ARKANSAS PAYROLL RESOURCES · AR · REVIEWED 2026-10-03
Review Arkansas payroll-record requirements, the revised 2026 withholding tables, unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation thresholds, and official employer resources. Run payroll for a small team and get employee statements from every calculated run.
AT A GLANCE
Arkansas should not be presented as though it has a detailed every-payday statement statute like Alaska or Hawaii. In the primary Arkansas materials reviewed for this page, we did not identify a broad, general rule requiring every private employer to furnish an itemized pay statement each pay period. That does not eliminate payroll-record obligations. Employers subject to the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act must keep accurate payroll records for three years, and withholding, unemployment, and workers’ compensation obligations apply independently.
No broad Arkansas private-sector every-pay-period itemized pay-stub mandate was identified in the primary state materials reviewed. Employers should still keep clear payroll records and confirm whether a federal, contractual, industry, or employer-policy requirement applies.
See details →Use the Department of Finance and Administration’s revised 2026 withholding instructions and tables posted May 29, 2026. They reflect the reduction of the top individual rate to 3.7%, retroactive to January 1, 2026.
View 2026 withholding forms and instructions →For 2026, Arkansas lists a $7,000 taxable wage base and a 2.0% new-employer rate. Experienced-employer rates are assigned by the Division of Workforce Services.
View unemployment resources →Most Arkansas employers with three or more employees must carry workers’ compensation. Lower thresholds apply in some situations, including two or more employees in building or building-repair work and one or more employees for certain contractors and subcontractors.
View workers’ compensation basic facts →STATE PAYROLL OVERVIEW
The primary Arkansas materials reviewed for this page do not establish a broad private-sector rule requiring every employer to issue a detailed itemized pay stub each pay period. That is a narrower conclusion than saying an Arkansas employer never has to provide payroll information. The Arkansas Minimum Wage Act requires covered employers to keep accurate payroll records for three years, and those records must support wages, hours, and deductions. Those are records the employer maintains for enforcement—not a list of fields the state requires on an employee-facing statement.
The Arkansas Minimum Wage Act applies to employers of four or more employees, with listed exemptions. Coverage thresholds differ by program: workers’ compensation generally begins at three employees, while unemployment and withholding obligations follow their own rules.
Arkansas withholding changed mid-year. Act 1 of the 2026 First Extraordinary Session (HB 1001) reduced the top individual income-tax rate from 3.9% to 3.7%, retroactive to January 1, 2026. The Department of Finance and Administration replaced its December 2025 withholding instructions and tables with revised versions posted May 29, 2026. Employers should use the revised materials, not the earlier 2026 versions that still show 3.9%.
PAYROLL REQUIREMENTS CHECKLIST
Do not represent Arkansas as having a universal state pay-stub content checklist based on the primary materials reviewed here. Determine whether a federal, contractual, industry-specific, or employer-policy requirement applies to the worker.
Employers subject to the Arkansas Minimum Wage Act must keep accurate payroll records for three years. Keep enough information to support hours or salary, gross wages, deductions, withholding, and net pay.
Use the revised 2026 Arkansas withholding tables or formula posted May 29, 2026, together with each employee’s Form AR4EC.
Review unemployment insurance, workers’ compensation thresholds, the state minimum wage for employers with four or more employees, and annual wage reporting independently from the pay-stub question.
PAYROLL RECORDS IN PRACTICE
Even where no general Arkansas itemized-pay-stub checklist applies, a clear payroll statement helps document the pay period, wages, deductions, withholding, and net payment. Keep it consistent with the payroll records and do not describe it as satisfying a state field list that the reviewed sources do not establish.
Retain the records needed to support Arkansas withholding returns, unemployment wage reports, workers’ compensation payroll, minimum-wage compliance, and annual wage statements. The Minimum Wage Act notice specifies three-year retention for covered employers.
USE THE REVISED 2026 ARKANSAS TABLES — NOT THE EARLIER VERSION
Arkansas withholding depends on the Department’s current tables or formula, Form AR4EC exemptions, wages, and payroll frequency. The 2026 instructions and tables were replaced on May 29, 2026 to reflect the 3.7% top rate. The revised instructions also reflect a 3.7% rate for bonuses or commissions paid at the same time as regular wages.
LOCAL CONSIDERATIONS
The primary sources reviewed for this page did not identify a municipal wage-withholding tax or local minimum-wage ordinance that changes payroll calculations in Little Rock, Fayetteville, Fort Smith, or Jonesboro. The most important location issue is a state-level border rule.
A SOURCE-BACKED WORKFLOW
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OFFICIAL ARKANSAS SOURCES USED FOR THIS PAGE
Revised 2026 employer instructions, tables, and employee certificates.
Revised wage-bracket tables posted May 29, 2026.
2026 taxable wage base, new-employer rate, and experienced-rate range.
Official coverage thresholds and exemptions.
Minimum Wage Act coverage and three-year recordkeeping notice.
RESEARCH & REVIEW
This page is built from primary Arkansas government sources and is periodically reviewed against current agency guidance. We use Department of Finance and Administration withholding materials, Division of Workforce Services unemployment resources, Department of Labor and Licensing notices, and Workers’ Compensation Commission guidance whenever available.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
ACCURATE RECORDS. SUPPORTING EVIDENCE.
Prepare an Arkansas Pay Run, review the revised 2026 withholding before completion, and keep the applicable Arkansas sources with your payroll workflow.