Updated October 4, 2026. Quick answer: Yes. Act 802 of 2025 limits the Arkansas plan deduction to “($5,000) per taxpayer in any tax year”, and the deduction for another state’s 529 plan is $3,000 per taxpayer.
What Arkansas allows for 529 contributions
| Item | What the documents say |
|---|---|
| Treatment | Deduction from adjusted gross income |
| Limit | $5,000 per taxpayer per year for the Arkansas plan; $3,000 per taxpayer for another state’s 529 plan |
| Carryforward | For the Arkansas plan, excess carries forward to the next four tax years |
| Rollovers | A rollover from another state’s plan into the Arkansas plan is deductible up to $7,500 per taxpayer in the year rolled over |
| Not-qualified withdrawals | Prior-year deductions are subject to recapture on a nonqualified withdrawal or a rollover to another state’s plan |
| Source | Arkansas Act 802 of 2025 (HB1085), amending Arkansas Code 6-84-111 |
A $10,000 contribution by a married couple
A married couple who put $10,000 into the Arkansas plan for one child: the statute states the limit per taxpayer, so each spouse who contributes can deduct up to $5,000, and the whole $10,000 fits only if each spouse contributes at least $5,000. The joint-return figure is not stated in the statute.
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Carryforward and recapture
For the Arkansas plan, the statute lets an excess go to the “succeeding four (4) tax years”. The statute also makes prior-year deductions subject to recapture if the taxpayer takes a nonqualified withdrawal or rolls the account over to another state’s program.
Other states’ plans
For a contribution to another state’s plan the statute’s text reads “dollars ($3,000) per taxpayer in any tax year”, and only if that contribution was not deducted on another state’s income taxes.
What the documents do not say
- A joint-return figure; the statute states the limit per taxpayer only.
- The Department of Finance and Administration’s 2025 instructions could not be read as text, so this page rests on the statute alone.
What changes in 2026
Act 802 applies to tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2024, so it governs 2026.
Federal rules
A state break sits beside the federal rules for 529 plans: the statute is 26 U.S.C. 529 and the IRS explains it in Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education.
Common mistakes
- Expecting a deduction up to $5,000 for a contribution to another state’s plan; that is limited to $3,000.
Related: how Arkansas taxes retirement income, whether Arkansas taxes pensions, the five questions behind any 529 state tax break, and the state-by-state table of 529 deductions.
Sources
- Act 802 of 2025 (HB1085), amending Arkansas Code 6-84-111: https://arkleg.state.ar.us/Home/FTPDocument?path=/Acts/2025R/Public/ACT802.pdf
Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 4, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer, the plan administrator or the agency itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.