Arkansas · AR
Yes. For an emotional support dog, Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003 lets a clinician write the letter only after a client-provider relationship of at least 30 days. Cats fall outside that text, but we run every Arkansas letter on the same 30 days. Day 1 is a live video assessment with a clinician licensed in Arkansas; the letter follows a second session on day 31 if you qualify. Most landlords must then consider your request. Cost: $99.
the clinician must have known you as a client before documenting a need for an emotional support dog
Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(3)(A)printed on a dog letter: effective date, number, issuing jurisdiction and type
§ 20-14-1003(a)(1)the most a landlord may hold in deposits of every kind, a pet deposit included
§ 18-16-304to file a sworn complaint with the Fair Housing Commission
§ 16-123-317(c)Arkansas, with the capital marked
Arkansas at a glance
Each answer is one line, with the section of Arkansas law it comes from. The detail is further down the page.
Yes, a short subchapter: Ark. Code Ann. §§ 20-14-1001 to -1005. Act 268 of 2023 added the first four, §§ 20-14-1001 to -1004; some sites call it "AB 468", which is a California bill. They set rules for the clinician who documents a need for an emotional support dog. Sellers of ESA dogs, certificates, ID cards, tags, vests and harnesses must hand buyers a printed warning that the item gives no service-dog rights (§ 20-14-1002). Knowingly passing an ESA dog off as entitled to service-animal rights draws a civil penalty (§ 20-14-1004). Act 819 of 2025 added § 20-14-1005, which lets owners and businesses ban ESAs where federal law does not forbid it. None of it creates a housing right. That comes from the reasonable-accommodation clause, § 16-123-314(c)(2).
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 20-14-1001 to -1005By its text, only to dogs. Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(3)(A) bars documentation of a need for an emotional support dog unless the client-provider relationship began at least 30 days earlier. People verified as homeless through a local homeless-services system or provider are exempt (§ 20-14-1003(a)(3)(B)). A cat, rabbit or bird falls outside the wording. Pet Support Letter still runs every Arkansas letter on the same 30 days, as its own policy, so one process covers every household. You can book the first session today. The letter cannot come before day 31.
Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(3)Any "healthcare provider" licensed or otherwise authorised by state law may write it, within the scope of that licence (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1001(3)). For a client located in the state, telehealth needs a full Arkansas licence (§ 17-80-404(d)(1)). Two compact routes also work today. A counsellor may hold a Counseling Compact privilege, live here since 30 July 2026 (Act 260 of 2023, § 17-27-501). A psychologist may hold PSYPACT authority (§ 17-97-501). Video is fine, but only live: a questionnaire, email or text exchange cannot create the relationship (§ 17-80-403(c)).
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 17-80-403, 17-80-404Four licence details: the effective date, the number, the issuing jurisdiction and the type (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(1)). The clinician must also warn you that misrepresenting an animal as a service animal can bring a civil penalty under § 20-14-310 (§ 20-14-1003(a)(5)). The statute prints no expiry date. Instead, the clinician evaluates you at least once a year and reviews the need yearly to renew the documentation (§ 20-14-1003(a)(4), (6)). A breach is a matter for the clinician's licensing board, and the text does not void the letter (§ 20-14-1003(b)).
Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)–(b)Arkansas law does not stop it. The no-extra-charge rule in Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-304(a) protects trained service animals only. Ask for a waiver inside your accommodation request under § 16-123-314(c)(2); the landlord weighs it case by case. A refundable pet deposit counts toward the two-month cap on all deposits (§ 18-16-304). It comes back, less itemised deductions, within 60 days of the tenancy ending (§ 18-16-305). An individual owner who self-manages five or fewer units is outside both rules (§ 18-16-303).
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 18-16-303 to -305Since 5 August 2025, a private owner may ban an ESA unless the Fair Housing Act or other federal law prohibits it (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1005(a)(1)). In covered housing, the owner must still consider your accommodation request (§ 16-123-314(c)(2)). Two owners are exempt and may simply say no. One lives in a building of four or fewer units. The other owns no more than three houses and rents without a broker (§ 16-123-306(a)). A business needs only to tell you, or to post a sign at its entrance (§ 20-14-1005(a)(2)).
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 20-14-1005, 16-123-306The Arkansas Fair Housing Commission, on 501-682-3247 or toll-free 1-800-340-9108. File within one year of the act or its end (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-317(c)). The complaint is written and sworn, but no notary is needed (§ 16-123-317(b)). You may also sue in state court within two years, and the clock stops while a Commission case is pending (§ 16-123-336). A court can award compensatory and punitive damages and attorney's fees (§ 16-123-338).
Ark. Code Ann. §§ 16-123-317, 16-123-336, 16-123-338Arkansas law
Arkansas splits the subject across two parts of its code. The first, Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003, binds the healthcare provider who documents your need for an emotional support dog. That provider must hold an active licence valid where the letter is provided, and print its effective date, number, jurisdiction and type on the page. The provider must also have known you as a client for at least 30 days before writing. A clinical evaluation is due at least once a year, with a yearly review of the need. You must be told that misrepresenting an animal as a service animal can bring a civil penalty under § 20-14-310. People verified as homeless are exempt from the 30 days. A breach exposes the provider to licensing-board discipline; the statute does not void the letter (§ 20-14-1003(b)). The text names dogs only. Pet Support Letter applies its 30 days to every Arkansas letter as house policy. Your housing right sits elsewhere, in the accommodation clause of the Fair Housing Commission subchapter (§ 16-123-314(c)(2)). Since 5 August 2025, Act 819 lets an owner ban an ESA unless the Fair Housing Act forbids it (§ 20-14-1005(a)(1)). So the small landlords that federal law exempts can refuse.
Source: Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003 (Act 268 of 2023, HB 1420). This is general information, not legal advice.
The federal Fair Housing Act still recognises the accommodation, and you can still enforce it in court. Since May 2026, HUD itself has stopped pursuing complaints about untrained emotional support animals, so in practice your protection comes from Arkansas law and the Arkansas Fair Housing Commission.
“A healthcare provider shall not provide documentation relating to an individual's need for an emotional support dog unless the healthcare provider”
Federal vs Arkansas
| Topic | Federal (Fair Housing Act) | Arkansas |
|---|---|---|
| Fees and deposits | No fee rule appears in the federal text or in 24 C.F.R. § 100.204. HUD retired its no-fee guidance with effect from 17 September 2025, so a waiver is something you ask for. | No ESA fee ban: the no-extra-charge rule in Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-304(a) is for trained service animals. All deposits, however labelled, top out at two months' rent and come back itemised within 60 days (§§ 18-16-304, -305). Cities may not set a cap of their own (Act 459 of 2025, § 14-54-1409(b)(1)). |
| Documentation | The request must be for an accommodation that a disability makes necessary (42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B)). Congress set no format for the letter. | A dog letter carries the licence effective date, number, jurisdiction and type (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(1)). No state statute or Commission rule lists what a landlord may request. |
| Timing | Federal law sets no waiting period before a letter. | At least 30 days of client-provider relationship before a dog letter, unless you are verified homeless, plus a yearly evaluation and review (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(3)–(6)). No deadline for the landlord's answer. |
| Who may write | Federal law names no profession and no licence. | Any "healthcare provider" authorised by state law and licensed where the letter is provided (Ark. Code Ann. §§ 20-14-1001(3), 20-14-1003(a)(2)). Telehealth to a client in the state needs a full state licence (§ 17-80-404(d)(1)) or a live compact privilege. |
| Exemptions | An owner living in a building of up to four units, and an owner of up to three single-family houses renting without a broker (42 U.S.C. § 3603(b)). | The same two carve-outs remove the accommodation duty (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-306(a)). Where the Fair Housing Act does not reach, the owner may ban an ESA outright (§ 20-14-1005(a)(1)). |
| Where to file | A HUD complaint, though HUD has acted only on trained animals since May 2026, or a federal lawsuit. | The Arkansas Fair Housing Commission, HUD's only partner agency in the state, by its online form or on 501-682-3247. Or a state-court suit (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-336). |
| Deadline | A year for a HUD complaint (42 U.S.C. § 3610) and two years for a federal suit (§ 3613(a)(1)(A)). | One year to the Commission, sworn but not notarised (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-317(b)–(c)). Two years to sue, with the clock stopped while a Commission case is pending (§ 16-123-336). |
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Your timeline in Arkansas
Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003 fixes the 30 days for dog letters. We apply them to every Arkansas letter, so no household gets a different process. The screening is free and asks for no card. You pay at checkout, before your first live session, and nothing further is charged between day 1 and day 31.
Free screening, checkout, then your first live video session with a clinician licensed in Arkansas or practising here under a compact privilege. It happens in real time, on camera. A questionnaire, email or text alone cannot start the relationship (Ark. Code Ann. § 17-80-403(c)). This session is your clinical evaluation, and you hear the § 20-14-310 civil-penalty notice (§ 20-14-1003(a)(4)–(5)). If you do not qualify, you are told here.
The client-provider relationship runs its 30 days (§ 20-14-1003(a)(3)(A)). Your clinician stays available for follow-up. Questions about your lease, a pet deposit or a small-landlord exemption are answered as they come up. Book the day-31 session early so it lands before any move-in date.
A second live video session brings the evaluation up to date. If you qualify, your signed letter follows it, on letterhead with the licence effective date, number, jurisdiction and type (§ 20-14-1003(a)(1)). Each year after, the clinician reviews the need, as § 20-14-1003(a)(6) requires. That review is a duty on the clinician, not an expiry date.
Housing
Under the federal Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B)) and Arkansas's own fair-housing law, a housing provider must consider a reasonable-accommodation request for an assistance animal, including where pets are prohibited. Each line below carries the section it comes from.
What they may do
What they may not do
Illustrative exchange
Most refusals are not a flat no. They are a question the housing provider is not allowed to ask, or a fee they are not allowed to charge. Here is the shape of a typical exchange in Arkansas, with the rule beside each reply.
A made-up exchange to show the rules, not a real tenant or landlord.
Pet fees and deposits
No Arkansas law bans a pet fee, pet rent or pet deposit for an emotional support animal. The state's no-extra-charge rule, Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-304(a), protects a service animal "especially trained to do work or to perform tasks", not an ESA. So ask for the charges to be waived as part of your accommodation request under § 16-123-314(c)(2). A waiver is decided case by case; it is not automatic. The deposit rules still help. Every security deposit, "however denominated", counts toward a cap of two months' rent, so a refundable pet deposit sits inside it (§ 18-16-304). It must come back within 60 days of the tenancy ending, less unpaid rent and damage itemised in writing (§ 18-16-305). A landlord who wrongly keeps it can owe twice the amount withheld, plus costs and attorney's fees (§ 18-16-306). Those deposit rules do not reach an individual owner who self-manages five or fewer units (§ 18-16-303). Since 2025, no city or county may set its own deposit limit (Act 459 of 2025, § 14-54-1409(b)(1)). No statute addresses monthly pet rent or a non-refundable pet fee.
Small landlords
Two kinds of landlord owe no accommodation, under state law or the federal Act. One is an owner who lives in a building with no more than four households. The other is a private owner of no more than three single-family houses who rents without a broker and without discriminatory advertising (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-306(a); 42 U.S.C. § 3603(b)). An owner who acts as principal in three or more deals in 12 months, or owns a dwelling for five or more families, is in the business and loses the exemption (§ 16-123-306(b)). In exempt housing, Act 819 goes further: the owner may ban an ESA outright (§ 20-14-1005(a)(1)). So ask before you sign for a duplex, an owner-occupied fourplex or a house let directly by its owner. The deposit rules have their own cut-off. An individual who self-manages five or fewer units is outside the cap and the 60-day return rule (§ 18-16-303).
If your landlord says no
Phone: 501-682-3247 · toll-free 1-800-340-9108 · File a complaint
Deadline: One year from the discriminatory act, or from when it ended (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-317(c)). The complaint must be in writing and under oath, but the Commission's form may not require a notary (§ 16-123-317(b)). The respondent must be notified within 10 days of filing (§ 16-123-317(f)(3)). The office is at 900 West Capitol Avenue, Suite 310, Little Rock, and the online form is linked from its page.
Court: You may sue in state court within two years, in the county where the respondent lives, whether or not you filed with the Commission (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-336). Time while a Commission case is pending does not count, but the court route closes once an administrative hearing has begun. A court may award compensatory and punitive damages, attorney's fees and an injunction (§ 16-123-338).
Retaliation: Intentionally intimidating or interfering with anyone who uses fair-housing rights, or helps others use them, is an offence (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-344). The federal counterpart is 42 U.S.C. § 3617.
The Commission is HUD's only partner agency in the state; no city or county runs its own fair-housing office. It can order actual damages, attorney's fees and court costs itself (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-332(a)). It has said nothing in public about the May 2026 HUD memo, so keep the two-year court route in view (§ 16-123-336).
Your envelope, item by item
Keep a dated copy of everything you send.
What to send your landlord
Ask for a reasonable accommodation for your assistance animal under Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-314(c)(2), and give its name and species. Call an emotional support dog exactly that. Knowingly passing it off as a service animal is a civil violation starting at 500 dollars (§ 20-14-1004). Add one line asking for any pet deposit or pet rent to be waived, and keep a dated copy.
It comes on the clinician's letterhead with the four licence details § 20-14-1003(a)(1) lists: effective date, number, jurisdiction and type. It states a disability-related need for the animal without naming a diagnosis. Its date falls on day 31 or later of your client-provider relationship.
Registrations, certificates, ID cards and vests prove nothing. The only document the subchapter regulates is a provider's letter (§ 20-14-1003). Sellers of those items must even hand you a bold-print warning that they give no service-dog rights (§ 20-14-1002(b)–(c)).
State law sets no deadline for the answer, so ask for a reply in writing and note the date you sent the request. If the answer is no, or never comes, the one-year clock to file with the Fair Housing Commission runs from the refusal (§ 16-123-317(c)). Check first whether the owner lives in a small building on site; that landlord may be exempt (§ 16-123-306(a)).
If your housing provider questions the letter, your clinician responds directly at no extra cost.
Arkansas renters by city
One state statute and one statewide agency set the rules in Little Rock, Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers, Bentonville, Jonesboro and Conway. HUD lists no city or county fair-housing agency anywhere in the state. So every renter files with the Fair Housing Commission at 900 West Capitol Avenue in Little Rock, or on 1-800-340-9108, within one year (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-317(c)). Cities cannot add a deposit cap of their own either (Act 459 of 2025, § 14-54-1409(b)(1)). Your clinician meets you by live video, so a renter in Benton or North Little Rock keeps the same calendar as one in Bentonville. That means a first session on day 1, a second on day 31, and the letter after it if you qualify. Students in campus housing at UA Little Rock, the University of Arkansas, Arkansas State or Central Arkansas use the school's own request process, so ask its disability office before move-in. One caution for Northwest Arkansas shoppers and diners: a business may turn an ESA away with a word or a sign at the door (§ 20-14-1005(a)(2)).
Myths in Arkansas
Arkansas landlords cannot charge pet rent, pet fees or a pet deposit for an ESA.
FactNo Arkansas statute says that. The no-extra-charge rule in Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-304(a) covers a service animal trained to do work or perform tasks. For an ESA, ask for a waiver as a reasonable accommodation under § 16-123-314(c)(2). The landlord weighs that request; it is not an automatic right. What the law does cap is the total of all deposits: two months' rent (§ 18-16-304).
An Arkansas ESA letter is valid for 12 months and then expires.
FactThe statute sets no expiry date. For a dog letter it puts two duties on the clinician instead. One is a clinical evaluation at least once a year. The other is a yearly review of the need to renew the documentation (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003(a)(4), (6)). The text does not say a landlord may reject an older letter. Plan on a re-evaluation each year all the same.
Show any Arkansas landlord a valid ESA letter and they have to say yes.
FactNot every landlord. An owner living in a building of four or fewer units owes no accommodation, and neither does a private owner of three or fewer houses renting without a broker (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-306(a)). Act 819 lets that owner ban an ESA outright (§ 20-14-1005(a)(1)). Covered landlords must consider the request. They may refuse on lawful grounds, such as a direct threat or substantial damage (§ 16-123-314(f)).
Task-trained dogs are a different document. If your dog performs trained tasks for a psychiatric disability, read about the psychiatric service dog (PSD) letter online, written after a real consultation.
Typical competitor price $159 — you save up to $60
The reasonable-accommodation letter you give your landlord, after a live clinical evaluation.
Both letters from one course of care, including the consultations for each.
For people who already have housing sorted and need psychiatric service dog documentation only.
Arkansas letters issue after a second live session on day 31 of the client-provider relationship, for a dog or any other animal. The fee is the one charged in every state. Read the guarantee and refund terms.
Why this letter holds up
Read the exact terms. Money-back guarantee: full refund if you do not qualify, and a full refund if your housing provider refuses the letter.
★★★★★I had a really positive experience from start to finish. The process was smooth, and I felt comfortable sharing everything without feeling rushed or judged. The questions were straightforward and easy to answer, and I really appreciated how respectful and understanding everyone was throughout the process. Having the opportunity to speak with a licensed professional afterward was also very helpful and added a lot of value to the experience. Overall, I’m very satisfied with the service
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Arkansas FAQ
It supports a request to your landlord for a reasonable accommodation: living with an animal that eases a disability, even where pets are banned (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-314(c)(2)). It is a clinician's written finding. A certificate or registration is not, and confers nothing. The letter gives no right to bring the animal into shops, restaurants or hospitals; a business may now ban ESAs (§ 20-14-1005(a)(2)). Since 2021, airlines may treat ESAs as pets.
No list of diagnoses decides it. State fair-housing law borrows the federal meaning of disability: an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities (Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-302(7)). Depression, anxiety, PTSD and other conditions can meet that test, or not, depending on their effect on you. A clinician decides after evaluating you, and not everyone qualifies. The evaluation costs $99, paid at checkout before the first session.
It can, when it substantially limits one or more of your major life activities, the test Ark. Code Ann. § 16-123-302(7) takes from federal law. A diagnosis label alone does not settle it. The clinician looks at how the anxiety affects your daily life and whether the animal eases it. If the clinician finds you do not qualify, you can ask for a full refund within 7 days.
For emotional support dogs, three rules matter. The clinician who documents the need must have known you as a client for 30 days and print four licence details on the letter (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1003). Claiming service-animal rights for the dog is a civil violation of 500, then 1,000, then 2,500 dollars (§ 20-14-1004). And since 5 August 2025, businesses may ban ESAs, and so may owners wherever federal law does not forbid it (§ 20-14-1005).
We cannot speak for VA policy, so ask your VA care team. Under state law, any "healthcare provider" licensed or otherwise authorised to practise may write the letter (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-1001(3)). A clinician who already treats you may therefore be able to. For a dog, that clinician must have known you as a client for at least 30 days and must print their licence details on the letter (§ 20-14-1003(a)).
A service animal "especially trained to do work or to perform tasks" may go into public places and housing accommodations with its handler, at no extra charge (Ark. Code Ann. § 20-14-304(a)). An emotional support animal has no such right. A shop, restaurant or hospital may refuse one by telling you, or by posting a sign at the entrance (§ 20-14-1005(a)(2)). Calling an ESA a service animal to get in can cost up to 250 dollars (§ 20-14-310).
$99 for a housing letter, $149 together with a psychiatric service dog letter, or $79 for a PSD letter and consultation on its own. The consultation and landlord verification support are included, and the price is the same across every state.
Nearby states and resources
Sources
General information, not legal advice. Last reviewed 2026-10-27 by Darren Rafel, LCSW. Statutes change; we re-check each state page and record the date above.
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