So far this year, Health Canada has approved 11 new micro licenses and four new standard licenses, revoked 37 licenses, listed two as expired, and one as suspended.

The number of cannabis licence revocations has been increasing in recent years. There were 106 such revocations in 2024, compared to 101 new licences issued. Sixty-two of those new licenses were micro cultivators and/or processors, while 36 were standards, and three were cannabis nurseries. 

The majority of revocations are at the request of the licence holder, while a few were revoked at the request of the Health Minister. 

There are currently 893 active cannabis licences listed by Health Canada, down from 914 in early January. 

Licence revocations and expirations are common in the lead-up to tax time in April, as producers looking to exit the market will want to exit before a new filing season for their taxes and other associated annual fees. 

In addition, following Health Canada’s change to the federal regulations, expanding the canopy and processing capacity for micro cultivators and processors, 26 standard licence holders have already been listed as shifting to a micro licence. Ten of those changes were noted for the week ended March 21, and another 16 were listed on March 28. 

Micro licences have been the most popular licence type for several years in a row, likely due to their lower costs and approval times.

While micro cultivation, micro processing, and nursery licensees pay an annual $2,500 regulatory fee to Health Canada, standard cultivation, standard processing, and sale for medical purposes licensees pay $23,000. And, while micros pay 1% of their revenues on sales up to $1 million (and 2.3% on any revenue over $1 million), standards pay a flat 2.3%.

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