%20(3).png)
Getting licensed (application through proximity protection)
This section covers the requirements that apply from submitting a New York cannabis license application through the issuance of proximity protection. It explains the elements OCM reviews to determine whether an application can proceed, including license type, ownership and disclosure, zoning eligibility, municipal notice, and application completeness. This section applies before buildout, inspections, or opening.
What this section covers
This section provides guidance on:
- Choosing the correct license type
- Meeting ownership, eligibility, and disclosure requirements
- Confirming zoning eligibility and completing required municipal notice
- Understanding how the application process is reviewed through provisional approval and proximity protection
Use the sections below to understand what applies to your situation.
License types and what they allow you to do
New York offers multiple adult-use cannabis license types, each with specific permissions and limits.
License types include
- Cultivator
- Processor
- Distributor
- Retail dispensary
- Delivery
- Microbusiness
- Cooperative
- Nursery
- On-site consumption (pending)
- Registered Organization pathways
- Conditional licenses
What license type determines
Each license type determines:
- What activities you may legally perform
- Whether you may hold other licenses
- How your business may operate
This section answers:
- Which license matches your business model
- Whether you can hold more than one license
→ View Adult- Use License Types
Ownership, eligibility, and equity rules
OCM reviews who owns, controls, and benefits from the business, not just whose name appears on the application.
What you must understand
- Who is eligible to apply
- Who must be disclosed
- How True Parties of Interest (TPI) rules work
- How Social and Economic Equity (SEE) requirements affect control and ownership
Mistakes in ownership or disclosure commonly result in denial or stalled review.
This section answers:
- Whether justice-involved applicants may apply
- Who must be disclosed to OCM
- Who is prohibited from investing
- What majority SEE control actually means
→ View Eligibility, Ownership & Equity Rules
Zoning, location, and municipal notice
Licensing is tied to a physical location.
Before proximity protection can be issued
You must confirm that:
- The location is allowed under local zoning
- State buffer rules are met (schools, houses of worship, other dispensaries)
- Required municipal notice has been sent 30–270 days before applying
Failure to meet any of these requirements can block licensure, even if the application is otherwise complete.
This section answers:
- Whether your location is legally eligible
- Whether local zoning allows retail cannabis
- Whether and when you must notify the municipality
- Whether a community board or local government can block your site
→ View Local Zoning and Municipal Notice Rules
How the application process works (application through proximity protection)
Licensing follows a defined sequence. Approval is not automatic.
What OCM reviews during this phase
- Eligibility and disclosures
- Municipal notice
- Application materials
- Provisional approval status
- Location eligibility for proximity protection
Missing documents, incorrect timing, or unresolved issues can stall or prevent progress.
This section answers:
- What documents must be submitted
- What triggers denial or delay
- What happens after submission
- What a provisional license means in practice
→ View the Application Process
Why this matters
Most operators fail before proximity protection, not because their business is unsound, but because:
- Ownership structure violated TPI rules
- The site was not legal under zoning or buffer requirements
- Municipal notice was missing or improperly filed
- The application was incomplete or timed out
Understanding these rules helps you avoid
- Denials for undisclosed owners
- Location rejections and lost deposits
- Municipal notice errors that invalidate applications
- Losing SEE priority due to broken control requirements
- Provisional approvals that stall and expire
