Arkansas Identity Theft Laws: Financial Fraud and the ID Passport

Arkansas splits identity theft into two separate offenses under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-37-227: financial identity fraud and nonfinancial identity fraud. Arkansas also gives verified victims a tool most states do not offer at all: an Identity Theft Passport, a state-issued card victims can show to law enforcement, creditors, or anyone else questioning their identity while the fraud is being sorted out.

This page covers both fraud offenses and their penalties, the Identity Theft Passport program, restitution and civil remedies, and where to report identity theft in Arkansas. For the broader picture, see our identity theft laws hub and our guide to reporting identity theft.

Arkansas's Financial and Nonfinancial Identity Fraud Statute

Arkansas's identity fraud statute, Ark. Code Ann. § 5-37-227, defines two separate offenses. Financial identity fraud applies when a person, for their own benefit or a third party's, accesses, obtains, records, or submits to a financial institution another person's identifying information with the purpose to create, obtain, or open a credit account, debit account, or other financial resource in that person's name without authorization; it also covers using scanning or re-encoding devices to appropriate financial information. Nonfinancial identity fraud applies when a person knowingly obtains another person's identifying information without authorization and uses it for any unlawful purpose, including, without limitation, to avoid apprehension or prosecution, or to obtain a good, service, real property, or medical information belonging to that other person. "Identifying information" under the statute includes a Social Security number, driver's license number, credit or debit card number, and any other number or information that can be used to access a person's financial resources.

Penalties, Including the Elder and Disabled-Victim Enhancement

Financial identity fraud is a Class C felony, elevated to a Class B felony if the victim is an elder person, 65 or older, or a person with a disability. Nonfinancial identity fraud is a Class D felony, elevated to a Class C felony under the same enhancement. The statute also sets venue in the county where the offense occurred, any element of the offense occurred, the victim resides, or the fraudulently obtained property was used or located, which matters given how often identity fraud crosses county lines.

The Arkansas Identity Theft Passport

Arkansas offers verified identity fraud victims a state-issued Identity Theft Passport, a card similar in appearance to a driver's license, under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-37-228. A victim who reasonably suspects they are a victim of financial identity fraud can present the passport to law enforcement, creditors, or other entities investigating fraudulent use of their identity, or to support their claim of innocence. Acceptance by any given creditor or agency is discretionary, not mandatory, so the passport is a strong piece of supporting evidence rather than a guarantee that every business or agency will treat a matter as closed.

To apply, a resident submits to the Attorney General a copy of their police report, a completed application, and any other supporting documentation the office requests. The application and supporting materials are not public records, though the Attorney General may share information with criminal justice agencies. Because a police report is a prerequisite, applying for a passport is generally the second step after reporting the fraud to local law enforcement, not the first.

Filing a Police Report First

Both the Identity Theft Passport and the Attorney General's own victim guidance require filing a police report as an early step. The Attorney General's "What Should Victims Do" page lists reporting to local law enforcement as the second recommended action, right after placing a fraud alert with a national credit bureau, and before contacting affected companies, filing an FTC complaint, considering a security freeze, and applying for a passport.

Restitution for Credit Repair and Related Costs

Arkansas's identity fraud statute authorizes courts to order restitution covering costs a victim incurs correcting their credit history or report, plus costs incurred in any civil or administrative proceeding to satisfy a debt, lien, or obligation resulting from the offense, including lost wages and attorney's fees. This page has not independently confirmed the exact statutory wording of that provision word for word, so it is described here as authorized rather than as an unconditional requirement in every case; ask the prosecutor handling your case or a licensed Arkansas attorney whether restitution will be sought in your specific matter.

Civil Remedies

No dedicated Arkansas civil cause of action for identity theft, comparable to statutes some other states have enacted, was found in the chapter containing §§ 5-37-227 and 5-37-228. An Arkansas identity theft victim pursuing a civil remedy on their own would likely need to rely on general Arkansas tort law, such as fraud or conversion, or the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, rather than an identity-theft-specific civil statute. Confirm with a licensed Arkansas attorney whether any of these general remedies fit your situation.

Credit Freezes for Minors in Arkansas

Arkansas has not enacted its own protected-consumer or minor credit freeze statute. The Arkansas Consumer Report Security Freeze Act defines "consumer" simply as an individual, with no separate minor age threshold or parent/guardian request procedure distinct from the general adult freeze process. Arkansas minors instead rely on the federal minor freeze right, 15 U.S.C. § 1681c-1(j), which requires all three nationwide credit bureaus to let a parent or guardian freeze a child's credit file for free, even before the child has a credit file at all. See our credit freeze vs. fraud alert page for how the freeze right works generally.

Reporting to the Arkansas Attorney General

The Arkansas Attorney General's Public Protection Division runs a dedicated identity theft hub with sub-resources on fraud alerts and security freezes, protecting yourself, security or data breaches, and what victims should do. The general consumer-protection line is (501) 682-2007 or (800) 482-8982. Its victim guidance walks through six steps: placing a fraud alert with a national credit bureau, filing a police report, contacting each company with a fraudulent account or charge in writing by certified mail, filing a complaint with the FTC, considering a security freeze, and requesting an Identity Theft Passport once you have a police report on file.

Federal Rights That Apply in Every State

On top of Arkansas's own framework, every identity theft victim also has federal rights that do not depend on state law. IdentityTheft.gov, run by the FTC, is a free national recovery site that builds a personal recovery plan once you describe what happened. Once you have an FTC Identity Theft Report, 15 U.S.C. § 1681c-2 (FCRA § 605B) requires a credit bureau to block fraudulent information from your report within 4 business days of receiving your documentation. Federal law has also made both credit freezes and fraud alerts free at all three bureaus since 2018, under 15 U.S.C. § 1681c-1. See our guides to reporting identity theft and credit freeze vs. fraud alert for the full mechanics of both.

A legislative document referenced a possible bill amending the elements of § 5-37-227, but its bill number, session, and enactment status could not be confirmed this session, since the Arkansas General Assembly's own bill-search tool is JavaScript-driven and could not be read directly. Treat this as a lead worth checking with the Attorney General's office or the General Assembly directly, not as a confirmed 2025-26 change.

Information last verified on 2026-08-13, drawn from Ark. Code Ann. §§ 5-37-227 and 5-37-228, the Arkansas Consumer Report Security Freeze Act, and the Arkansas Attorney General's identity theft pages. This article has not yet been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Related Resources

• Identity Theft Laws: Federal Rules and State Penalties
• How to Report Identity Theft
• Credit Freeze vs. Fraud Alert

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Last updated: 2026-08-13.