# Compliance testing

> Compliance testing is mandatory lab analysis of cannabis or hemp for potency (often total THC) and contaminants, required before sale or to prove legal status.

- Canonical: https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/compliance-testing.html
- Also written: total THC compliance testing, regulatory testing, mandatory testing, state testing, potency compliance test
- Glossary category: Legal and regulatory · Evidence: Established
- Status: Draft: awaiting expert review · Updated: 2026-10-31
- Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), attribute "GenetixBay cannabis glossary"

Compliance testing is the lab analysis a regulator requires before cannabis or [hemp](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/hemp.md) can be sold, or to confirm a hemp crop is under the [THC](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/thc.md) limit. Typical panels cover [cannabinoid potency](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/potency-testing.md), moisture or [water activity](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/water-activity.md), microbial contaminants, [mycotoxins](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/mycotoxins.md), pesticides, heavy metals and residual solvents for extracts.

## In practice

For potency, many systems report total THC, calculated as THC + [0.877](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/total-thc.md) x [THCA](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/thca.md), so that acidic THCA (which converts to THC on heating) is counted. Hemp rules may require sampling within a set number of days before harvest. A failed microbial test can lead to destruction, remediation, or decontamination such as irradiation where permitted.

Compliance numbers are only as good as the lab and the sampling. Studies of legal markets show results vary systematically between labs and labels often overstate potency (Jikomes & Zoorob 2018; Schwabe et al. 2023). GenetixBay criticises the practice of lab shopping and inflated results, not named businesses.

Rules differ by country, state, province and city, and change often. This is a general definition, not legal advice: check local rules.

## Don't confuse with

- **R&D testing**: voluntary testing for a breeder or grower's own information.
- **Certificate of analysis (COA)**: the report a test produces.

## Related terms

[Total THC](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/total-thc.md), [COA](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/coa.md), [Hemp](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/hemp.md), [Cannabis irradiation](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/irradiation.md), [Lab shopping](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/glossary/lab-shopping.md)

## Read more

- [Buyer beware: potency labels, strain names and other claims that don't hold up](https://genetixbay.com/knowledge/basics/buyer-beware-label-claims.md)

## Sources

1. Jikomes N, Zoorob M. 2018. The cannabinoid content of legal cannabis in Washington State varies systematically across testing facilities and popular consumer products. Scientific Reports 8:4519. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-22755-2
2. Schwabe AL, Johnson V, Harrelson J, McGlaughlin ME. 2023. Uncomfortably high: testing reveals inflated THC potency on retail cannabis labels. PLOS ONE 18(4):e0282396. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282396