Cannabis Retail - Modifications to Existing Licences/Authorizations and/or Changes to Information

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Removing a Condition on a Cannabis Licence/Authorization

If you have a condition(s) on your CROL, CRML, and/or CRSA, and circumstances have changed, you may apply to have a condition removed. Depending on the manner in which the condition was added to your licence and/or authorization you will be required to apply to either the Registrar of the AGCO or the Licence Appeal Tribunal.

You may apply to the Registrar to have a condition on your licence and/or authorization removed if:

  • The condition was imposed on a licence/authorization by the Registrar with your consent pursuant to the Cannabis Licence Act, 2018.
  • The condition was imposed on the licence/authorization by the Registrar as part of the AGCO’s risk-based licensing process. Risk-based licensing conditions can only be removed if the Registrar determines that the risk designation is no longer necessary. 

Please note that the Registrar will only consider removing a condition if the circumstances that required it have changed and it is deemed to no longer be necessary. To request a removal of conditions, you must log into iAGCO, select "Request a Change", select the appropriate licence and/or authorization and select "Removal of Condition(s) on Consent" to submit all relevant information and supporting documentation.

You may apply to the LAT to have a condition on your licence and/or authorization removed if:

  • The condition was imposed by a panel of the LAT after a hearing

In this case, you must consult the LAT website for the applicable forms and process.

Changing Legal Entity Type

Cannabis licences and/or authorizations are non-transferable. If you are the holder of a CROL and/or CRSA and would like to change your legal entity type (for example, sole proprietor to a corporation) you must submit a new application and pay the applicable fees.

For information on how to update any impacted RSAs to the new entity, please see the Transferring a Retail Store Authorization section.

Corporate Structure Changes

To notify the AGCO of corporate structure changes as outlined in the Registrar’s Standards for Cannabis Retail Stores, you must log into iAGCO, select “Request a Change”, select the appropriate CROL and select “Corporate Structure Update” to submit all relevant information and supporting documentation, including disclosure.

New Sources of Funding and/or Agreements

The holder of a CROL is required to notify the Registrar within five (5) business days of entering into any agreements or of any new sources of funds used to support the operations of their cannabis business.

To disclose third party agreements or new sources of funds, you must log into iAGCO, select "Request a Change", select the appropriate CROL and select "New and/or Changes to Agreements or Sources of Funds" to submit all relevant information and supporting documentation.

Adding and/or Changing Names

Licensees are reminded that their store’s operating name must match what is set out on the CRSA per the Registrar’s Standards for Cannabis Retail Stores.

If the licensee is a corporation, partnership or sole proprietorship, its business trade (operating) name may have to be registered under the Business Names Act. For information and forms, please see the Ontario.ca Central Forms Repository. Forms must be forwarded to the Companies and Personal Property Security Branch for processing.

Note:

  • CRML holders changing their legal name should submit this change in relation to their CRML.
  • CROL holders changing the name of the legal entity should submit this change in relation to their CROL and any CRSA they hold.
  • CROL holders changing the operating name of their store must submit this change in relation to their CRSA. 

To request name change, you must log into iAGCO, select "Request a Change", select the appropriate licence and/or authorization and select "Adding and/or Changing Names" to submit all relevant information and supporting documentation.

Request to Cancel a(n) Licence/Authorization

The Registrar may cancel a licence or authorization if the holder makes a request to the Registrar in writing and surrenders the licence or authorization.

If you are a licensed operator permanently closing an authorized store, in addition to notifying the AGCO of the permanent closure through the notification matrix, you must also submit a separate request to cancel your authorization.

To request a cancellation of your licence and/or authorization, you must log into iAGCO, select "Request a Change", select the appropriate licence or authorization and select "Request to Cancel" to submit the request and to provide the required documentation.

Note:

  • If the holder of both a CROL and CRSA wants to cancel their CROL, they must submit a request to cancel and surrender each CRSA to the Registrar together with the CROL.
  • Prior to the cancellation of an RSA, the holder must ensure that any cannabis left unsold or undistributed is sold, transferred or destroyed. This means that there must not be any cannabis in the store and the store’s inventory levels must be reported as zero or null in the point-of-sale system.
  • If the licensee is a corporation, a board resolution confirming the decision to cancel may be required.

Sale of Cannabis to Another RSA Holder

A CRSA holder who has requested a cancellation of their CRSA may sell their cannabis to one other CRSA holder if certain conditions are met. Written notice of the sale must be provided by the RSA holder that is selling the cannabis as part of their Request to Cancel an Authorization Amendment.

Neither authorization may be under suspension, and no proposal to revoke or suspend either authorization or the CROL associated with either CRSA, may have been issued.

Both the RSA holder selling and purchasing the cannabis will receive written correspondence from the AGCO advising as to whether either of the authorizations are under suspension or whether a proposal to revoke or suspend either RSA or ROL has been issued.

Both CRSA holders must accurately document the sale and purchase of cannabis in their respective point-of-sale systems. For more information refer to:

Transferring a Retail Store Authorization

A cannabis retail store authorization may be applied to be transferred from one Cannabis Retail Operator Licence (CROL) holder to another holder of a CROL. The transfer application will be reviewed and approved by the Registrar if the eligibility requirements are met. The applicant’s eligibility to be transferred the RSA will be assessed in accordance with the requirements as set out in the Cannabis Licence Act, 2018 and Ontario Regulation 468/18.

The store operating name may be applied to be changed during the transfer application process.

The expiry date and renewal period of the retail store authorization remain the same once transferred.

An expired authorization cannot be transferred.

A new RSA number for the retail store will be issued if the transfer is to be approved. 

When the RSA transfers, any existing cannabis inventory transfers with the RSA. Each ROL holder involved in the RSA transfer must accurately document the incoming and outgoing cannabis inventory in their respective point-of-sale systems. 

For more information, see Information Bulletin: Transfers of Retail Store Authorizations for Cannabis Retail Store Operators now permitted.

For more information, please see the Sale of Cannabis to Another RSA Holder section of this Guide.