Connecting with a Shopify CBD payment processor gives you the ability to accept credit card payments on your online store. If your business sells items like hemp, CBD, or delta-8, you’ll need a custom merchant account to process transactions through your ecommerce site.

Does Shopify Allow CBD?

CBD is considered a banned substance for Shopify Pay , but you can sell it through a Shopify store using high risk payment processors. High risk processors understand the subtleties involved with opening a bank account for businesses in unique verticals. Moreover, they share all of the details and legal regulations around payment processing in your industry.

On your Shopify store, you can sell many different types of products including hemp-derived CBD. Shopify only limits you based on the laws of the places you are selling. In fact they say, “When you sell hemp and hemp-derived products through Shopify, you need to comply with the laws and regulations that apply to your business.”

How To Get A CBD Merchant Account for Shopify

To get a CBD merchant account that you can use through your Shopify store, you’ll have to get in touch with alternative payment processors. Mainstream ones like PayPal, Square, and Stripe are considered low-risk processors. This means that they ban the sale of many items through their store. These items and services include adult products , CBD, Firearms , nutraceuticals and more.

The alternative is to contact a company with a history in CBD payment processing. Your first step is to fill out a short merchant application . There you’ll enter your business information, payment processing history, and share documents about ownership of the business. After submitting the application, their underwriting team creates a package with all your information to send to the bank.

Instant Approval CBD Merchant Account

Getting your application for a CBD merchant account instantly approved means you’ll have the ability to process payments immediately. If your application is in full working order and your website is in compliance with all of the regulation the underwriting team requires, then you can get approved fast.

If you’re waiting for payment processing at other companies, then there may be an issue with your compliance. Often this is due to either what you’re selling, or your business history. For example, if you sell marijuana products in a state that hasn’t approved their sale, you may be asked to omit these products from your website in order to obtain a merchant account.

Additionally, new companies with limited history have a more difficult time getting their applications approved rapidly. As a result merchant account providers will often charge an increased fee to hedge risk against the possibility that your company may have increased chargebacks or low revenue. High Risk Merchant Account Instant Approval

Selling Hemp Online

There are a few baseline standards for selling hemp products online when it comes to payment processing. The first is that your products should have COAs or Certificates of Analysis. These will certify the level of THC in the products you offer. According to the 2018 Farm Bill , they should not exceed. 0.3% for items that are labeled as CBD.

Hemp products are also categorized by their relevance to the marijuana or culturally related items. For example, a shirt company that sells tank tops with hemp leaves is considered marijuana-related and will be reviewed according to their messaging and brand reputation.