The federal government took a significant step Friday toward addressing the marijuana’s industry’s banking problems, issuing guidance designed to help pot shops gain access to the financial system.

Joint memos from the Department of the Justice and the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network gave individual banks the discretion to transact with legal marijuana companies, which have been denied access to basic services like checking accounts and credit cards because of federal money-laundering statutes.

The documents outline the steps financial institutions must take if they wish to transact with legal cannabis companies, while reaffirming their obligations to report illicit activity. Taken together, they offer a long-sought roadmap for both the banking and marijuana industries, which have been trying to resolve the problems created by forcing pot shops to hoard huge sums of cash.

Read more: Marijuana Legalization: Feds Let Pot Businesses Use Banks | TIME