In Arkansas, squatters’ rights come from a civil doctrine called adverse possession, and the bar is high: a person has to hold color of title, pay the property taxes, and openly occupy the land for at least seven years before a court will transfer ownership. Separately, a 2025 law made unauthorized squatting a Class A misdemeanor, so property owners now have a criminal-complaint route to remove someone, alongside the older civil eviction process.
Squatting, Trespassing, and Adverse Possession Are Not the Same
These three words get used as if they mean the same thing. They don’t, and the differences matter when you’re deciding what to do.
A trespasser enters property without permission. Criminal trespass in Arkansas is generally a misdemeanor, though some circumstances raise it to a felony.1Justia Law. Arkansas Code 5-39-203 – Criminal Trespass
A squatter is someone who moves into a property without permission and stays. Under Act 238 of 2025, refusing to leave after the owner asks is now its own criminal offense.2Arkansas State Legislature. HB1049 – To Amend Arkansas Law Concerning Criminal Offenses
Adverse possession is something different again. It is a civil claim, filed in court, in which the occupant argues they have earned legal title by occupying the property under specific conditions for years. A trespasser or garden-variety squatter does not automatically become an owner by waiting around. The statutory and common-law requirements are strict, and most people who occupy land without permission will never satisfy them.
What a Squatter Has to Prove to Take Ownership
Arkansas’s adverse possession rules sit in Code Section 18-11-106, and the statute keeps the older common-law requirements in place on top of its own.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-11-106 – Adverse Possession A claimant has to satisfy both layers.
Color of Title
Color of title is the piece most people miss. It means the claimant holds a document that looks like it conveys ownership but is legally defective: a deed with a forged signature, an improperly executed will, a flawed tax sale certificate. Without some paper trail of this kind, there is no claim. A person cannot simply mow a vacant lot for seven years and file for ownership.
The Common-Law Elements
Arkansas courts require that possession be:
- Actual — the claimant physically uses the property the way an owner would.
- Open and notorious — the occupation is visible enough that a reasonable owner would notice.
- Hostile — the claimant is there without permission. A license or lease defeats this.
- Exclusive — the claimant possesses the property to the exclusion of the true owner and the public.
- Continuous — the possession runs unbroken for the full statutory period. Walking away for a year resets the clock.
The statute states it is “supplemental to existing case law” and does not repeal any case-law requirement, so meeting the statutory boxes alone is not enough.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-11-106 – Adverse Possession
Tax Payments
With color of title in hand, the claimant must also pay the ad valorem property taxes for at least seven consecutive years. A claimant who already owns a neighboring parcel with valid color of title can reach a contiguous lot by paying taxes on their own adjoining land for seven years.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-11-106 – Adverse Possession
Here is the catch that protects most owners: if the true owner has also been paying the taxes, or made a good-faith effort to pay taxes that were misapplied by the taxing authority, the claimant’s tax payments do not establish color of title. An attentive owner who pays on time has a built-in defense.
Time Periods by Land Type
How long it takes depends on what the land looks like:
- Improved or enclosed land: the standard seven-year rule with existing color of title.
- Unimproved and unenclosed land: seven consecutive years of tax payments under color of title establishes the presumption of possession.
- Wild and unimproved land that has never been developed or cultivated: fifteen consecutive years of tax payments to establish color of title.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-11-106 – Adverse Possession
Owners of large rural tracts get the longer window, but fifteen years of a stranger paying taxes should trigger alarms well before any claim matures.
Removing a Squatter Under Act 238 of 2025
Before 2025, every squatter removal in Arkansas was a civil matter. Owners had to run the full unlawful detainer process even when the occupant had no plausible claim to be there. Act 238 changed that by creating a standalone criminal offense for unlawful squatting.2Arkansas State Legislature. HB1049 – To Amend Arkansas Law Concerning Criminal Offenses
A person commits unlawful squatting when they:
- Enter or remain in a dwelling or on real property without the owner’s consent,
- Have no colorable claim of ownership or legal right to occupy, and
- Refuse to leave after being asked by the owner or an authorized agent.
The offense is a Class A misdemeanor, which carries up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,500 under Arkansas’s general sentencing framework.
How the Removal Works
The owner files a sworn complaint alleging unlawful squatting, provides proof of ownership, and submits a sworn statement that the occupant lacks consent. Law enforcement then investigates. If officers find probable cause, they can arrest the squatter and remove the person from the property on the spot. That is dramatically faster than a civil eviction, which can take weeks.
Who Is Protected From a Squatting Charge
Act 238 includes affirmative defenses so the statute cannot be used against people who have a right to be there. A defendant can defeat the charge by showing they are a tenant under a valid lease, a guest of someone with a legal right to occupy, or that they held a good-faith belief in their right to be on the property. Landlord-tenant disputes stay in civil court; the criminal statute is aimed at genuine unauthorized occupation.
The Civil Route: Unlawful Detainer
Act 238 does not replace civil eviction. The unlawful detainer process is still the right tool when the occupant has a colorable defense that puts their right to be there in question, when a landlord-tenant relationship is involved, or when law enforcement declines to make an arrest.
Notice to Vacate
The process begins with a written notice demanding the occupant leave. For tenants who have not paid rent, Arkansas law requires a three-day notice.4Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-60-304 – Actions Constituting Unlawful Detainer For holdover tenants and other situations, the required notice period may be longer. Put the demand in writing and keep a copy.
Filing in Circuit Court
If the occupant ignores the notice, the owner files an unlawful detainer complaint in the circuit court for the county where the property sits. The occupant has the chance to answer and object.
Hearing and Writ of Possession
The court holds a hearing where both sides present evidence. The owner must show the right to possess the property and that the occupant is there unlawfully. If the court rules for the owner, it issues a writ of possession directing the county sheriff to physically remove the occupant. The sheriff’s department is the only entity authorized to carry out a forced removal.
What You Cannot Do Yourself
Arkansas prohibits self-help evictions. No matter how obvious the situation looks, an owner cannot change the locks, remove doors, cut off water or electricity, or do anything else intended to force the occupant out without a court order or law enforcement action. Those shortcuts are illegal and can expose the owner to liability, even against someone who had no right to be on the property.
The only lawful paths are the Act 238 criminal complaint, where law enforcement handles removal, and the civil unlawful detainer process, where the sheriff executes a writ after a court ruling.
How to Keep a Claim From Ever Starting
Adverse possession claims succeed when owners stop paying attention. The defenses are straightforward:
- Pay your property taxes every year. If both you and a would-be claimant are paying, the claimant’s payments cannot establish color of title.3Justia Law. Arkansas Code 18-11-106 – Adverse Possession
- Inspect the property regularly, especially vacant land, rural acreage, and inherited property you do not live near. An annual visit is the bare minimum.
- Post “No Trespassing” signs. They are evidence that permission was never granted, which undercuts any later claim that the occupant believed they were welcome.
- Put any permitted use in writing. A written license or lease destroys the hostility element. If a neighbor wants to graze cattle on your back acreage, document it.
- Act as soon as you discover an unauthorized occupant. Filing an unlawful detainer action or a criminal complaint under Act 238 interrupts any potential adverse possession timeline. The clock only runs while you do nothing.
The owners who lose adverse possession cases are almost always absentee owners of rural or vacant land who went years without checking on the property, reviewing their tax records, or responding to signs of occupation. Staying involved is the simplest and most effective defense available.