Yes, kratom is illegal in Arkansas. Since November 2015, the state has classified kratom’s two active alkaloids — mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine — as Schedule I controlled substances, the same tier as heroin and cocaine.1Arkansas Department of Health. Controlled Substances List Possessing any amount is a felony. Selling it is a worse felony. There is no medical exception, no legal quantity, and no permit that changes that.
What the Ban Actually Covers
The Arkansas Department of Health added the two alkaloids to Schedule I as opium derivatives under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-64-216.1Arkansas Department of Health. Controlled Substances List Because the ban targets the alkaloids rather than the plant by name, it reaches every form kratom takes on a store shelf: raw leaf, powder, capsules, extracts, teas, shots, and gummies. If a product contains mitragynine or 7-hydroxymitragynine, it is contraband in Arkansas.
Possession Penalties by Weight
Arkansas grades kratom possession the same way it grades possession of other Schedule I substances that are not methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroin, or cocaine. The felony class rises with the total weight of the substance, fillers included.2Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-419 – Possession of a Controlled Substance
- Less than 2 grams: Class D felony, up to 6 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.li>
- 2 grams to less than 28 grams: Class C felony, 3 to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
- 28 grams to less than 200 grams: Class B felony, 5 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
Those ranges come from the state’s general felony sentencing and fines statutes.3Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-401 – Sentence4Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-201 – Fines – Limitations on Amount Two grams is roughly a single dose of powder. Twenty-eight grams is about an ounce, the size of a typical retail bag. What passes for personal use in a legal state can put someone in an Arkansas prison for years.
Selling or Sharing Kratom
Delivery penalties are one felony class higher than possession at every weight tier. Under the state’s delivery statute for Schedule I substances (again, other than meth, fentanyl, heroin, and cocaine):5Justia. Arkansas Code 5-64-426 – Delivery of a Schedule I or Schedule II Controlled Substance
- Less than 2 grams: Class C felony, 3 to 10 years and up to $10,000.
- 2 grams to less than 28 grams: Class B felony, 5 to 20 years and up to $15,000.
- 28 grams to less than 200 grams: Class A felony, 6 to 30 years and up to $15,000.
Delivery covers selling, giving away, or otherwise transferring the substance. Handing a friend a single ounce of kratom powder is enough for a Class A felony carrying up to 30 years.3Justia. Arkansas Code 5-4-401 – Sentence
Driving Through Arkansas or Ordering Online
Kratom is legal in most of the country, which is exactly what makes Arkansas dangerous for people passing through. Someone driving Interstate 40 from Missouri to Texas can be carrying a product that is legal on both ends of the trip and a felony for the couple hundred miles in the middle. Arkansas law does not ask where you bought it or whether it is legal at home. Possession in the state is possession under Arkansas law.
The same logic applies to mail orders. A package shipped from a legal state to an Arkansas address becomes contraband the moment it crosses the state line. Online retailers may not screen for Arkansas ZIP codes, but that does not protect the person who signs for the box.
Drug Testing
Standard 5-, 10-, and 12-panel workplace screens do not test for kratom. The antibodies used in those panels do not react with mitragynine or 7-hydroxymitragynine, and federal DOT protocols do not include it either, since it is not scheduled at the federal level.
Specialized lab tests can detect kratom’s alkaloids, though, and either an employer or a court in Arkansas can order one. Anyone on probation or in a drug court program should assume kratom is fair game for testing given its Schedule I status here. A positive result would carry the same weight as testing positive for any other banned drug.
Why Federal Law Doesn’t Help You in Arkansas
At the federal level, natural kratom leaf, powder, and capsules remain unscheduled. The DEA proposed emergency scheduling in 2016, withdrew it, and has not rescheduled kratom since. In July 2025, the FDA and HHS recommended that the DEA place certain high-concentration or semi-synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine products into Schedule I, but as of January 2026 the DEA had not completed that rulemaking.6PTTC Network. Kratom and 7-Hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) Federal and Iowa Legal Status
None of that helps in Arkansas. States are free to schedule substances the federal government does not, and Arkansas has done so. The federal government’s silence on natural kratom leaves the state’s felony law fully in force.
The 2025 Legalization Bill That Failed
In April 2025, the Arkansas Senate passed Senate Bill 534, the Kratom Consumer Protection Act, by a vote of 24 to 5. It would have removed both alkaloids from Schedule I and set up a regulated market, with mandatory third-party lab testing, registration with the Arkansas Department of Agriculture, potency limits, and a ban on synthetically derived kratom products.7Arkansas State Legislature. SB534 – To Establish the Arkansas Kratom Consumer Protection Act
A House committee recommended against passage on April 10, 2025, and the bill died when the legislature adjourned on May 5.7Arkansas State Legislature. SB534 – To Establish the Arkansas Kratom Consumer Protection Act Similar attempts have failed in earlier sessions, though SB534 got further than any before it by clearing the full Senate. Until another bill passes both chambers and is signed, kratom stays illegal in Arkansas and the felony penalties above stay in place.