Arkansas — Collection Agency Licensing (A.C.A. tit. 17 ch. 24) + Arkansas FDCPA + SOL

Authority

Arkansas Code Title 17, Chapter 24 does double duty: subchapters 1–4 are the collection agency licensing act (license, surety bond, fee caps, long-arm jurisdiction), and subchapter 5 is the "Arkansas Fair Debt Collection Practices Act" (§17-24-501 et seq.) — a near-verbatim state copy of the federal FDCPA with its own private right of action (§17-24-512).

The regulator is the State Board of Collection Agencies (SBCA), five members appointed by the Governor (§17-24-201). The board was NOT abolished. Act 910 of 2019 (the Transformation and Efficiencies Act of 2019) transferred it into the new cabinet-level Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing, where it continues to exercise its duties unchanged — see the Operative text below for the enacted transfer language, and note that the board still issues licenses today.

Statute of limitations on suit for a debt: §16-56-111 — five years for written obligations (which, under settled Arkansas Supreme Court law, includes credit-card debt), and §16-56-105 — three years for contracts not in writing and for true open accounts.

Verification note — read before relying on a quote

Arkansas's official Arkansas Code Annotated is published only through LexisNexis. Every official state route to code text terminates at advance.lexis.com — the General Assembly's own site (arkleg.state.ar.us) renders its "Arkansas Code" navigation item as a dead # anchor that hands off to Lexis, and lexisnexis.com/hottopics/arcode/ redirects into the session-gated advance.lexis.com container. There is no Arkansas equivalent of Texas's tcss.legis.texas.gov file server, and arkleg's document server (/Home/FTPDocument) serves only session-law Act PDFs (back to roughly 2005 — 1997 and 2001 Acts return a not-found placeholder), not codified text.

Text below is therefore assembled from four independent official sources, each labeled inline:

• Source A — the regulator's own publication of its statute. The Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing publishes the full text of A.C.A. tit. 17 ch. 24 (including the Arkansas FDCPA) as a PDF on the SBCA's "Laws, Rules & Orders" page, captioned "ARKANSAS CODE ANNOTATED / current through 2023 legislative session." All Title 17 quotes below come from this file. This is the enforcing agency publishing the law it enforces — the strongest available Arkansas source, and it is machine-readable.
• Source B — the Arkansas General Assembly's official Act PDFs (arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument), which carry enacted session law with stricken/underlined amendment marks. Used for the Act 910 of 2019 regulator transfer.
• Source C — the Arkansas Judiciary (arcourts.gov), Administrative Office of the Courts, District Court Benchbook (rev. 2017) — an official state publication summarizing the limitations periods. Used to corroborate the SOL years.
• Source D — govinfo.gov / uscourts.gov: opinions of the U.S. District and Bankruptcy Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Arkansas quoting the current A.C.A. text. Used for partial verbatim quotation of §§16-56-105 and 16-56-111 and for the credit-card holding.

Consequence — an honest gap. Title 17 ch. 24 is quoted here in full fidelity from Source A. Title 16 ch. 56 (the SOL chapter) is NOT available in full verbatim from any official source that could be reached. The five-year and three-year periods are quote-backed (Sources C and D), but the complete statutory text of §16-56-111 — specifically its revival/tolling sentence — is marked UNVERIFIED below and must be treated as such. See Traps; this gap is behavior-driving for any limitations answer.

Operative text

Who is covered — §17-24-101 definition (Source A)

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, "collection agency" means any person, partnership, corporation, association, limited liability corporation, or firm that: (1) Engages in the collection of delinquent accounts, bills, or other forms of indebtedness owed or due or asserted to be owed or due to another; (2) Uses a fictitious name or any name other than its own to collect its own accounts receivable; (3) Solicits claims for collection; or (4) Purchases and attempts to collect delinquent accounts or bills. — A.C.A. §17-24-101

Subdivision (4) puts debt buyers squarely inside the licensing act. Subdivision (2) reaches an original creditor that collects its own paper under an assumed name.

Exemptions — §17-24-102 (Source A)

(a) This chapter does not apply to: (1) Regular employees of a single creditor; (2) Banks; (3) Trust companies; (4) Savings and loan associations; (5) Abstract companies doing an escrow business; (6) Licensed real estate brokers and agents when the claims or accounts being handled by the broker or agent are related to or in connection with the broker's or agent's regular real estate business; (7) Express and telegraph companies subject to public regulation and supervision; (8) Attorneys at law who use their own names or the names of their law firms to collect or attempt to collect claims, accounts, bills, or other forms of indebtedness owed to them individually or as a firm; (9) (A) Persons, firms, corporations, associations, limited liability corporations, or partnerships handling claims, accounts, or collections under an order of any court. (B) However, child support collection agencies not operating pursuant to Title IV-D of the Social Security Act are not exempt from this chapter and shall be subject to licensure; and (10) Any person, firm, corporation, association, limited liability corporation, or partnership that, for a valuable consideration, purchases accounts, claims, or demands of another that were not in default or delinquent at the time of acquisition and then in the purchaser's own name proceeds to assert or collect the accounts, claims, or demands. — A.C.A. §17-24-102(a)

Note the shape of (a)(10): buying performing paper and collecting it in your own name is exempt; buying delinquent paper is not.

Entry gate — license required, §17-24-301 (Source A)

Unless licensed by the State Board of Collection Agencies under this subchapter it is unlawful to: (1) Engage in the collection of delinquent accounts, bills, or other forms of indebtedness; (2) Use a fictitious name or any name other than their own in the collection of their own accounts receivable; (3) Solicit claims for collection; or (4) Purchase and attempt to collect delinquent accounts or bills. — A.C.A. §17-24-301

The regulator's own FAQ states the trigger for out-of-state agencies and the scope of licensure:

Collection agencies must be licensed if: (1) they are located in Arkansas or (2) they contact debtors in Arkansas. — ADLL, State Board of Collection Agencies (official page)

Q: Does my active or passive debt-buying business need to be licensed? "Yes. Arkansas law does not distinguish between debt buyers and traditional collection agencies." Q: Does my collection agency need an Arkansas license if we only collect commercial or B2B accounts? "Yes. For the purpose of licensure, Arkansas law doesn't distinguish between consumer versus commercial collection agencies. If you are going to attempt to collect from an Arkansas resident, you must first obtain a license." Q: My company only uses our "in-house" collections department, not an outside agency. Do we need a license? "That depends. You must obtain a license if your in-house collector or collections department uses a different name than your main business." Q: Does Arkansas require individual debt collectors to be licensed? "Generally, no…We only issue licenses to collection agencies, but each individual collector and solicitor must be registered, along with any aliases used." Q: My collection agency has a main office and a branch site; which one should be licensed? "Both. You should obtain a separate license for any location from which Arkansas residents will be contacted." Q: Does my collection agency need to register all its collectors, even the ones that don't collect any Arkansas accounts? "Yes. Arkansas law does not distinguish between which collectors might or might not contact an Arkansas resident based on internal work assignments." — ADLL, SBCA "FAQs for Collection Agencies" (official page)

Bond — §17-24-306 (Source A) and the board's tiered rule (Source A, Rules)

(a) The State Board of Collection Agencies shall require each licensee to secure a surety bond in an amount not less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) nor more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) for each location, with the security on the bond to be approved by the board. (b) The aggregate liability of the surety for all breaches of the conditions of the bond shall, in no event, exceed the amount of the bond. The surety shall have a right to cancel such bond upon giving thirty (30) days' notice to the board and thereafter shall be relieved of liability for any breach of condition occurring after the effective date of the cancellation. (c) The bond shall be made payable to the board. — A.C.A. §17-24-306

The board's rules set the actual amount by collector headcount:

2. A surety bond payable to the Board, pursuant to the Act (§17-24-306), in the amounts as set forth below: a. Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000) for agencies with up to five (5) collectors; b. Twenty Thousand Dollars ($20,000) for agencies with six (6) to twelve (12) collectors; c. Twenty-Five Thousand Dollars ($25,000) for agencies with more than twelve (12) collectors. — ASBCA Rules (rev. 2021), §2-1(A)(2)

C. Additional Locations Collection agencies operating at more than one office or location must obtain and maintain a separate license and surety bond for each location. — ASBCA Rules (rev. 2021), §2-1(C)

Fees and renewal — §§17-24-304, 17-24-305 (Source A)

(a) All collection agency licenses and collection agency employee licenses shall expire annually on June 30. (b) All licensees under this chapter shall apply for the renewal of their licenses, on forms to be prescribed by the State Board of Collection Agencies, on or before July 1 of the fiscal year for which the licenses are sought. — A.C.A. §17-24-304

(a) The State Board of Collection Agencies may charge an annual license fee not to exceed one hundred twenty-five dollars ($125) for licensing each collection agency and an annual fee of twenty dollars ($20.00) effective September 1, 2013, for registering each employee of the licensed collection agency who as an employee solicits, collects, or attempts to collect any delinquent account or accounts by telephone, mail, personal contact, or otherwise. — A.C.A. §17-24-305(a)

Penalty for operating unlicensed — §17-24-103 (Source A)

(a) (1) A collection agency that engages in the business activities of a collection agency without a license issued under this chapter may be fined not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) nor more than five hundred dollars ($500). (2) Each day of a violation of this chapter is a separate offense. (3) (A) If a collection agency participates in collection activities without a license, the collection agency may pay a civil penalty to the State Board of Collection Agencies of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in order to be considered retroactively licensed under this chapter by the board. (B) As used in this chapter, "retroactively licensed" means the date that the collection agency first became subject to licensure under this chapter. … (3) The remedies in the form of civil penalties provided in this section for failing to obtain a license issued under this chapter shall be the only consequence of and remedy for the failure of a collection agency to obtain a license when required under this chapter. (c) The board has exclusive jurisdiction over the rights and remedies or a violation of the rules under this chapter. — A.C.A. §17-24-103

Plus injunctive relief:

When any person, partnership, corporation, or association engages in the business activities of a collection agency without a valid license issued under this chapter or has had the license revoked, suspended, or refused, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, the State Board of Collection Agencies may petition the circuit court in the jurisdiction in which the collection activity has occurred and, upon affidavit, secure a writ of injunction, without bond, restraining and prohibiting the person, partnership, corporation, or association from operating the collection agency. — A.C.A. §17-24-105

The regulator transfer — Act 910 of 2019 (Source B)

The State Board of Collection Agencies appears in the enacted list of entities moved into the new Department of Labor and Licensing:

25-43-1102. State entities transferred to Department of Labor and Licensing. … (22) The State Board of Collection Agencies, created under § 17-24-201; … (c) Unless otherwise provided by law, a state entity whose administrative functions have been transferred to the Labor and Licensing under subsection (a) of this section shall otherwise continue to exercise the duties of the state entity under the administration of the cabinet-level Department of Labor and Licensing in the same manner as before the creation of the cabinet-level department. — Act 910 of 2019 (HB1763), §5265, adding A.C.A. §25-43-1102; "Sections 1 through 6343 of this act … shall become effective on July 1, 2019"; approved 4/11/19

Collection fee cap — §17-24-309 (Source A) — an Arkansas-specific rule with no federal analog

(a) No collection agency mentioned in § 17-24-101 shall charge as a collection charge or fee an amount in excess of fifty percent (50%) of the total amount actually collected on all accounts for any one (1) client, nor more than fifty percent (50%) of the total amount actually collected on any one (1) account, nor shall a minimum charge in excess of one dollar ($1.00) be made on any partially or totally collected account. (b) All contracts providing for a greater collection charge or fee or a greater minimum charge than provided in this section entered into between any creditor in this state and any collection agency covered by this chapter shall be void. The creditor shall have, in addition to all other remedies now or hereafter provided by law, a cause of action to recover all amounts collected by the collection agency on the creditor's account or accounts. — A.C.A. §17-24-309

Non-resident agencies are deemed to consent to this cap by soliciting Arkansas accounts:

Any nonresident person, partnership, association, or any foreign corporation not authorized to do business in this state whose sole business contact with this state is the soliciting of accounts in this state by mail, telephone, telegraph, or by other like means originating outside this state, or the taking or accepting for collection of any account or accounts in this state by such means, shall by such acts: (1) Subject himself or herself to the jurisdiction of the proper courts of this state …; (2) Be deemed to have consented to comply with the maximum collection charges or fees provided in § 17-24-309; and (3) Be deemed to have consented to and designated the Secretary of State to be the true and lawful attorney of [the nonresident] … — A.C.A. §17-24-401

Remittance duty — §§17-24-104, 17-24-310 (Source A)

(a) A collection agency that fails to remit to its client funds collected for the client within the calendar month following the month of collection, shall not be entitled to a collection fee and shall remit the total funds collected to the client. (b) If a collection agency fails to remit funds collected to its client within the calendar month following the month of collection and does not remit the total funds collected for the client to the client within sixty-one (61) days of the date of collection, the State Board of Collection Agencies may: (1) Suspend or revoke the license of the collection agency; and (2) Impose a civil penalty under § 17-24-103. — A.C.A. §17-24-104

(a) Each collection agency required to be licensed under this chapter shall, annually, within the month of April, give written notice to each client for whom it is collecting or attempting to collect that collection agencies licensed by the State of Arkansas are required by law to remit collected funds to the clients within the calendar month following the month of collection. — A.C.A. §17-24-310

Licensing-side prohibited practices — §17-24-307 (Source A)

These are grounds for revocation/suspension/refusal and go beyond the federal FDCPA list:

The State Board of Collection Agencies shall have the authority to revoke, suspend, or refuse to issue a license for violation of this chapter, or upon receipt of evidence as follows: (1) False or misrepresented statements on application; (2) Sale or transfer of ownership of agency; (3) Aiding or abetting any unlicensed person to engage in business as a collection agency; (4) Publishing or posting, or causing to be published or posted, any list of debtors, commonly known as "deadbeat" lists; (5) Collecting or attempting to collect by the use of any methods contrary to the postal laws and regulations of the United States; (6) Having in his or her possession or making use of any badge, using a uniform of any law enforcement agency or any simulation thereof, or making any statements which might be construed as indicating an official connection with any federal, state, county, or city law enforcement agency, or any other governmental agency, while engaged in collection agency business; (7) Distributing any printed matter which is made to be similar or to resemble government forms or documents, or legal forms used in civil or criminal proceedings; (8) Advertising for sale or threatening to advertise for sale any claim as a means of endeavoring to enforce payment thereof, or agreeing to do so for the purpose of soliciting claims, except where the licensee has acquired claims as an assignee for the benefit of creditors or where the licensee is acting under the order of a court of competent jurisdiction; (9) Engaging in any unethical practices or resorting to any illegal means or methods of collection; (10) Using profanity, obscenity, or vulgarity while engaged in the collection of claims; (11) Addressing a letter to or telephoning a debtor at his or her place of employment unless a good-faith attempt has been made to contact the debtor at his or her usual place of abode by letter and the mail has not been returned and no answer has been received; or (12) Using violence or threats of physical violence while engaged in the collection of claims. — A.C.A. §17-24-307

Subdivision (11) is materially stricter than federal law: the FDCPA (and §17-24-504(a)(3)) only bar workplace contact when the collector knows the employer prohibits it, whereas §17-24-307(11) makes any workplace letter or call a licensing violation unless a good-faith home-address attempt has already failed.

Arkansas FDCPA — call-time window, §17-24-504 (Source A)

(a) Without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction, a debt collector may not communicate with a consumer in connection with the collection of a debt: (1) (A) At an unusual time or place or a time or place known or which should be known to be inconvenient to the consumer. (B) In the absence of knowledge of circumstances to the contrary, a debt collector shall assume that the convenient time for communicating with a consumer is after 8:00 a.m. and before 9:00 p.m. local time at the consumer's location; (2) If the debt collector knows the consumer is represented by an attorney with respect to the debt and has knowledge of or can readily ascertain the attorney's name and address, unless: (A) The attorney fails to respond within a reasonable period of time to a communication from the debt collector; or (B) The attorney consents to direct communication with the consumer; or (3) At the consumer's place of employment if the debt collector knows or has reason to know that the consumer's employer prohibits the consumer from receiving the communication. … (c) If a consumer notifies a debt collector in writing that the consumer refuses to pay a debt or that the consumer wishes the debt collector to cease further communication with the consumer, the debt collector shall not communicate further with the consumer with respect to the debt, except: (1) To advise the consumer that the debt collector's further efforts are being terminated; (2) To notify the consumer that the debt collector or creditor may invoke specified remedies …; or (3) (A) When applicable, to notify the consumer that the debt collector or creditor intends to invoke a specified remedy. (d) As used in this section, "consumer" includes the consumer's spouse, parent if the consumer is a minor, guardian, executor, or administrator. — A.C.A. §17-24-504

8:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. — identical to the federal floor. Arkansas is not stricter on call times.

Arkansas FDCPA — harassment, §17-24-505 (Source A) — no numeric call cap

(a) A debt collector may not engage in a conduct the natural consequence of which is to harass, oppress, or abuse a person in connection with the collection of a debt. (b) Without limiting the general application of subsection (a) of this section, the following conduct is a violation of this section: (1) The use or threat of use of violence or other criminal means to harm the physical person, reputation, or property of a person; (2) The use of obscene or profane language or language the natural consequence of which is to abuse the hearer or reader; (3) The publication of a list of consumers who allegedly refuse to pay debts, except to a consumer reporting agency or to persons meeting the requirements of 15 U.S.C. § 1681a(f) or 15 U.S.C. § 1681b(3), as they existed on January 1, 2009; (4) The advertisement for sale of a debt to coerce payment of the debt; (5) Causing a telephone to ring or engaging a person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass a person at the called number; or (6) Except as provided in § 17-24-503, the placement of telephone calls without meaningful disclosure of the caller's identity. — A.C.A. §17-24-505

No numeric frequency cap. §17-24-505(b)(5) is an intent standard (the federal §1692d(5) analog), so Reg F's 7-in-7 presumption is the operative frequency limit in Arkansas.

Arkansas FDCPA — unfair practices, §17-24-507 (Source A)

(a) A debt collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect a debt. (b) Without limiting the general application of subsection (a) of this section, the following actions of a debt collector violate this section: (1) The collection of an amount, including interest, a fee, a charge, or an expense incidental to the principal obligation unless the amount is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt or permitted by law; (2) The acceptance by a debt collector from a person of a check or other payment instrument postdated by more than five (5) days unless the person is notified in writing of the debt collector's intent to deposit the check or instrument not more than ten (10) nor less than three (3) business days before the deposit; (3) The solicitation by a debt collector of a postdated check or other postdated payment instrument for the purpose of threatening or instituting criminal prosecution; (4) Depositing or threatening to deposit a postdated check or other postdated payment instrument before the date on the check or instrument; (5) Causing charges to be made to a person for communications by concealment of the true purpose of the communication, including without limitation charges for collect telephone calls and telegrams; (6) Taking or threatening to take a nonjudicial action to effect dispossession or disablement of property if: (A) No present right exists to possession of the property claimed as collateral through an enforceable security interest; (B) No present intention exists to take possession of the property; or (C) The property is exempt by law from the dispossession or disablement; (7) Communicating with a consumer regarding a debt by postcard; or (8) Using a language or symbol other than the debt collector's address on an envelope when communicating with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram, except that a debt collector may use his or her business name if the name does not indicate that he or she is in the debt collection business. — A.C.A. §17-24-507

Arkansas FDCPA — misrepresentation highlights, §17-24-506 (Source A)

(a) A debt collector may not use a false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of a debt. (b) … (11) The failure to disclose: (A) In the initial written communication with the consumer and, in addition, if the initial communication with the consumer is oral in the initial oral communication, that the debt collector is attempting to collect a debt and that any information obtained will be used for that purpose; and (B) In subsequent communications, that the communication is from a debt collector, except that this subdivision (b)(11) does not apply to a formal pleading made in connection with a legal action; … (14) The use of a business, company, or organization name other than the true name of the debt collector's business, company, or organization; … (16) The false representation or implication that a debt collector operates or is employed by a consumer reporting agency as defined by 15 U.S.C. § 1681a(f), as it existed on January 1, 2009. — A.C.A. §17-24-506

The board's rules add a licensed-name rule, restate the workplace-contact precondition, and impose a per-communication identification requirement:

A. Agency Name A collection agency shall use only its name or tradestyle exactly as it appears on its license when attempting to collect a debt. B. Debtor Workplaces Pursuant to the Act (§17-24-307), no licensee shall address a letter to or telephone any debtor at his or her place of employment unless a good faith attempt has been made to contact the debtor by mail at his or her home and the mail has not been returned and no answer has been received. C. Disclosure Pursuant to the Act (§17-24-508), when an agency communicates with a debtor, the agency must disclose, in a written or telephone communication, the specific reason for the communication, the name of the creditor, the licensed name of the agency, the date of communication in written communication; and in oral communication, the identity of the collector making the contact. — ASBCA Rules (rev. 2021), §3-2

Arkansas FDCPA — validation, §17-24-508 (Source A)

(a) At the time of the initial communication or within five (5) days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of a debt, unless the consumer has paid the debt, a debt collector shall send the consumer a written notice containing: (1) The amount of the debt; (2) The name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed; (3) A statement that unless the consumer within thirty (30) days after receipt of the notice disputes the validity of the debt or a portion of the debt, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector; (4) A statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt or a portion of the debt is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of the verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and (5) A statement that upon the consumer's written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor if different from the current creditor. (b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) of this section that the debt or a portion of the debt is disputed or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt or a disputed portion of the debt until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of the verification or judgment or name and address of the original creditor is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector. (c) The failure of a consumer to dispute the validity of a debt under this section is not an admission of liability by the consumer. — A.C.A. §17-24-508

This tracks pre-Reg F FDCPA §1692g, not the current federal rule: it has no itemization date, no model validation notice, and no Reg F-style delivery/e-disclosure mechanics.

Arkansas FDCPA — venue, §17-24-510 (Source A)

(a) A debt collector who brings a legal action on a debt against a consumer shall: (1) For an action to enforce an interest in real property securing the consumer's obligation, bring the action in the county where all or part of the real property is located; or (2) For an action not described in subdivision (a)(1) of this section, bring the action only in the county: (A) In which the consumer signed the contract sued upon; or (B) In which the consumer resides at the commencement of the action. (b) This subchapter does not create a cause of action by a debt collector. — A.C.A. §17-24-510

Arkansas FDCPA — private right of action, §17-24-512 (Source A)

(a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, a debt collector who fails to comply with this subchapter with respect to a person is liable to the person in an amount equal to the sum of: (1) An actual damage sustained by the person as a result of the failure; (2) In the case of: (A) An action by an individual, the additional damages as the court may allow not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000); or (B) A class action: (i) The amount each named plaintiff could recover under subdivision (a)(2)(A) of this section; and (ii) The amount the court may allow for all other class members without regard to a minimum individual recovery not to exceed the lesser of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) or one percent (1%) of the net worth of the debt collector; and (3) (A) In the case of a successful action to enforce the foregoing liability, the costs of the action, together with a reasonable attorney's fee as determined by the court. (B) If the court finds that an action under this section was brought in bad faith or for the purpose of harassment, the court may award to the defendant attorney's fees reasonable in relation to the work expended and costs. … (c) A debt collector may not be held liable in an action brought under this subchapter if the debt collector shows by a preponderance of the evidence that the violation was not intentional and resulted from a bona fide error notwithstanding the maintenance of procedures reasonably adapted to avoid the error. (d) An action to enforce a liability created by this subchapter may be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction within one (1) year from the date on which the violation occurs. (e) A provision of this section imposing liability shall not apply to an act done or omitted in good faith in conformity with an advisory opinion of the Federal Trade Commission addressing appropriate conduct under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1692 — 1692p, notwithstanding that after the act or omission has occurred, the opinion is amended, rescinded, or determined by judicial or other authority to be invalid for a reason. — A.C.A. §17-24-512

The board is also directed to read its own act through the federal lens:

(b) The board shall use, to the greatest extent possible, the interpretation and construction of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and any other applicable portions of the debt collection laws of the United States in interpreting and applying this chapter and the rules promulgated by the board. — A.C.A. §17-24-203(b)

Statute of limitations — written obligations, §16-56-111 (Sources C and D)

The Arkansas Judiciary's own benchbook states the period:

8 Statute of Limitations (a) Written contract - 5 years from date contract is broken. Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-111 (b) Oral contract - 3 years from date contract is broken. Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-105 (c) Recovery of personal property - 3 years from date property was taken. Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-105 (d) Damage to personal property - 3 years from date property was damaged. Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-105 — Arkansas Administrative Office of the Courts, District Court Benchbook (rev. 2017), part III

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas quotes the operative language of both sections:

The Debtor argues that the claims at issue are unenforceable against the debtor in accordance with Section 502(b)(1) because they are barred by a three-year statute of limitations, which provides that "[a]ll actions founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability not under seal and not in writing" shall be commenced within three years after the cause of action accrues. ARK. CODE ANN. § 16-56-105(1) (2005). Also relevant to the discussion is a five-year statute of limitations that governs "[a]ctions to enforce written obligations, duties, or rights" and requires such actions to commence within five years after the cause of action accrues. ARK. CODE ANN. § 16-56-111 (2005). — In re Richardson, No. 4:13-bk-14257 (Bankr. E.D. Ark. Apr. 19, 2016), at 8

The Supreme Court of Arkansas describes §16-56-105's full reach:

Arkansas Code Annotated section 16-56-105 provides that all actions founded upon any contract, obligation, or liability not under seal and not in writing and all actions founded on any contract or liability, expressed or implied, shall be commenced within three years after the cause of action accrues. — Supreme Court of Arkansas, No. 11-361 (certified question), reproduced in the E.D. Ark. record

Accrual for a routine contract action:

Arkansas law requires that actions for breach of a written contract be filed within five years of the breach. ARK. CODE ANN. § 16-56-111. In routine contract actions, the statute of limitations begins to run upon the occurrence of the last element essential to the cause of action. Zufari v. Architecture Plus, 914 S.W.2d 756 (1996). — Smith v. Union Carbide Corp., No. 6:04-cv-06112-RTD (W.D. Ark. Feb. 6, 2006), at 3

Statute of limitations — credit cards are FIVE years (Source D, labeled interpretation of case law)

This is the question that most often gets Arkansas wrong. The Arkansas Supreme Court has held that credit-card debt is a written obligation governed by the five-year statute, not the three-year open-account statute:

It is true that the three-year statute of limitations in Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-105(1) applies to actions on open accounts. See In Re Pettingill, 403 B.R. 624, 627 (Bkrtcy. E.D. Ark. 2009). However, debts that arise from a credit card agreement are subject to the five-year statute of limitations in Ark. Code Ann. § 16-56-111 for written obligations. Born v. Hosto & Buchan, PLLC, 2010 Ark. 292, at *18-19, 372 S.W.3d 324, 336 (citing In re Pettingill, 403 B.R. 624). — Roper v. Portfolio Recovery Assocs., No. 4:14-cv-00729-SWW (E.D. Ark. Oct. 5, 2015), at 8

The reasoning in Brown II actually lends support to the later Pettingill holding that a credit card debt is based on a written contract subject to the longer statute of limitations. — In re Richardson, No. 4:13-bk-14257 (Bankr. E.D. Ark. Apr. 19, 2016), at 13–14

Label: this is a case-law classification, not statutory text — §16-56-111 does not name credit cards. It is nonetheless settled Arkansas Supreme Court law (Born, 2010), repeatedly applied by federal courts sitting in Arkansas through at least 2016.

Revival / tolling — UNVERIFIED

§16-56-111 is widely reported to contain a second sentence reading substantially: "Partial payment or written acknowledgment of default shall toll this statute of limitations." Every source in which that sentence could be located is a commercial secondary publisher (Justia, FindLaw) — never the source of record. The full verbatim text of §16-56-111 could not be obtained from any official Arkansas source, and no federal court opinion that was retrieved quotes the tolling sentence.

Treat Arkansas revival as UNVERIFIED-but-probable-and-consequential. It is the opposite posture from Texas, whose §392.307(d) expressly forbids revival for debt buyers. If the reported sentence is accurate, a partial payment or a written acknowledgment of default restarts (or at minimum tolls) the Arkansas clock by statute — which is the single most behavior-relevant SOL fact for the state and must not be treated as verified until an official text is obtained.

Not located in official text — explicit gaps

The following were requested but could not be traced to an official Arkansas source and are therefore excluded rather than guessed:

• §4-3-118 (Arkansas's UCC 3-118 analog, negotiable instruments / promissory notes). Arkansas has adopted UCC Article 3 at A.C.A. tit. 4 ch. 3, so a §4-3-118 exists, but its text and periods are UNVERIFIED here. Do not assume the uniform six-year period applies in Arkansas without checking. This directly affects the promissory-note period.
• §16-56-106 — the brief flagged this as possibly covering instruments in writing; not verified, and the written-obligation period is in any event carried by §16-56-111 per Sources C and D.
• Borrowing statute (whether Arkansas applies another state's shorter limitations period to a foreign cause of action) — not located in official text. Do not represent Arkansas as having or lacking one.
• Absence-from-state tolling — not located; no Arkansas analog to Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code §16.063 verified.
• Medical-debt or other special-category SOL — none found in the sources reviewed; absence not verified (Title 16 ch. 56 was not readable in full).

Verified negatives — what Arkansas does NOT have

These rest on a complete reading of A.C.A. tit. 17 ch. 24 as published by the regulator (all sections §17-24-101 through §17-24-512), so they are genuine negatives for that chapter, not gaps:

• No time-barred-debt disclosure requirement. Nothing in ch. 17-24 requires a Texas-style (§392.307(e)) or New York-style notice that a debt is out of statute. Reg F §1006.26(c) disclosure obligations are the operative rule.
• No statutory bar on suing or arbitrating time-barred debt, and no anti-revival provision. Contrast Tex. Fin. Code §392.307(c)–(d).
• No numeric call-frequency cap (see §17-24-505 above).
• No call-time window stricter than 8 a.m.–9 p.m. (see §17-24-504(a)(1)(B)).
• No state licensing gate on original creditors collecting their own paper in their own name (§17-24-102(a)(1)), though the Arkansas FDCPA's conduct rules still reach a creditor using a third-party-sounding name (§17-24-502(5)(B)).

Plain English

Interpretation — the quotes above win on any conflict.

• Arkansas is a license state, and the gate is wide. If you contact an Arkansas resident to collect a delinquent debt, you need an SBCA license — whether you are a traditional agency, a passive or active debt buyer, or a commercial/B2B-only shop. Each office location needs its own license and its own bond. Individual collectors are not licensed but must be registered, including aliases, and including collectors who never touch Arkansas accounts.
• Bond is $10,000–$25,000 per location, scaled by collector headcount under the board's rules (statutory ceiling is $50,000). License fee is up to $125/year per agency plus $20/year per registered employee; everything expires June 30.
• Operating unlicensed costs $50–$500 per day, each day a separate offense — or a flat $10,000 civil penalty to be deemed retroactively licensed. The board can also get an injunction without bond. Note §17-24-103(b)(3): those civil penalties are declared the only remedy for failure to license, and §17-24-103(c) gives the board exclusive jurisdiction over rule violations.
• The regulator moved but did not disappear. Act 910 of 2019 folded the State Board of Collection Agencies into the Department of Labor and Licensing effective July 1, 2019, expressly preserving its duties "in the same manner as before." Any claim that Arkansas abolished its collection-agency board is wrong.
• The 50% fee cap is the sleeper rule. Arkansas caps agency contingency fees at 50% of amounts actually collected (per client and per account), voids contracts that exceed it, and gives the creditor a cause of action to claw back everything collected. Out-of-state agencies are deemed to consent to the cap by soliciting Arkansas accounts.
• Conduct rules are the federal FDCPA, re-enacted. Same 8 a.m.–9 p.m. window, same harassment/misrepresentation/unfair-practices structure, same validation mechanics — but frozen at the pre-Reg F version, plus Arkansas extras: no postcards, an envelope-marking rule, a per-communication identification duty in the board's rules, and a licensing rule (§17-24-307(11)) that effectively bars workplace contact until a home-address attempt has failed.
• Private suits are small and fast. Up to $1,000 statutory damages plus fees, class caps at the lesser of $500k or 1% of net worth, and a one-year limitations period on the claim itself. There is a bona fide error defense and an FTC-advisory-opinion safe harbor.
• SOL: five years written, three years oral/open — and credit cards are five. Born v. Hosto & Buchan (Ark. 2010) settled that credit-card debt rides the five-year written-obligation statute. The three-year open-account period still exists but does not capture card debt.
• Revival is the open question. Arkansas appears to have a statutory revival trigger on partial payment or written acknowledgment, which would make it far easier to restart an Arkansas clock than a Texas one. It is not yet verified from official text and must be labeled as such wherever it is surfaced.

Traps / edge cases

• "Produced-agreement class" is the wrong label for Arkansas. A prior audit flagged AR as a state where the written-vs-open question turns on whether the creditor can produce the agreement. Born and Pettingill make it a legal classification: credit-card debts are written obligations at five years. Whether the agreement can be produced is an evidentiary/proof problem in litigation, not a different limitations bucket. Do not model AR as a 3-year state on missing-contract facts.
• Debt buyers are licensees, but buying performing paper is exempt. §17-24-101(4) captures buyers of delinquent accounts; §17-24-102(a)(10) exempts buyers of accounts not in default at the time of acquisition who then collect in their own name. The status of the account at acquisition is what decides licensure.
• Branch = separate license + separate bond. Multi-site operations routinely under-bond Arkansas by treating one bond as enterprise-wide. The board's rule is explicit that both are per-location.
• Register every collector, not just the ones assigned to Arkansas. The regulator's FAQ rejects internal work-assignment carve-outs outright.
• §17-24-307(11) is stricter than the FDCPA on workplace contact. Federal law and §17-24-504(a)(3) require knowledge that the employer prohibits it. The licensing statute conditions any workplace letter or call on a prior failed good-faith attempt at the home address. An agency can be FDCPA-clean and still face license exposure.
• The Arkansas FDCPA is frozen pre-Reg F. §17-24-508 has no itemization date and no model notice. Complying with Reg F's validation notice satisfies more than §17-24-508 asks, but the board's own rule (§3-2(C)) adds a per-communication identification duty — creditor name, licensed agency name, reason for the communication, and (orally) the collector's identity — that Reg F does not require.
• One-year clock on Arkansas FDCPA claims (§17-24-512(d)) versus the federal FDCPA's one year as well — but note §17-24-510(b): the subchapter creates no cause of action for a debt collector.
• The 50% cap reaches non-residents by deemed consent (§17-24-401(2)). A fee schedule that is lawful in the agency's home state can still void the Arkansas client contract and expose the agency to a creditor clawback.
• Do not infer Arkansas revival rules from Texas. TX §392.307(d) blocks revival for debt buyers; Arkansas has no such provision and probably has the opposite (statutory tolling on partial payment). Until the §16-56-111 text is verified, treat any AR re-aging decision as attorney-review territory.
• §17-24-103(b)(3)/(c) may limit exposure for unlicensed collection to the board's civil penalties — but §17-24-512 still supplies a private right of action for conduct violations, and the board's own rules note that its penalties "do not preclude private causes of action." The interaction is unresolved and is attorney territory.

Related

• ../federal/fdcpa/overview.md
• ../federal/reg-f/call-frequency.md
• ../federal/reg-f/time-barred-debt.md
• ./tx.md — contrast: bond-not-license gate, and an express no-revival rule for debt buyers
• ./ga.md — same Lexis-fronted-official-code problem, different workaround
• ./ky.md · ./_matrix.md