Cannabis in Washington

On January 8, 2026, the District announced its 100th closure of an unlicensed gifting shop, counting from September 2024, which is the clearest sign that the grey market is being cleared away.

Retail channel

Medical-program retailers only

Regulator

Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA)

Visitor entry

Temporary registration at myabca.dc.gov, or an out-of-state medical card plus photo ID

Virginia residents

Need a practitioner's written certification, per ABCA

Why there is no adult-use shop

Initiative 71 took effect in 2015 and lets adults 21 and up possess two ounces, grow six plants and give away an ounce. It never allowed sales, and Congress has kept the Council from setting up a retail market. Gifting shops filled the gap, selling a sticker and giving a bag. They are not licensed. Since 2023 the Council has offered them a route into the medical program, and ABCA used enforcement powers written into law in 2024 to shut those that did not apply. The National Mall and other federal land sit outside Initiative 71.

Reading the 77 addresses

Every Verdex entry carries an ABCA licence number; the question is whether it is live, and the licence-check guide shows the lookup. Georgia Avenue NW is the spine: Apple Dream Dispensary at 2826, All Vybez DC at 3011, All The Buzz at 3232. Others sit on Mount Pleasant Street and 14th Street NW, Aligned is on Macomb Street, and Anacostia Organics is east of the river on Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE. Virginians crossing over can read why in Virginia rules.