May an esthetician or laser technician perform microneedling in Arkansas?
Oversight · part of The Practice Perimeter
Short answer
The cited rules do not settle this — Arkansas's esthetician definition covers cleaning, waxing, and externally manipulating or stimulating the body by hand or device, and says nothing either way about needles that penetrate the skin.
The Arkansas Department of Health's Cosmetology Section addresses whether cosmetologists or aestheticians may perform microneedling services. Its answer: “Yes, cosmetologists and aestheticians can perform microneedling services if the service does not penetrate or pierce the skin beyond the epidermis.”
Ark. Dep't of Health, Cosmetology Section, Cosmetology FAQs ("Can cosmetologists or aestheticians perform Microneedling services?") · verified Sep 20, 2026 · regulatory monitoring, not legal advice
Related Arkansas rules
“Aesthetician” means any person who engages in the practice of beautifying the body by cleaning, waxing, externally manipulating, or stimulating the body by means of the hands, devices, apparatus, or appliances with or without the use of cosmetic: (A) Preparations; (B) Antiseptics; (C) Tonics; (D) Lotions; and (E) Creams;
17 CAR § 54-201(1) (Definitions for cosmetology and related branches — “Aesthetician”) · verified Sep 7, 2026
(2) The physician, when delegating these minor procedures, must comply with the following protocol:
17 CAR § 140-1601(b)(2) (Laser surgery guidelines — protocol) · verified Sep 4, 2026
How other states answer this
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
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- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
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- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Related Arkansas questions
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- Can a medical assistant give injections in Arkansas?
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← All Arkansas rules and changes · MedSpaRadar is regulatory monitoring and reference: it summarizes public laws, regulations and agency actions and links each to its source. It is not legal, medical, or compliance advice, and using it creates no attorney-client relationship. A summary can lag its source or leave out detail, and monitoring itself can be interrupted — so an absence of alerts means nothing reached you, not that nothing happened. Read the cited source, check its effective date, and confirm any change to your operations or clinical practice with qualified health-law counsel and your medical director. Legislative data via LegiScan (CC BY 4.0).