RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS

To purchase or to apply for a resident license, a person must:

• Actually live within and be a bona fide resident of South Dakota for at least 90 days with the intent to make it home, and
• Have a South Dakota driver's license, and
• Have their motor vehicles registered in South Dakota, and
• Make no claim to residency in another state.

*Nonresident minors under 18 years of age who are legal dependents of residents are entitled to resident licenses.

*The following are entitled to resident licenses  without the above requirements if they have resided in the state for 30 days immediately before buying or applying for a license:

• U.S. Armed Forces personnel stationed in South Dakota.
• Nonmilitary persons residing on restricted military reservations in South Dakota.
• Employees of the U.S. Dept of Veterans Affairs or VA hospital or patients in a VA hospital.
• Full-time students attending a South Dakota post-high school institution.
• Foreign exchange students at either public or private high schools (hunter safety card required for those under 16 years of age).

PROOF OF RESIDENCY

To buy a license, a resident needs a valid South Dakota driver's license or valid SD ID card.