What an Illinois dispensary POS needs to handle

Metrc reporting, sale by sale

Illinois tracks cannabis from cultivation to sale in Metrc. Every retail sale has to be recorded against the exact packages that were sold. A POS built for Illinois should post those sales receipts to Metrc automatically, keep inventory in step with the state’s numbers, and support Metrc Retail ID, the item-level QR codes that tie each unit back to its package.

Purchase limits for every customer type

Adult-use limits differ for Illinois residents and visitors, and medical patients have their own allowance over a 14-day window. The register has to add up each cart by category (flower, concentrate, and THC in infused products) and stop a sale that would go over. See Illinois cannabis purchase limits and taxes, explained.

The cannabis purchaser excise tax

Adult-use sales carry a purchaser excise tax that depends on the product (10%, 20%, or 25%) on top of state and local retailers’ occupation taxes, which vary by city and county. The POS needs to pick the right excise tier for each line and apply your location’s combined rate, while medical sales skip the excise tax.

ID and age checks

Adult-use customers must be 21 or older, and medical patients must be verified against their registration. Checks belong at check-in and again at checkout, and they should be recorded so you can show your work in an audit.

Labels, potency, and new batches

When a new batch arrives with different potency, the shelf label should change before that package goes on the floor. A good system knows which package is on the shelf, flags when the next one is a new batch, and prompts the new label first.

When Metrc is unavailable

Metrc outages happen. The register should keep selling, hold every receipt in a queue, and post them when Metrc is back, without anyone re-entering sales by hand. More in What happens when Metrc goes down.

A quick checklist

• Posts sales receipts to Metrc automatically, and queues them during outages
• Supports Metrc Retail ID item-level QR codes
• Enforces resident, non-resident, and medical limits at the register
• Applies the right excise tier per product and your location’s tax rates
• Records ID checks and keeps an audit trail of who did what
• Keeps shelf labels in step with the batch on the shelf

Cannavate was built for Illinois retail and does each of these natively, alongside Store HQ for restock, receiving, and reporting.