Whether a shipping container needs a permit in Arkansas depends on who governs the address, how the parcel is zoned, whether it sits in a mapped flood hazard area and what the container will be used for.
The first question is which government controls the parcel. For decades, Arkansas cities could extend their planning rules several miles beyond their limits. Act 314 of 2025 repealed that authority statewide. The City of Little Rock's planning department explains the result in a memorandum dated August 5, 2025: from that date the city performs no planning, permitting, inspection or land use work outside its incorporated limits, and land outside the city is governed by Pulaski County and state agencies.
An address inside a city answers to that city's zoning and building offices. An address outside every city answers to the county. A mailing address does not settle the question, because a postal city name can cover land outside the city limits, so ask the city's planning office whether the parcel is inside the limits.
The statewide building code is the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code, 2021 edition, adopted by the State Fire Marshal in three volumes: Volume I covers fire, Volume II covers building and Volume III covers residential construction.
Cities enforce the code through their own building departments. Little Rock adopts all three volumes in Section 8-2 of its Code of Ordinances, and the code lists published by Conway and by Jonesboro's Inspections Department name the 2021 Arkansas Fire Prevention Code as well.
The energy code is separate. The Arkansas Energy Office's building energy codes page says the state uses the 2014 Arkansas Energy Code, which is based on the 2009 International Energy Conservation Code, and that an updated code is being drafted. Ask your building department which edition applies when you apply for a permit.
Storage or building? For a container used only for storage, the first questions are about zoning: whether a container is allowed on the parcel, where it may sit and whether placing it needs a permit. A container that people will work or live in is a building project from the start, with plans, permits and inspections under the building or residential volume and the electrical, plumbing, mechanical and energy codes.
Little Rock's zoning rules are in Chapter 36 of its Code of Ordinances, and Section 36-252(b) speaks to containers on residential land:
"The use of items such as cargo containers, truck boxes and trailers, train cars and cabooses, mobile homes, manufactured homes and recreational vehicles or trailers shall not be deemed appropriate to serve as an accessory building in a residentially-zoned district."
The same section defines an accessory building as a constructed edifice designed to stand alone, and only buildings designed and built to serve as accessory buildings meet that definition. If the address is a home lot inside Little Rock, talk to the zoning office before you order. Commercial and industrial parcels follow the rules of their own districts, and the zoning staff can tell you how a container is treated there.
Outside the city limits, Pulaski County Planning and Development (501-340-8260) handles floodplain development permits and subdivision rules for unincorporated land, and it administers zoning in the Lake Maumelle Watershed. Delivery notes for the city are on our Little Rock page.
Conway's Zoning Code, in the official version dated February 18, 2026, does not name shipping containers. Section 401 describes a portable building as one that arrives fully assembled, has no wiring, plumbing or sleeping quarters, and is no larger than 160 square feet and no more than 16 feet in its greatest dimension. A standard 20ft container is longer than 16 feet, so ask the Planning and Development Department how the city classifies a container on your parcel before you order.
For accessory buildings on residential lots, Conway's permit office publishes accessory and prefabricated building guidelines. They call for:
Section 502.1 of the Zoning Code adds location rules. Accessory buildings sit at least 5 feet from interior lot lines, and behind the rear of the main building or at least 60 feet from the front property line. On a commercial lot, accessory buildings are limited to 160 square feet in total.
For a project with an end date, Section 502.2 allows a temporary building permit for up to 24 months, with a waiver of up to 12 more months when unusual circumstances justify it. A temporary building that stays more than seven days must be anchored to resist the design wind loads in the building code.
Faulkner County requires a floodplain permit before any development, including construction, land clearing or site work. Faulkner County's Office of Emergency Management issues that permit for land outside the city limits of Conway, Mayflower, Wooster, Vilonia and Greenbrier, at 501-450-4935, and each of those cities handles it inside its own limits. Delivery notes for the city are on our Conway page.
Jonesboro's zoning ordinance is Chapter 117 of the city code. Section 117-224 permits accessory buildings in all zones, subject to the limits in Section 117-225. Under those limits an accessory building:
In the RS single-family districts, Section 117-225(d) adds that accessory buildings go in the rear yard only and must be similar in architectural style and appearance to the house. Ask the Planning and Zoning Department how that applies to a steel container on your lot before you order.
The city's planning FAQ says a permit is required for new construction such as a garage, shed or accessory building. The Inspections Department asks for foundation, wall and completed roof details with a residential application.
Outside the city, the Craighead County floodplain office (870-933-4575) handles floodplain development permits. The county's application packet says a permit is required before any development in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area. Delivery notes for the city are on our Jonesboro page.
If the plan is a small living unit next to a house, a 2025 state law applies inside city limits. Act 313 of 2025 requires a city to allow at least one accessory dwelling unit by right on a lot that holds a single-family home. By right means approval without a public hearing, a variance, a conditional use permit or other discretionary review. The law sets these terms:
City rules that do not conflict with those terms still apply, and so does the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code. A unit built from containers still needs plans that meet the residential code. Ask the city how it applies the law to a container-built unit on your lot. Our guide to container homes in Arkansas covers the building side.
A container in a mapped flood hazard area can need a floodplain permit even where no building permit applies. FEMA's flood maps show whether a parcel sits in a mapped flood zone. Inside a city, ask the city's planning or engineering office.
Zoning and permits decide whether a container may sit on the parcel. Delivery depends on the route and the ground. Container One, which arranges every delivery, lists these requirements in its shipping container FAQ:
Measure the run back from the spot where the container will sit, and look up for power lines and tree limbs along it.
With those answers in hand, send the address and a description of the site through our quote form, and a Container One sales representative prepares a written quote for that address.
This guide is general information, not legal or engineering advice. Rules change, so confirm current requirements with the office that governs your parcel.