Stripe CBD / Shopify Payments CBD

It's been a long journey, but your online CBD business is ready to go live! Getting your products ready, arranging your fulfillment logistics and creating your customer service procedures aren't your only hurdles; how do you get set up for payments? If you are planning on using popular payment platforms such as Stripe or Shopify Payments, not so fast! Will they accept your online store that sells products with CBD or THC?

The short answer is no. Both Stripe and Shopify Payments have policies on the products or services that they consider "Restricted" or "Prohibited". There are a wide range of businesses that are restricted or prohibited in their guidelines, but unfortunately, CBD/THC products are among them. Here is a list of what falls under Stripe's Prohibited and Restricted businesses:

Illegal products and services

- Illegal drugs, substances designed to mimic illegal drugs, and equipment designed for making or using drugs.

- Fake references or ID-providing services.

- Telecommunications manipulation equipment, including jamming devices

- Any business or organization that: engages in, encourages, promotes or celebrates unlawful violence or physical harm to persons or property or engages in, encourages, promotes or celebrates unlawful violence toward any group based on race, religion, disability, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, or any other immutable characteristic.

- Any other products or services that are in violation of law in the jurisdictions where your business is located or targeted to.

Products and services that infringe intellectual property rights

- Sales or distribution of music, movies, software, or any other licensed materials without  authorization.

-Counterfeit goods; illegally imported or exported products.

- Unauthorized sale of brand name or designer products or services.

- Any other products or services that directly infringe or facilitate infringement upon the trademark, patent, copyright, trade secrets, proprietary or privacy rights of any third party.

Products and services that are unfair, predatory, or deceptive

- Pyramid schemes

- ‘Get rich quick’ schemes including: investment opportunities or other services that promise high rewards to mislead consumers; schemes that claim to offer high rewards for very little effort or up front work; sites that promise fast and easy money; businesses that make outrageous claims, use deceptive testimonials, use high-pressure upselling, and/or use fake testimonials; (with or without a written contract) offering unrealistic incentives/rewards as an inducement to purchase products or services but do not respond to any queries after the purchase.

 - No value-added services, including sale or resale of a service without added benefit to the buyer and resale of government offerings without authorization or added value.

 - Sales of online traffic or engagement

 - Negative response marketing and telemarketing.

 - Predatory mortgage consulting, lending, credit repair and counseling services.

 - Predatory investment opportunities with no or low money down.

 - Remote technical support; mugshot publication or pay-to-remove sites; essay mills; chain letters; door-to-door sales.

 - Any other businesses that Stripe considers unfair, deceptive, or predatory towards consumers.

 Adult content and services

- Pornography and other mature audience content (including literature, imagery and other media) depicting nudity or explicit sexual acts.

- Adult services including prostitution, escorts, pay-per-view, sexual massages, and adult live chat features.

- Adult video stores

- Gentleman's clubs, topless bars, and strip clubs.

Certain legal services

 - Law firms collecting funds for purposes other than legal service fee payment.

 - Bankruptcy attorneys

 - Bail bonds

Firearms, explosives and dangerous materials

- Guns, gunpowders, ammunitions, weapons, fireworks and other explosives

 - Peptides, research chemicals, and other toxic, flammable and radioactive materials

Gambling

- Games of chance including gambling, internet gambling, sweepstakes and contests, fantasy sports leagues with for a monetary or material prize

- Sports forecasting or odds making with a monetary or material prize

- Lotteries

- Bidding fee auctions

Marijuana

- Cannabis products

- Cannabis dispensaries and related businesses

- Products containing any amount of CBD/THC

As seen above, CBD/THC fall under the category of "Marijuana". So what do you do now? Do you close shop and give up on your dream of selling CBD/THC products? Or do you find a way around the restrictions to bring your business to life? The answer is simple: find another payment platform that will accept your products.

There are many restrictions when it comes to selling CBD/THC products. What you need is someone who will guide you through regulation challenges. CBD has been an emerging market for the last few years, and the popularity of CBD products continues to increase each day. Knowing how to market your products to stay within regulations is very important for the longevity of your business. If you want to learn more about CBD, here is a helpful guide that will help you get started: CBD Regulations to Keep an Eye On. The legalities of the industry are constantly changing and it’s important to stay up-to-date on regulations so that your business is compliant. You don’t want to risk losing your hard-earned money by selling products that are not legally allowed.

In terms of payments, why does Stripe or Shopify Payments not allow CBD products? Both companies have strict regulations for selling CBD products. We can’t go into specifics about why Stripe or Shopify Payments don’t allow CBD products, but what we can tell you is that they are very careful when it comes to compliance. They want to ensure that all businesses using their platforms are in line with regulations so they don’t get hit with fines or lose their ability to process payments. In general, a CBD/THC business is considered high-risk and certain risk protocols must be in place for a payment processor to accept your business and the type of products that you sell. 

Luckily, Redde Payments is a full-service payment processor that specializes in working with businesses that sell CBD products. This means that we have the tools and expertise to help you navigate the complex regulations surrounding CBD. The first step is to apply for a merchant account. Redde will help you throughout this process and provide all the information you will need. Once you have your merchant account, we will set up a payment gateway for you with a large range of website integrations for your website.

Get started here and feel free to chat with us about CBD!