Arkansas Hunting Laws on Private Property: Permission, Posting, Penalties

Arkansas hunting laws on private property start with one rule: you must have the landowner’s or lessee’s permission before you hunt, fish, trap, release dogs, or retrieve game on their land. On unposted and unfenced land, verbal permission is enough. On posted or legally fenced land, permission must be in writing and must stay on your person the entire time you are hunting. Breaking that rule while carrying a firearm or bow is a Class A misdemeanor on the first offense, with up to a year in jail on the table.¹²

Getting Permission the Right Way

Verbal permission covers you only on land that is both unposted and unfenced. The moment the property is lawfully posted or enclosed with a legal fence, a text message or a handshake does not protect you. AGFC Regulation 05.35 requires the written permission to contain three things: the name of the person being allowed on the property, the signature and phone number of the landowner or lessee, and the specific start and end dates the permission covers. Carry the document with you while hunting.¹

Close relatives of the landowner or lessee get an exception. If you are a spouse, parent, child, sibling, uncle, aunt, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, niece, nephew, grandchild, or grandparent, actual verbal permission is enough even on posted or fenced land.¹ Cousins, friends, and in-laws outside that list need written permission like anyone else.

How to Tell if Land Is Legally Posted

Arkansas gives landowners three legal ways to post: signs, paint marks, or a legally sufficient fence. The spacing rules differ based on whether the property is forest or non-forest.

Non-Forest Land

Signs on cultivated land, pasture, orchards, or other non-forest property must read “posted” or “no trespassing” in letters at least four inches high, placed no more than 1,000 feet apart around the boundary and at every entry point. Paint marks are the alternative: vertical lines at least eight inches long, with the bottom of each mark between three and five feet off the ground, on the same 1,000-foot spacing. The Arkansas Forestry Commission sets the paint color by rule, and it cannot be a color already used by the timber industry for marking land lines.³ This is widely known as the purple paint law.

Forest Land

On forest land, signs and paint marks follow the same dimensions but must be placed no more than 100 feet apart. That is ten times the density required on open ground, which reflects how easily a single mark can be missed in timber.⁴

If you see any of these indicators, treat the land as posted and plan on written permission.

Penalties for Hunters Who Trespass

Arkansas Code 5-39-305 tiers trespass penalties by what you are carrying, where you are, and whether you have a record. Hunters get hit harder than ordinary trespassers because carrying a weapon triggers an automatic upgrade.²

Trespassing on posted, crop, timber, or fenced land outside city limits without written permission is a violation with a fine up to $100.
Trespassing involving an occupiable structure, or removing a posted sign or fence, is a Class B misdemeanor carrying up to 90 days in jail.⁵
Trespassing while in possession of a killing device, which includes firearms, bows, and crossbows, is a Class A misdemeanor. So is any trespass with a prior trespass conviction. Maximum sentence: one year in jail.²
Two or more prior Class A misdemeanor trespass convictions push the next one to a Class D felony. Trespass on critical infrastructure is a felony regardless of history.²

The practical takeaway: any hunter who walks onto posted land armed and without written permission is already looking at a Class A misdemeanor the first time. There is no warning tier when a weapon is involved.

AGFC Regulation 05.35 separately classifies hunting without landowner permission as a Class 2 wildlife violation, which can bring additional fines and the loss of hunting privileges through the Commission’s enforcement process. The criminal case and the wildlife violation can both proceed from the same incident.¹

Licenses, Tags, and Stamps Still Apply

Permission from the landowner does not substitute for a state license. Every AGFC rule, including season dates, bag limits, and legal methods of take, applies on private land the same as on public land.

Arkansas residents 16 and older need a Resident Wildlife Conservation License ($10.50) or a Resident Combination hunting-and-fishing License ($35.50). Residents 65 and older pay $3.50 for a hunting license or $4.50 for the combination, with lifetime versions at $25 and $35.50. Disabled military veterans can get a lifetime hunting license for $1.50.⁶

Non-residents pay considerably more. An annual non-resident hunting license is $410 and covers up to six deer. Shorter options run from a 1-day license at $100 (one deer) to a 5-day license at $225 (two deer). Non-resident small game is $110 annual or $80 for five days.⁶

Several species need their own tags or permits. Resident bear and turkey tags are free but must be obtained before hunting. Non-residents pay $300 for a bear tag and $100 for a turkey tag on top of the annual non-resident hunting license. Private-land elk and alligator permits are $5 for residents and $300 for non-residents. Waterfowl hunters need the Arkansas waterfowl stamp ($7 resident, $50 non-resident) in addition to the federal duck stamp.⁶

The 150-Yard Safety Zone Around Dwellings

AGFC Regulation 05.15 prohibits hunting with any killing device within 150 yards of a residence or building used for human occupancy. For archery equipment, the buffer drops to 50 yards. The buffer applies even when you have permission to hunt the surrounding property.

Three exceptions exist. You can hunt inside the buffer with written permission from the owner or occupant of the dwelling, if you own or lease the property where the residence sits, or if you are lawfully defending yourself, others, or property. On Wildlife Management Areas, the buffer only applies where AGFC has established and posted a specific no-hunting zone.

Written permission to hunt near a dwelling is a separate document from general permission to hunt the property. A landowner letting you onto 500 acres has not automatically authorized you to set up within 150 yards of their house. If a neighbor’s home sits closer than 150 yards to where you plan to hunt, you need that neighbor’s written permission too.

If You Hunt with Dogs

Arkansas treats releasing hunting dogs and pursuing wildlife with dogs the same as hunting for permission purposes. If your dogs cross onto posted neighboring land without the neighbor’s written permission, the violation falls on you, not the dogs.¹ This catches hunters running deer or bear with hounds across large tracts. If a chase could carry your dogs onto posted land you cannot access, you own that outcome.

Non-residents bringing dogs to Arkansas for hunting need a Non-Resident Dog Owner’s Permit ($20) in addition to the hunting license.⁶

Baiting and the CWD Management Zone

On private land outside the Chronic Wasting Disease Management Zone, hunters may place bait from September 1 through December 31.⁷ Inside the CWD Management Zone, placing any food, grain, mineral, or scent material to attract wildlife is prohibited year-round, and there is no private-land exception. The zone boundaries shift as the disease is monitored, so check AGFC’s current map before setting out bait on any property.

Liability for Landowners Who Let You Hunt

Arkansas gives landowners who allow hunting at no charge a strong liability shield. Under Arkansas Code 18-11-305, a landowner who invites or permits recreational use of the property without charging a fee owes no duty to keep the premises safe, does not take on the legal status of owing a duty of care to the visitor, and does not assume liability for injuries caused by natural or artificial conditions on the land.⁸

The protection hinges on the words “without charge.” Charging a lease fee or a daily access rate likely takes a landowner outside the shield and back into standard premises liability. Landowners running paid leases should carry liability insurance and talk to an attorney about their exposure. Even with free access, Arkansas Code 18-11-307 preserves exceptions for willful or malicious conduct, so free use does not excuse ignoring known dangers.

1
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. AGFC Regulation 05.35 – Hunting, Fishing, Trapping, Releasing Hunting Dogs Or Pursuing Wildlife With Dogs Without Landowner/Lessee Permission Prohibited
2
Justia. Arkansas Code 5-39-305 – Criminal Trespass on Premises Located in Unincorporated Area
3
Justia. Arkansas Code 18-11-405 – Methods of Posting – Property Other Than Forest
4
Justia. Arkansas Code 18-11-404 – Methods of Posting – Forest Lands
5
Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-401 – Sentence
6
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. AGFC Regulation D1.01 – Licenses, Permits, Stamps, Tags, Costs, and Expiration Dates
7
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. AGFC Regulation 07.06 – Baiting and Feeding Prohibited Inside the CWD Management Zone
8
Justia. Arkansas Code 18-11-305 – Owner’s Immunity from Liability