Two dockets. Only one of them is law.

Chris st clair
Aug 27
3 min read

Updated: 4 days ago

DEA temporarily put mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15, and MGM-16 in Schedule I as of Aug 26 through Aug 26 2028 (FR 2026-17429, 91 FR 54948).

That is the law. The rest of this post is what did not happen, and what operators should do next.

Discord said kratom is banned. The Federal Register said something narrower, and left something else open. On Wednesday, August 26, 2026, two related items landed in the same issue. Only one of them is a controlled-substance order. Operators who collapse both into a single kratom-is-Schedule-I headline will pull the wrong SKUs and leave the wrong ones on the shelf.

What published August 26: MP, MGM-15, and MGM-16

The Drug Enforcement Administration published a temporary scheduling order — not a notice of intent — placing three substances into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act for two years, effective August 26, 2026 through August 26, 2028 (with a possible one-year extension if permanent scheduling is pending). Official text: FR Doc 2026-17429, 91 FR 54948–54956. Docket DEA-1644. Signed August 24, 2026 by DEA Administrator Terrance C. Cole; published August 26.

Covered, including isomers, esters, ethers, and salts:

mitragynine pseudoindoxyl (DEA code 9672)
MGM-15 / dihydro-7-hydroxymitragynine (9673)
MGM-16 / 9-fluoro-dihydro-7-hydroxymitragynine (9674)

Each listing states that because nomenclature is not internationally standardized, compounds of this structure — regardless of numerical designation of atomic positions — are covered. The order describes these as synthetic or semi-synthetic derivatives produced through synthetic modifications of purified mitragynine isolates or 7-hydroxymitragynine, and distinguishes them from naturally occurring mitragynine and 7-OH in the plant.

Under the CSA, retail sales of Schedule I controlled substances to the general public are not allowed. Possession not authorized by the CSA on or after August 26 is unlawful. The July 6, 2026 NOI for this docket is not the same document as the separate July 6 7-OH NOI — do not conflate them.

What did not publish: a 7-OH Schedule I order

7-OH is not federally scheduled. The DEA temporary scheduling order for 7-hydroxymitragynine has not published in the Federal Register.

What did publish in the same August 26 issue is an HHS / OASH action: an extension of the comment period on the 7-OH threshold request for information through September 10, 2026. Official text: FR Doc 2026-17409, 91 FR 55104. Docket HHS-OASH-2026-0232. That reopens comments on the threshold only. OASH is not soliciting comments on permanent scheduling, the general safety of kratom, or other policy. This is not a DEA delay order.

The July 6, 2026 7-OH notice of intent remains a proposal, not an order. It proposed a threshold of 0.050% dry weight (botanical) or 0.050% / 1.00 mg per article (synthetic/processed): GovInfo PDF FR 2026-13580. Until a temporary scheduling order for 7-OH publishes, “7-OH is banned federally” is Discord, not CSA.

Operator checklist

Pull MP / MGM-15 / MGM-16 SKUs and any product labeled as those alkaloids (or obvious research-chemical naming of the same structures). Treat August 26 as the federal effective date for those three.
Do not assume leaf kratom or below-threshold 7-OH is federally Schedule I. The August 26 order is the MP/MGM order; the 7-OH temporary order has not published.
Map labels vs COA vs destination-state kratom and 7-OH rules. Federal Schedule I on three synthetics does not erase state bans, age gates, or concentrate limits already on the books.
Have counsel read the isomer / structure language before restocking research-chemical lookalikes, renamed positional isomers, or anything sold as a botanical substitute for MP/MGM-15/MGM-16.
Do not treat “botanical” on a label as a carve-out. The order flags deceptive botanical branding on semi-synthetic products. Label language does not override structure.