship
Part IV sets no audience threshold specific to event sponsorship. Under 170(E), advertising at any sporting event is prohibited.
Where the burden sits
On the medical cannabis facility, to whom 170(A) attaches.
Age Gating and Consent
Websites and social media
Under 190(C), any website or social media site owned, managed or operated by a facility shall employ a neutral age-screening mechanism that verifies the user is at least 18 years of age, including an age-gate, age-screen or age verification mechanism. Part IV does not define "neutral" and prescribes no mechanism.
Direct communication
Part IV contains no separate age affirmation requirement for direct or individualized communication.
Location-based devices
Part IV contains no location-based device provision.
Established customers
Part IV contains no exception removing communications to existing patients from the requirements.
People Depicted in Ads
Under 160, no depiction of a person younger than 21 consuming cannabis, and no symbols, images, characters, public figures, phrases, toys or games commonly used to market to under-21s. The public figures limb reaches celebrity and influencer casting where that person is commonly used to market to a young audience.
Section 160 states no prohibition on depicting adult consumption and sets no minimum age for persons appearing in advertising. The audio limb extends the analysis to voice: no audio that may be attractive to under-21s, including children's voices or cartoon voices.
Geo Targeting Rules for Cannabis Advertising in Virginia
Restricted Locations and Buffer Distances
500 linear feet, measured along the road
The buffer at 170(C) is directional rather than radial: 500 linear feet on the same side of the road and parallel to such road, measured from the nearest edge of the sign face to the nearest edge of a building or structure on the protected property.
Protected facility types
Three: schools or daycares; public or private playgrounds or similar recreational or child-centred facilities; and substance use disorder treatment facilities.
The two measurement refinements
Where a playground or similar recreational facility has no building or structure, measurement runs to the property line. Where a K-12 school sits across the road from a sign, measurement runs to the nearest edge of a building or structure on that property.
Transit and events
All transit locations are closed under 170(F), and sporting events under 170(E). Billboards are prohibited entirely under 170(E).
Local requirements
Under 190(D), all outdoor signage must comply with local or state requirements.
Can You Run a Digital Out of Home Screen in Virginia?
Not as a billboard, which 170(E) prohibits, and not in any transit location under 170(F). A screen on the facility's own property is subject to 170(D), which prohibits imagery of cannabis or its use and prohibits drawing undue attention to the facility, and to 170(B)(1), which prohibits product imagery visible from public space.
Compliant Use of Geotargeting
- Do not model the buffer as a radius. Clear out of home sites by survey against the linear, same-side-of-road test, with the across-the-road provision applied to K-12 schools.
- Add substance use disorder treatment facilities to the exclusion dataset, since they are generally absent from standard points-of-interest lists.
- Use 18 for the audience threshold at 170(A)(i) and the age screen at 190(C), and 21 for the content tests at 160.
- Build the broadcast plan to the regular school hours window at 170(A)(ii), and obtain the Authority's position on whether it reaches streamed television.
- Exclude all transit locations under 170(F) and sporting events under 170(E).
- Plan for delivery into Maryland, the District of Columbia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky and West Virginia, each of which applies its own advertising rules.
Need Help Running Compliant Campaigns in Virginia?
Knowing the rules is step one. Building campaigns that stay inside them and still produce sales is the harder part. MediaJel runs compliant programmatic, CTV, paid search, paid social, and SEO for Virginia pharmaceutical processors, dispensing facilities, brands, and MSOs, and ties every campaign to real online and in-store transactions through DataJel.
What Are the Recreational and Medical Marijuana Rules in Virginia?
Medical, in force now. Virginia's programme operates through pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities, regulated by the Cannabis Control Authority under 3VAC10. Registered patients may receive up to a 90-day supply, and patients younger than 21 may qualify, which is the context for the advertising rules using 18 for audience and screening. Delivery to patients and registered agents is permitted through defined operators.
Adult use, possession only. Adults 21 and older may possess up to two ounces in public. There is no lawful retail channel.
Retail, arriving July 1, 2027. House Bill 30, enacted June 29, 2026, established the commercial framework, with retail sales to begin July 1, 2027 and licence applications opening February 1, 2027 for microbusinesses, for cultivator and processor licences for eligible hemp businesses, and for dual-use permits for pharmaceutical processors. The Authority released draft regulations on September 9, 2026 and must adopt final regulations by February 1, 2027.
The retail regulations are not adopted, so no retail advertising rules are in force. The September draft also rewrites the medical rules at 3VAC10-40 and the rules for regulated hemp product retail facilities, so the provisions described on this page are themselves subject to that process. Track the Authority's rulemaking rather than assuming the current medical rules carry across unchanged.
What Are the Hemp and CBD Rules in Virginia?
Who regulates hemp here
Regulation of hemp-derived products transferred from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to the Cannabis Control Authority, with the Authority vested with VDACS's powers and duties effective July 1, 2026. Hemp and cannabis now sit with one regulator.
Non-intoxicating hemp and CBD
Permitted, subject to the Authority's requirements. New requirements for hemp products took effect August 15, 2026.
Intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids
Hemp-derived intoxicating cannabinoids exceeding the total THC threshold are restricted from general retail sale, with a transition period for existing inventory. The 2026 legislation extended earlier measures on delta-8 and total-THC limits alongside the retail framework. The federal definition of hemp narrows in November 2026.
What it means for advertising
With hemp and cannabis under one regulator, confirm which framework applies to each product under the current rules rather than assuming hemp falls outside 3VAC10. Classify against the total THC threshold before building a media plan. Note that the September 2026 draft also rewrites the rules for regulated hemp product retail facilities.
Virginia Legislation and Source Regulations
Every statement on this page traces to one of the following:
- 3VAC10-40, Part IV, Advertising, comprising 3VAC10-40-160 general provisions, 170 prohibited practices, 180 permitted practices and 190 advertising requirements, effective January 1, 2024 and amended effective February 10, 2025, January 14, 2026 and March 9, 2026
- Va. Code Sections 4.1-601, 4.1-604, 4.1-606 and 4.1-1602, the statutory authority for Part IV
- House Bill 30, 2026 Session, establishing the retail marijuana framework
- Virginia Cannabis Control Authority
This page reflects the medical rules in force. The Authority's September 9, 2026 draft would rewrite those rules alongside introducing retail and hemp retail provisions, with final regulations due by February 1, 2027. Re-verify this page once they are adopted.
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.
Click on Your State to View Cannabis Advertising Laws
Advertising rules differ in every jurisdiction. Select a state to see its full breakdown.