Is Kratom Legal in Arizona? Age Limits, Driving, and Federal Rules

Yes, kratom is legal in Arizona. Adults 18 and older can buy, possess, and use it, and the state regulates how it’s manufactured, labeled, and sold through the Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) rather than treating it as a controlled substance.¹

Kratom Is Not a Controlled Substance in Arizona

Kratom is not listed under Arizona’s Uniform Controlled Substances Act. Simple possession and personal use carry no criminal exposure, and you don’t need any kind of license or permit to buy it. The KCPA, codified at Arizona Revised Statutes 36-795 through 36-795.03, defines a kratom product as a food product or dietary ingredient containing any part of the leaf of the mitragyna speciosa plant.² The state’s regulatory energy goes into product safety and labeling at the point of sale, not into criminalizing consumers.

Arizona was one of the first states to adopt a kratom-specific consumer protection framework when the KCPA passed in 2019. The law treats processors (anyone who manufactures or packages kratom) and retailers (anyone who sells it) as the regulated parties.

You Must Be 18 to Buy Kratom in Arizona

Selling kratom to anyone under 18 is prohibited.¹ The statute itself doesn’t spell out a specific ID-check procedure the way tobacco and alcohol laws do, but most Arizona retailers check government-issued identification as a matter of practice because selling to a minor is a criminal violation on the seller’s side.

What a Legal Kratom Product Looks Like

Because Arizona regulates the product rather than the user, knowing what a compliant product looks like protects you as a buyer. Under ARS 36-795.02, a kratom product sold in Arizona cannot be any of the following:

Adulterated with a non-kratom substance that changes the product’s quality or strength enough to harm a consumer.
Contaminated with a poisonous or harmful non-kratom substance, including any controlled substance.
A product in which 7-hydroxymitragynine exceeds two percent of the total alkaloid content.
A product containing synthetic mitragynine, synthetic 7-hydroxymitragynine, or other synthetically derived kratom compounds.
Sold without the amount of mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine listed on the package or label.

The two-percent cap on 7-hydroxymitragynine matters because 7-OH is the more potent of kratom’s two primary alkaloids and binds to opioid receptors far more strongly than mitragynine. A legal Arizona product will show those alkaloid amounts on the label.¹

A separate provision, ARS 36-795.01, requires that any product represented as kratom disclose on its label the factual basis for that representation, including what part of the plant it contains and how the product qualifies as kratom.³ If a label gives you none of this information, the product is being sold in violation of state law.

If you’re harmed by a kratom product that violates these rules, Arizona law lets you file a private lawsuit against the dealer for economic, noneconomic, and consequential damages.⁴

Legal to Use Does Not Mean Legal to Drive On

Kratom’s status as a legal product does not shield you from a DUI charge. Arizona’s impaired driving statute, ARS 28-1381, makes it unlawful to drive while under the influence of any drug if you are “impaired to the slightest degree.” The phrase “any drug” is intentionally broad and does not require the substance to be controlled.⁵

Arizona also specifically provides that being legally entitled to use the drug is not a defense to an impairment-based DUI.⁵ So the fact that you bought your kratom legally at an Arizona store doesn’t matter if an officer observes signs of impairment. Blood testing can detect mitragynine, and “impaired to the slightest degree” is one of the lowest thresholds in the country. If you take kratom in doses that affect you, don’t drive.

Federal Rules That Could Affect What You Can Buy

Kratom is legal in Arizona, but the federal landscape is less settled, and it can shape what Arizona retailers can keep in stock.

The FDA’s Position

The FDA considers kratom a “new dietary ingredient” for which there is inadequate evidence of safety. The agency’s official position is that kratom “is not lawfully marketed in the U.S. as a drug product, a dietary supplement, or a food additive in conventional food.”⁶ That creates a gap: Arizona treats kratom as a food product or dietary ingredient and regulates it accordingly, while the FDA considers those same products adulterated at the federal level.

The FDA has used Import Alert 54-15 to authorize detention of kratom shipments entering the United States without physical examination, and that alert remains active as of February 2025.⁷

The 7-OH Crackdown

The more immediate federal activity targets concentrated 7-hydroxymitragynine products, not kratom leaf. In July 2025, the FDA recommended that concentrated 7-OH products be scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act, and the DEA is reviewing that recommendation.⁸ The FDA, with the Department of Justice, has already seized roughly 73,000 units of 7-OH products — including liquid shots and tablets valued at approximately $1 million — from firms in Missouri.⁹

Traditional kratom leaf products naturally contain 7-OH at low levels, and Arizona’s two-percent cap already keeps compliant leaf products well below the concentrated territory the federal crackdown targets. Products marketed specifically as “7-OH shots,” gummies, or tablets are a different category, and those could become federally illegal regardless of what Arizona law says.

Traveling With Kratom

Flying with kratom out of Arizona is straightforward from a TSA standpoint. There’s no kratom-specific policy. Kratom powder falls under the agency’s general powder rules: on domestic flights, there are no restrictions on carrying powder-based substances in carry-on or checked bags. For international flights arriving in the U.S., powders over 12 ounces in carry-on may require additional screening and could be confiscated if they can’t be cleared at the checkpoint.¹⁰ Packing kratom in checked luggage sidesteps the carry-on powder question entirely.

The bigger risk is the destination. Several states ban kratom possession outright, and arriving with kratom in your luggage could expose you to criminal charges once you land. Federal property such as military bases, national parks, and VA facilities may also restrict kratom regardless of the surrounding state’s law. Check the law where you’re going before you pack.

1
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 36-795.02 – Kratom Products; Adulteration; Contamination; Sales to Minors Prohibited
2
Attorney General’s Office. Consumer Alert: Attorney General Mayes Warns of Dangerous Synthetic Opioids Sold Across Arizona
3
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 36-795.01 – Kratom Products; Disclosure
4
Arizona Legislature. Arizona HB 2561 – Kratom Consumer Protection Act Penalties
5
Arizona Legislature. Arizona Code 28-1381 – Driving or Actual Physical Control While Under the Influence
6
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA and Kratom
7
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Import Alert 54-15: Detention Without Physical Examination of Dietary Supplements and Bulk Dietary Ingredients That Are or Contain Mitragyna Speciosa or Kratom
8
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Takes Steps to Restrict 7-OH Opioid Products Threatening American Consumers
9
U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Seizes 7-OH Opioids to Protect American Consumers
10
Transportation Security Administration. What Is the Policy on Powders? Are They Allowed?