Is Kratom Legal in New York? Age 21 and 7-OH Rules (2026)

Kratom is not a controlled substance in New York: kratom leaf, mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) do not appear in the state drug schedules in Public Health Law 3306, so possessing kratom is not a drug offense. New York regulates sales instead: since June 17, 2026, Public Health Law 1399-xx has barred selling or providing kratom to anyone under 21, with a civil penalty of up to $500, and from December 19, 2026, General Business Law 398-g requires labels stating each product's mitragynine and 7-OH content. A separate bill to ban high-7-OH products passed both houses of the Legislature in June 2026 but is not law. For other states, see our guide to kratom laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-11. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers New York state law: Public Health Law 1399-xx (kratom sales to people under 21), General Business Law 398-g (kratom labels), the Public Health Law 3306 drug schedules and Penal Law Article 220 as they relate to kratom, the 2025 and 2026 kratom chapters, and the status of the 2026 7-OH bill (S8925A/A9156B), with one paragraph on federal law. It does not cover county or city rules, workplace or school policies, military rules, or other states' laws.

Is kratom legal in New York?

New York regulates kratom as a consumer product rather than as a drug. Schedules I to V in Public Health Law 3306 contain no entry for kratom, mitragynine or 7-OH. Penal Law 220.00(5) defines a "controlled substance" as a substance listed in those schedules, and the Article 220 possession and sale offenses apply only to controlled substances. Kratom is outside that chain.

What New York law does regulate is the sale of kratom. Two statutes, first enacted on December 19, 2025 and revised by chapter amendments signed on February 13, 2026, govern sellers:

• Age limit: Public Health Law 1399-xx bars selling or providing kratom to anyone under 21, in force since June 17, 2026.
• Labels: General Business Law 398-g requires a detailed label on every kratom product sold at retail, starting December 19, 2026.

Both are civil laws. They set fines that an agency or court can impose on a seller, not criminal charges, and neither one makes it an offense for an adult to possess kratom.

Counties and cities may adopt their own rules on kratom sales, and a local rule can be stricter than state law. State law still applies everywhere in New York, so check with your county health department for any local rule where you live or sell.

What New York law treats as kratom

Public Health Law 1399-xx(1)(d) defines kratom broadly. It covers any part of the plant Mitragyna speciosa, whether growing or not, and also:

"any compound, manufacture, derivative, mixture, salt or preparation of such plant or synthesized or semi-synthesized preparations of mitragynine or 7-hydroxymitragynine, their derivatives, salts, esters, and isomers." (N.Y. Pub. Health Law 1399-xx(1)(d))

General Business Law 398-g(1) uses the same definition for the labeling law. Because of that wording, the age rule and the label rule reach lab-made or chemically altered 7-OH and mitragynine products, not only plant material.

Section 1399-xx sits in Article 13-I of the Public Health Law, created by Chapter 81 of the Laws of 2026. Older sources may cite Public Health Law 1399-mmm, where the age rule first appeared; Chapter 81 repealed that section effective June 17, 2026.

Kratom age limit in New York: 21

Section 1399-xx(2) states the rule:

"No person or kratom business shall knowingly sell or provide kratom to any other person under twenty-one years of age." (N.Y. Pub. Health Law 1399-xx(2))

Sellers also have duties at the counter. Under Section 1399-xx(3)(a), anyone offering kratom for sale must post a sign in a conspicuous place reading "SALE OF KRATOM TO PERSONS UNDER TWENTY-ONE YEARS OF AGE IS PROHIBITED BY LAW". Section 1399-xx(3)(b) requires sellers to sell only to a person who shows a valid identification of a type the section lists (a driver's license or non-driver ID, a passport, a U.S. armed forces ID, or another photo ID issued by a government or an educational institution) showing that the person is at least 21. Identification is not required for someone who reasonably appears to be at least 25, but appearance is not a defense to a violation.

The rule took effect on June 17, 2026. Chapter 690 of the Laws of 2025 first enacted it to take effect immediately; Chapter 81 of the Laws of 2026 changed the effective date to the 180th day after Chapter 690 became law.

New York kratom labeling law (from December 19, 2026)

General Business Law 398-g, enacted by Chapter 655 of the Laws of 2025 and revised before taking effect by Chapter 12 of the Laws of 2026, takes effect December 19, 2026. From that date, no one may manufacture, distribute, sell or offer for retail sale in New York a product containing kratom unless its package carries a label with:

• the name and address of the manufacturer or distributor;
• the full list of ingredients;
• quantitative declarations of the amount of mitragynine and the amount of 7-hydroxymitragynine, "by part, weight or volume of the kratom product";
• a statement of whether the product contains a semi-synthesized or synthesized compound;
• disclosures, in the section's words, "that sale or distribution by individuals who are under twenty-one years of age is prohibited under the public health law," and disclosures that use by people who are pregnant or breastfeeding is not advised, that kratom may be addictive, that it may interact with certain medications, drugs and controlled substances, and that consumers should consult a healthcare professional before use; and
• the statements on FDA status and child safety that the section sets out.

The duty reaches manufacturers, distributors and retail sellers alike. Section 398-g(3) sets the penalty: "a civil penalty of not more than five hundred dollars for a first violation and not more than one thousand dollars for a second or subsequent violation."

Is 7-OH legal in New York?

7-OH is not a controlled substance in New York, and no enacted New York law caps the amount of 7-OH in a kratom product. 7-OH is not listed in the Public Health Law 3306 schedules. The two kratom statutes in force reach 7-OH products through their definition of kratom, so the age-21 rule applies to them now, and from December 19, 2026, labels must state each product's 7-OH content.

A 7-OH sales ban is pending, not law. S8925A (Senator Ryan) and its Assembly companion A9156B (Assemblymember Steck) would add a new General Business Law 392-l barring any business entity or online platform doing business in New York from knowingly selling, offering for sale or delivering "7-hydroxymitragynine products." The bill defines those as:

"ANY SUBSTANCE, MATERIAL, MIXTURE, COMPOUND, PREPARATION, EXTRACT, OR FINISHED GOODS THAT CONTAINS 7-HYDROXYMITRAGYNINE AT A LEVEL THAT EXCEEDS TWO PERCENT OF TOTAL ALKALOIDS OR ONE MILLIGRAM PER SERVING." (S8925A, proposed N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law 392-l(1); capitals as in the bill text, which marks new material)

As passed, the bill sets civil penalties of up to $500 for a first violation and $1,000 for each later one, recovered by the Attorney General, and takes effect on the 90th day after it becomes law. It is a ceiling on 7-OH content, not a ban on kratom leaf.

The Senate passed S8925A on June 2, 2026 and the Assembly passed it on June 5, 2026. On October 12, 2026, the Senate bill page showed no delivery to the Governor and no signature, and the consolidated General Business Law contained no Section 392-l. A bill that has passed both houses becomes law only when the Governor signs it, so S8925A does not bind anyone unless and until that happens. Check the S8925A bill page for its current status.

A separate bill, S9322 (Senator Palumbo), would add 7-hydroxymitragynine to Schedule I of Public Health Law 3306. It was introduced and sent to the Senate Health Committee on February 27, 2026, remains in that committee, and is not law.

Penalties for violating New York kratom laws

Under Section 1399-xx(4), the civil penalty is imposed by the enforcement officer after a hearing. Section 1399-xx(1)(c) defines the enforcement officer as the city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene in a city with a population over one million, and the State Department of Health everywhere else. Section 1399-xx(5) also allows injunctive relief.

The Governor's office described the age rule's penalty in its December 22, 2025 release: "anyone selling kratom to individuals under 21 years of age can face a fine of up to $500 for each offense." Neither statute contains a criminal tier, a felony or an intent-to-defraud enhancement.

Recent changes to New York kratom law (2025 to 2026)

• December 19, 2025: Governor Hochul signed S4552A/A2340A as Chapter 690 of the Laws of 2025 (the age-21 rule, first enacted as Public Health Law 1399-mmm, effective immediately) and S8285/A5852A as Chapter 655 of the Laws of 2025 (the General Business Law 398-g labeling law, effective one year after it became law). The Governor's office announced both in a release dated December 22, 2025.
• February 13, 2026: S8814 was signed as Chapter 81 of the Laws of 2026. This chapter amendment moved the age rule into new Article 13-I as Section 1399-xx, repealed Section 1399-mmm and the kratom study Chapter 690 had assigned to the Health Commissioner, and set the effective date at the 180th day after Chapter 690 became law.
• February 13, 2026: A9443/S8780 was signed as Chapter 12 of the Laws of 2026. This chapter amendment to Chapter 655 revised the kratom definition and the label disclosures in General Business Law 398-g and extended the labeling duty beyond manufacturers to any person, firm, partnership, association or corporation. It takes effect with Section 398-g on December 19, 2026.
• June 2 and June 5, 2026: the Senate and then the Assembly passed S8925A/A9156B, the 7-OH sales bill. It is not law (see above).
• June 17, 2026: Public Health Law 1399-xx took effect and Section 1399-mmm was repealed.
• December 19, 2026: General Business Law 398-g takes effect.

New York health warnings on kratom and 7-OH

The New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) published a fact sheet titled "New Fact Sheet On The Impacts of Kratom and 7-OH" on May 20, 2026, under the heading "Kratom is Unregulated, and not FDA-approved." The fact sheet states that kratom is not FDA-approved and has no mandatory quality control. The New York State Department of Health also maintains a page titled "Caution: Safety Information for Kratom Products."

Federal kratom status

Federal law is a separate layer. In the October 6, 2026 version of 21 CFR Part 1308, kratom leaf, mitragynine and 7-OH are not listed. A DEA temporary order effective August 26, 2026 placed only three semi-synthetic compounds (mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15 and MGM-16) in Schedule I. Two new DEA notices of intent, both filed for public inspection on October 9, 2026 and scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on October 14, 2026, would change that. The first (FR Doc. 2026-20943) would temporarily place 7-OH and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl in Schedule I only when either one, or both combined, is above a threshold: more than 1 mg per gram for solid forms or 1 mg per milliliter for liquids, or a product in which the mass of mitragynine divided by the mass of those compounds is less than 100. That notice states that DEA is withdrawing its July 2026 notice of intent on 7-OH (91 FR 40917) in a separate document. The second (FR Doc. 2026-20942) would issue a new temporary order keeping MGM-15 and MGM-16 in Schedule I without change, for the technical purpose of separating them from mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. A notice of intent is not an order, and DEA says neither new temporary order will be issued before 30 days after the notices are published. The August 26, 2026 order remains in effect until it expires or the new temporary orders replace it, whichever comes first. New York's schedules are set out in Public Health Law 3306 itself, and the Health Commissioner's rule power under Section 3308(2) is to supplement the article; Section 3306 contains no entry for the three federally scheduled compounds. The FDA's position is that kratom is not lawfully marketed as a drug product, a dietary supplement or a food additive in conventional food. The kratom laws by state hub covers the federal layer in full.

Kratom and driving in New York

New York's drug-impaired driving offense, Vehicle and Traffic Law 1192(4), applies to impairment "by the use of a drug as defined in this chapter." Section 114-a defines "drug" as "any substance listed in section thirty-three hundred six of the public health law and cannabis and concentrated cannabis as defined in section 222.00 of the penal law." Kratom is not listed in Section 3306. See New York DWI laws for the impaired-driving offenses and penalties.

Related

• Kratom laws by state
• Are magic mushrooms legal in New York? Psilocybin laws
• New York DWI laws

Disclaimer: This article presents general legal information about New York state law as of 2026-10-11. It is not legal advice. For a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in New York or the New York State Department of Health.

Last updated: 2026-10-12.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is kratom legal in New York?

Kratom is not a controlled substance in New York: it is not listed in the Public Health Law 3306 schedules. New York regulates sales instead, barring sales to anyone under 21 (Public Health Law 1399-xx) and requiring labels from December 19, 2026 (General Business Law 398-g). Counties and cities may adopt their own, stricter rules on kratom sales, and state law still applies everywhere, so check with your county health department.

What is the kratom age limit in New York?

The minimum age is 21. Since June 17, 2026, Public Health Law 1399-xx bars knowingly selling or providing kratom to anyone under 21, with a civil penalty of up to $500 per violation.

Is 7-OH banned in New York?

Not under current law. 7-OH is not in New York's drug schedules. S8925A/A9156B, which would ban selling products with 7-OH above 2% of total alkaloids or 1 milligram per serving, passed both houses in June 2026, but the Senate bill page showed no signature by the Governor on October 12, 2026.

When does the New York kratom labeling law take effect?

General Business Law 398-g takes effect December 19, 2026. From that date a kratom product sold in New York must carry a label that includes the amounts of mitragynine and 7-OH, with civil penalties of up to $500 for a first violation and $1,000 for later ones.

What is the penalty for selling kratom to someone under 21 in New York?

After a hearing, the enforcement officer may impose a civil penalty of up to $500 under Public Health Law 1399-xx(4). Each day a seller fails to post the required age sign is a separate violation.

Is it a crime to possess kratom in New York?

No New York statute makes kratom possession an offense. The Penal Law drug possession offenses cover only controlled substances listed in Public Health Law 3306, and kratom, mitragynine and 7-OH are not listed there.

What happened to Public Health Law 1399-mmm?

Section 1399-mmm, the first home of the age-21 rule, was repealed effective June 17, 2026 by Chapter 81 of the Laws of 2026, which moved the rule into new Section 1399-xx.

Is kratom federally illegal?

Kratom leaf, mitragynine and 7-OH are not listed in 21 CFR Part 1308 in the October 6, 2026 eCFR. A DEA temporary order placed three semi-synthetic kratom-related compounds in Schedule I from August 26, 2026. DEA's two new notices of intent (FR Docs. 2026-20943 and 2026-20942), scheduled for Federal Register publication on October 14, 2026, would set a threshold for 7-OH and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl and keep MGM-15 and MGM-16 in Schedule I; the 7-OH notice states that DEA is withdrawing its July 2026 7-OH notice. A notice of intent is not an order.