Legality
What happens on November 13, 2026?
Written by: Author pendingReviewed by: Reviewer pendingUpdated:
Nothing automatically. November 13 is the earliest date DEA may publish a temporary order placing 7-hydroxymitragynine and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl above 1 mg per gram or milliliter, or below a 100-to-1 mitragynine ratio, in Schedule I for two years (91 FR 65370).
What did the October 14 notice say?
DEA's reissued notice of intent, docket DEA-1570, states that a temporary scheduling order "will be published in the Federal Register on or after November 13, 2026," would last two years with a possible one-year extension, and would apply to products exceeding 1 mg of 7-OH or pseudoindoxyl per gram (solids) or per milliliter (liquids), or whose mitragynine-to-7-OH mass ratio "is less than 100" (91 FR 65370).
What would the order not cover?
Kratom leaf and mitragynine. Neither is proposed for control; mitragynine appears only in the ratio test. A leaf-derived extract whose laboratory report shows 7-OH not detected with a stated limit of quantitation sits below both prongs. MGM-15 and MGM-16 are already Schedule I at any concentration under the 2026-08-26 order and are handled in a separate reissued notice (91 FR 54948).
Could the order come later, or not at all?
Yes to both. "On or after" sets a floor, not a date. The notice can also be withdrawn or reissued, as the July notice was. The research found no litigation pending against the October notice.
What does this store do on that day?
Its Federal Register watcher reads DEA and FDA documents daily and is seeded with docket DEA-1570. A published order with an effective date schedules the matching product class for removal on that date; products not in that class are unaffected. The federal scheduling timeline has every prior step, and the legality hub shows the federal status card and the change log.
General information, not personalized guidance.
Sources
- 91 FR 65370, notice of intent (October 14, 2026) Federal Register via GovInfo (accessed 2026-10-20)
- 91 FR 54948, temporary scheduling order (August 26, 2026) Federal Register via GovInfo (accessed 2026-10-20)
Related questions
What is the 1 mg per gram 7-OH threshold?
The line in DEA's October 14, 2026 notice: a product becomes a Schedule I article if it holds more than 1 mg of 7-OH or mitragynine pseudoindoxyl per gram (solid) or per...
Is kratom a federally controlled substance?
No, as of 2026-10-20. Kratom leaf and mitragynine are not scheduled; three related compounds (mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15 and MGM-16) have been Schedule I since 2026-08-26...
Is 7-OH the same thing as kratom?
No. 7-OH is 7-hydroxymitragynine, one alkaloid that DEA says makes up "less than two percent of the total alkaloid content" of the plant; products sold as "7-OH" are concentrated...