Pre-trip check · AR → MO
Driving from Arkansas to Missouri?
The law changes the moment you cross the line — what's legal to carry, light, or do in Arkansas can be a violation in Missouri. Every status below is live from LawLert's database, dated, and linked to its official source.
What changes for you (9)
Under Missouri's Siddens Bening Hands Free Law, handheld use is banned for all drivers — hands-free only. Enforcement began January 1, 2025. RSMo 304.822 bars holding an electronic communication device.
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jun 18, 2026
During firearms deer season, all hunters must wear a hunter-orange cap/hat AND a hunter-orange shirt, vest or coat, plainly visible from all sides.
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jun 18, 2026
No statewide ban on passengers possessing/consuming alcohol in a vehicle; only the DRIVER is barred from consuming while operating (RSMo 577.017). Many municipalities (e.g., Springfield) prohibit open containers…
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified May 31, 2026
Consumer fireworks may be purchased without a personal permit. Seasonal retailers hold Division of Fire Safety permits (sales roughly June 20–July 10 and Dec 20–Jan 2), and cities or counties may ban consumer use…
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jun 7, 2026
No statewide knife preemption; RSMo 21.750 preempts only firearms, components and ammunition, so localities may still regulate knives.
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jul 7, 2026
Recreational legal for adults 21+; medical program also operates (Amendment 3, 2022; retail began Feb 2023).
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jul 13, 2026
Campfires and fires for recreation, ceremony, or noncommercial cooking are allowed statewide and may burn only vegetative/untreated wood. Keep fires at least 75ft from buildings, small, attended, and fully extinguished;…
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jun 18, 2026
Missouri has no drone-specific privacy crime; the general invasion-of-privacy law (565.252) bars nonconsensual nude imaging but does not mention drones.
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jul 7, 2026
State sales and use tax is 4.225% (Chapter 144 RSMo). Cities, counties, and special districts may add local sales taxes, so the combined rate depends on the location.
Full Missouri rule · Official source · verified Jul 13, 2026
Same status
Matching status ≠ identical law — details, limits and penalties can still differ.
Carrying with a permit? Whether Arkansas permits are honored in Missouri is its own map — check Missouri concealed-carry reciprocity. And federal land (national parks, forests) plays by federal rules in both states — see the federal-land guide.
Also from Arkansas: AR → LA · AR → MS · AR → OK · AR → TN · AR → TX · reverse (MO → AR)
Arkansas to Missouri: common questions
- Do the laws change when you drive from Arkansas to Missouri?
- Yes — 9 of the 13 categories LawLert tracks have a different status in Missouri than in Arkansas: driving, hunting, alcohol, fireworks, knives, cannabis, burn bans, drones, taxes. Each is listed on this page with its current status, the official source it came from, and the date it was last verified.
- What are the driving laws in Missouri if I'm coming from Arkansas?
- Missouri: Restricted — Under Missouri's Siddens Bening Hands Free Law, handheld use is banned for all drivers — hands-free only. Enforcement began January 1, 2025. RSMo 304.822 bars holding an electronic communication device. In Arkansas the same category is Conditional.
- What are the hunting laws in Missouri if I'm coming from Arkansas?
- Missouri: Restricted — During firearms deer season, all hunters must wear a hunter-orange cap/hat AND a hunter-orange shirt, vest or coat, plainly visible from all sides. In Arkansas the same category is Conditional.
- What are the alcohol laws in Missouri if I'm coming from Arkansas?
- Missouri: Conditional — No statewide ban on passengers possessing/consuming alcohol in a vehicle; only the DRIVER is barred from consuming while operating (RSMo 577.017). Many municipalities (e.g., Springfield) prohibit open containers… In Arkansas the same category is Restricted.
- Is my Arkansas concealed carry permit honored in Missouri?
- Permit reciprocity is decided separately from the firearms status shown on this page, so it is not answered here. LawLert publishes Missouri's recognition list, with the statute or agency page behind it, at lawlertapp.com/firearms/MO/reciprocity. Permitless carry, where a state allows it, is a different question again — it does not make an out-of-state permit valid.
- How current is this Arkansas to Missouri comparison?
- Every rule on this page stores the date it was last checked against its source; the oldest on this comparison is 2026-05-31. LawLert carries 6,693 rules, each with a source URL, and publishes a log of every correction it has made at lawlertapp.com/how-we-verify. Laws change — confirm anything consequential against the linked source.