Is Kratom Legal in Arkansas? (2026 Law)

Kratom is not legal in Arkansas. The Arkansas Department of Health lists mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), two compounds of the kratom plant, as Schedule I controlled substances in its Controlled Substances List, and possessing them is a felony under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-419, a Class D felony for under 2 grams. The ban comes from a Department of Health rule, not a statute naming kratom, and Arkansas has no kratom age limit or sales law. For other states, see our guide to kratom laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-11. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Arkansas state law on kratom: the Department of Health's Controlled Substances List (Schedule I), the Secretary of Health's scheduling power and federal-adoption rule (Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-201), the possession, delivery, manufacture and trafficking statutes (5-64-419, 5-64-424, 5-64-426, 5-64-427, 5-64-440), the enhancements for delivery to a minor and for repeat drug offenses (5-64-406, 5-64-408), the location enhancement (5-64-411), sentencing ranges and release eligibility (5-4-201, 5-4-401, 5-4-501, 16-93-1802, 16-93-1803), overdose immunity (20-13-1704), the driving-while-intoxicated definitions (5-65-102, 5-65-103) and 2025 Senate Bill 534, with one paragraph on federal law. It does not cover city or county rules, employer drug-testing policies, military rules or other states' laws.

Is kratom legal in Arkansas?

No. Schedule I of the Arkansas Controlled Substances List includes a paragraph of opium derivatives, and the last two items in it are the two kratom compounds:

"(c) Opium derivatives: (Narcotic Drugs) Unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any of the following opium derivatives, its salts, isomers, and salts of isomers whenever the existence of such salts, isomers, and salts of isomers is possible within the specific chemical designation: ... (24) Mitragynine ... (25) 7-Hydroxymitragynine"

Each entry is printed with the date "(11-2015)" in the column where other entries carry a DEA code. The list sits in the Code of Arkansas Rules, which the Secretary of State publishes, and its Schedule I carries entries dated as late as June 2025.

The rule names the compounds, not the plant. It does not mention "kratom" or Mitragyna speciosa. The 2025 Senate Bill 534 described them in its findings as "two (2) constituent compounds of the kratom plant," and the FDA describes 7-OH as an alkaloid that occurs naturally in the plant.

Paragraph (c) is worded differently from the hallucinogen paragraph that follows it. The hallucinogen paragraph reaches "any material, compound, mixture, or preparation, which contains any quantity of" a listed substance; paragraph (c) covers the listed derivatives and their salts and isomers. The penalty statutes, discussed below, grade offenses by the aggregate weight of the material, "including an adulterant or diluent."

A health department rule, not a statute

The two compounds are listed by rule, not by a statute that names them. Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-201(a)(1)(A) gives the scheduling power to the Secretary of the Department of Health:

"The Secretary of the Department of Health shall administer this chapter and may add a substance to or delete or reschedule any substance enumerated in a schedule under the procedures of the Arkansas Administrative Procedure Act, 25-15-201 et seq."

The same subsection lets the Secretary adopt an emergency rule without action by the State Board of Health, and such an emergency rule "may be effective for no longer than one hundred eighty (180) days."

Two official sources give different dates for the listing. The Controlled Substances List prints "(11-2015)" next to both compounds. The findings section of SB534, filed in 2025, states: "On February 1, 2016, the Department of Health added mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, which are two (2) constituent compounds of the kratom plant, as Schedule I substances." The two dates are not reconciled in either source.

Penalties for kratom in Arkansas

Arkansas grades drug offenses by schedule, by conduct and by weight. Mitragynine and 7-OH fall in the bands for "a Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance that is not methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroin, or cocaine." Act 887 of 2021 added fentanyl and heroin to that exclusion and left the weight bands as they were. Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-419(b)(2), as printed in Act 887, reads:

"A Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substance that is not methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroin, or cocaine with an aggregate weight, including an adulterant or diluent, of: (A) Less than two grams (2g) upon conviction is guilty of a Class D felony; (B) Two grams (2g) or more but less than twenty-eight grams (28g) upon conviction is guilty of a Class C felony; or (C) Twenty-eight grams (28g) or more but less than two hundred grams (200g) upon conviction is guilty of a Class B felony;"

Delivery is a separate offense under 5-64-426, and possession with the purpose to deliver under 5-64-424 uses the same weight bands as delivery. Manufacturing under 200 grams is a separate offense under 5-64-427: a Class C felony under 2 grams, Class B from 2 to under 28 grams and Class A at 28 grams or more. Under 5-64-101, "manufacture" includes "any packaging or repackaging of a controlled substance or labeling or relabeling of a controlled substance's container." At 200 grams or more, 5-64-440 treats possession, possession with the purpose to deliver, delivery or manufacture as trafficking, and provides: "Trafficking a controlled substance is a Class Y felony." Act 584 of 2023 re-enacted that sentence and added a separate rule for fentanyl only. Under Act 659 of 2023, trafficking is also a restricted release felony: a person who commits it on or after January 1, 2025 is not eligible for release before serving at least 85 percent of the prison term imposed (Ark. Code Ann. 16-93-1802, 16-93-1803).

The ranges in the table come from Ark. Code Ann. 5-4-401(a), which provides that for a Class Y felony "the sentence shall be not less than ten (10) years and not more than forty (40) years, or life," for a Class A felony "not less than six (6) years nor more than thirty (30) years," for a Class B felony "not less than five (5) years nor more than twenty (20) years," for a Class C felony "not less than three (3) years nor more than ten (10) years," and for a Class D felony that the sentence "shall not exceed six (6) years." The fines come from 5-4-201(a): not exceeding $15,000 for a Class A or Class B felony and not exceeding $10,000 for a Class C or Class D felony. Section 5-4-201(a) lists no fine for a Class Y felony; separately, 5-4-201(d) allows a fine of up to twice the amount of any pecuniary gain a defendant derived from the offense.

The weight the tiers count is the whole product. Each band measures "aggregate weight, including an adulterant or diluent," so a product's full weight is what the statute counts as written, not the amount of mitragynine or 7-OH inside it.

Near schools, parks and other listed places

Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-411 adds "an additional term of imprisonment of ten (10) years" when the offense happens "on or within one thousand feet (1,000')" of listed property, which includes a city or state park and "a public or private elementary or secondary school, public vocational school, or private or public college or university," among other places such as day care centers and churches. It applies to possession only where "the offense is a Class C felony or greater," so simple possession under 2 grams, a Class D felony, is outside it. It applies to delivery, possession with the purpose to deliver, manufacture and trafficking at any weight. Act 659 of 2023, effective January 1, 2024, amended subsection (c) to provide that a person convicted under the section "is not eligible for early release on parole, transfer to post-release supervision, or community correction transfer for the enhanced portion of the sentence."

Repeat offenders

Ark. Code Ann. 5-4-501 (amended by Act 821 of 2021, Act 659 of 2023 and Act 662 of 2025) sets extended prison terms for defendants with prior felony convictions. For a Class D felony, the extended term is "not more than twelve (12) years" for a defendant with two or three prior felonies and "not more than fifteen (15) years" with four or more.

Separately, Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-408 allows up to twice the authorized prison term and fine for a second or subsequent drug offense under the chapter, such as a second delivery conviction; a prior drug conviction under federal law or another state's law counts. It does not apply to simple possession under 5-64-419.

Overdose immunity

Ark. Code Ann. 20-13-1704(a) provides that a person "shall not be arrested, charged, or prosecuted for possession of a controlled substance in violation of § 5-64-419" when the evidence "resulted solely from seeking medical assistance" in good faith for another person's overdose, or for one's own overdose. It covers possession under 5-64-419, not delivery.

Age limits and sales rules

Arkansas has no kratom age limit, label rule or product registration program. Because mitragynine and 7-OH are Schedule I, the possession and delivery offenses apply to everyone, whatever their age. Arkansas does have an age-based penalty: under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-406, an adult who delivers a Schedule I substance to a person under 18 who is at least three years younger faces up to twice the prison term otherwise authorized. No Act of the 2021, 2023 or 2025 regular sessions that amends Title 5 or Title 20 of the Arkansas Code creates a kratom sales law or changes the Schedule I treatment of the two compounds.

The one recent attempt to change that failed. Senate Bill 534 of 2025, the Arkansas Kratom Consumer Protection Act, would have removed both compounds from Schedule I and created a regulatory framework for kratom products, with administrative fines of "not more than five hundred dollars ($500) for the first offense and not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for a second or subsequent offense." The General Assembly's bill page shows that the Senate passed it on April 7, 2025, a House committee returned it with a do-not-pass recommendation on April 10, 2025, and it died in the House at sine die adjournment on May 5, 2025. It never became law.

Federal scheduling and Arkansas's adoption rule

Federal law does not list kratom leaf, mitragynine or 7-hydroxymitragynine in Schedule I. The October 6, 2026 version of 21 CFR 1308.11 carries only three kratom-related entries, mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15 and MGM-16, placed there by a DEA temporary order effective August 26, 2026. A new DEA notice of intent (FR Doc. 2026-20943), filed for public inspection on October 9, 2026 and scheduled for publication on October 14, 2026, proposes temporary Schedule I control of 7-OH and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl above a threshold: more than 1 mg per gram for solids or 1 mg per milliliter for liquids, or where the amount of mitragynine divided by the amount of those substances is less than 100. That notice states that DEA's July 6, 2026 notice of intent to schedule 7-OH above a threshold (91 FR 40917) is being withdrawn in a separate document. A second DEA notice of intent filed the same day (FR Doc. 2026-20942) proposes a new temporary order that would keep MGM-15 and MGM-16 in Schedule I "without change," to distinguish them from mitragynine pseudoindoxyl. Neither notice is an order, and the DEA says neither new temporary order will be issued before 30 days after publication, about November 13, 2026. The August 26, 2026 order stays in effect until it expires or is replaced by the new temporary orders, whichever comes first. The FDA says kratom is not lawfully marketed in the United States as a drug product, a dietary supplement or a food additive in conventional food, and it "has warned consumers not to use kratom because of the risk of serious adverse events, including liver toxicity, seizures, and substance use disorder (SUD)." Our kratom laws by state hub covers the federal layer in more detail.

Arkansas has a rule for following federal scheduling. Under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-201(d)(1), if a substance is designated as controlled under federal law and notice is given to the Secretary of Health, the Secretary "shall similarly control the substance under this chapter after the expiration of thirty (30) days from publication in the Federal Register of a final order designating a substance as a controlled substance unless within that thirty-day period the secretary objects to inclusion." An objection stays state control until the Secretary publishes a decision. The statute speaks of a final order; no Arkansas source cited here says whether a DEA temporary order counts. The Department's Schedule I list does not include mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, MGM-15 or MGM-16. For mitragynine and 7-OH themselves, the question matters less in Arkansas, because the state already lists both with no threshold.

Research use

Arkansas's controlled substances chapter defines a "practitioner" in 5-64-101 to include a "scientific investigator, or other person licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to, or to administer a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in this state." No Act of the 2021, 2023 or 2025 regular sessions creates a kratom research or study program.

Driving and criminal records

Ark. Code Ann. 5-65-103(a)(1) makes it unlawful for "a person who is intoxicated" to operate or be in actual physical control of a motor vehicle. Section 5-65-102 defines "intoxicated" as "influenced or affected by the ingestion of alcohol, a controlled substance, any intoxicant, or any combination" to such a degree that the driver's reactions, motor skills and judgment are substantially altered and the driver "constitutes a clear and substantial danger of physical injury or death," and it defines a controlled substance as a drug in Schedules I through VI. Section 5-65-103 contains no fixed-amount (per se) offense for drugs. Our guide to Arkansas DUI laws covers penalties. Every kratom possession or delivery offense in Arkansas is a felony, which creates a criminal record; whether a record can later be sealed is covered in our guide to Arkansas expungement laws.

Related

• Kratom laws by state
• Arkansas DUI laws
• Arkansas expungement laws
• Arkansas psilocybin mushroom laws

This article provides general legal information about Arkansas state law as of October 11, 2026. It is not legal advice. Quotations from Arkansas Code sections come from a 2020 release of the Arkansas Code, read with the later Acts named on this page (Acts 887 and 821 of 2021, Acts 584 and 659 of 2023, Act 662 of 2025); check the official Arkansas Code for the current text. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Arkansas.

Last updated: 2026-10-11.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is kratom legal in Arkansas?

No. The Arkansas Department of Health lists mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, two kratom compounds, in Schedule I of its Controlled Substances List. Possession is a felony under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-419, starting at a Class D felony for under 2 grams.

Did the Arkansas legislature ban kratom?

No statute names kratom. The two compounds are Schedule I by Department of Health rule, under the Secretary of Health's scheduling power in Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-201. A 2025 bill to remove them from Schedule I, SB534, died in the House.

When did Arkansas make kratom compounds Schedule I?

The Controlled Substances List prints the date (11-2015) beside both entries. The findings section of SB534 (2025) states that the Department of Health added them as Schedule I substances on February 1, 2016.

What is the penalty for kratom possession in Arkansas?

Under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-419, possessing less than 2 grams of a Schedule I substance of this kind is a Class D felony (up to 6 years and a fine of up to $10,000). Larger amounts are Class C and Class B felonies.

What is the penalty for selling kratom in Arkansas?

Delivering less than 2 grams of a Schedule I substance of this kind is a Class C felony (3 to 10 years) under Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-426. The class rises with weight, and 200 grams or more is trafficking, a Class Y felony.

Is 7-OH legal in Arkansas?

No. 7-Hydroxymitragynine is item (25) of Schedule I(c) in the Department of Health's Controlled Substances List, next to mitragynine at item (24). The listing has no threshold, unlike the pending federal proposal.

Is there a kratom age limit in Arkansas?

No. Arkansas has no kratom age rule because the two compounds are Schedule I and the possession and delivery offenses apply at any age. An adult who delivers a Schedule I substance to a person under 18 who is at least three years younger faces up to twice the usual prison term (Ark. Code Ann. 5-64-406). SB534 of 2025 would have set up a kratom sales framework, but it died.