South Dakota DMV Cheat Sheet
A condensed study guide for the South Dakota DPS written knowledge test — test logistics, plus the South Dakota-specific rules most likely to differ from what you already know. This isn't a substitute for the official South Dakota driver's manual, or for practicing the real questions. Looking for the core rules and signs that apply everywhere, not just South Dakota? Check the general driving theory cheat sheet instead.
25Questions
80%To Pass
$28.00 for a regular Driver License or Instruction Permit (new, renewal, upgrade, or transfer).Fee
3Attempts
- Test length varies: The manual doesn't print an exact written-test question count or passing score -- this site uses 25 questions at 80% to pass, matching South Dakota's published exam format, as its own practice test length.
- Fee: Address change, name change, or replacement is $15.00; a Commercial Driver License is $33.00. A single testing fee covers 3 attempts within 6 months.
- Documents required:
- Proof of identity, date of birth, and lawful presence (e.g. birth certificate or passport)
- Proof of Social Security number
- Two documents proving physical South Dakota address (less than one year old)
- If you don't pass: 3 test attempts are covered by one fee within a 6-month period; after 3 failures or 6 months, the fee must be repaid. A driver caught cheating must wait a minimum of two weeks before retesting.
- Online testing: Drive tests must be scheduled, either online at dps.sd.gov/driver-licensing or by phone. SKIP THE TRIP allows online/mail renewal, duplicate, or Restricted Minor's Permit upgrade -- but only once per any ten-year period.
South Dakota-Specific Rules
Minor & Provisional Licensing
- Instruction Permit (under 18): at least 14 years old, hold continuously 275 days, or 180 days with a passing driver education course score.
- Instruction Permit holders must log 50 hours of supervised driving, including 10 hours in inclement weather and 10 hours after dark.
- Adult (18+) Instruction Permit holders face no fixed hold period -- just a drive test before upgrading to an Operator's License.
- Instruction and Restricted Minor's Permit holders may not use any wireless communication device at all -- stricter than adults' texting-only ban.
- Restricted Minor's Permit: at least 16, clean six-month record; automatically converts to a full Operator's License at 18, no new application.
- Restricted Minor's Permit: unsupervised 6am-10pm; 10pm-6am needs a parent/guardian beside; no non-family passengers for the first 6 months.
- Motorcycle Instruction Permit (under 18) hold period drops to 180 days with driver education, and further if a motorcycle safety course is also completed.
- Motorcycle Instruction Permit: ride only 6am-8pm, accompanied by a licensed motorcyclist at least 18 years old with at least one year of experience, and no passengers.
- A minor with no permit or license at all who commits a traffic offense gets the same suspension as if they'd violated one; a second offense means a 180-day suspension or until 18, whichever is longer.
Licensing Procedure & Documents
- New residents: 90 days to apply with a valid out-of-state non-commercial license; CDL holders only get 30 days.
- Non-residents at least 16 years old may drive on a valid home-state license -- no South Dakota license required.
- Fees: $28.00 for a regular Driver License/Instruction Permit or ID card; $15.00 for an address/name change or replacement.
- A testing fee covers 3 attempts within 6 months; cheating means a mandatory two-week wait before retesting.
- Standard licenses renew up to 180 days early and last 5 years; but someone turning 21 with 5 years or less left instead expires 30 days after that birthday.
- SKIP THE TRIP online renewal, duplicate, and permit-upgrade service is limited to once per any ten-year period.
- A duplicate license keeps the original's expiration date; requires 2 proofs of South Dakota address.
- Vehicle registration renews on a staggered schedule keyed to the first letter of the owner's last name, not a birth month.
Rules of the Road
- Approaching a stopped emergency vehicle on a two-lane highway: slow to at least 20 mph below the posted speed limit (or 5 mph if the posted limit is 20 mph or less), starting 300 feet before it.
- A move-over violation is a Class 2 misdemeanor; causing a crash while violating it raises that to a Class 1 misdemeanor.
- Stop for a school bus's flashing red lights or extended stop arm from any direction, unless separated by a physical barrier.
- State law bans texting, reading texts, and social networking while driving -- but has no broader handheld-call ban for licensed adults.
- Drivers must secure any front-seat passenger who is at least 5 but younger than 18 with a seatbelt.
- Children under 5 years old need a child safety seat -- unless they're already at least 40 pounds, when a regular seatbelt satisfies the law.
- A booster seat with a shield can be used with just a lap belt; one without a shield needs a tethered harness or shoulder straps.
- Parked on a rural highway: leave at least 15 feet of road width for passing traffic, visible for 500 feet in either direction.
DUI & Alcohol Laws
- DWI arrest threshold is 0.08% BAC, but vision is already measurably impaired at just 0.02% BAC for any driver.
- Zero Tolerance (under 21, 0.02%+ BAC): 30-day license loss for a first offense, 180-day loss for a second or subsequent offense.
- First DWI: Class 1 misdemeanor, up to one year in jail and/or a fine, minimum 30-day license loss.
- Second DWI: minimum 1-year license loss; driving without a license during that suspension adds a mandatory, non-suspendable 3 days in jail.
- Third DWI: Class 6 felony, up to two years imprisonment, minimum 1-year license loss starting after release; driving without a license adds a mandatory 10 days in jail.
- Refusing a lawfully requested BAC test costs a full one-year license loss under the implied consent law.
- A DWI conviction requires filing and maintaining an SR22 insurance form for 3 years from the eligibility date.
- DWI adds 10 points on the point system and triggers a mandatory license revocation regardless of total points; reckless driving adds 8.
Vehicle, Insurance & License Actions
- Financial responsibility can be met with a liability policy, a surety bond, a $50,000 deposit with the State Treasurer, or self-insurance covering 26+ vehicles.
- Failing to maintain proof of financial responsibility: Class 2 misdemeanor, license suspension of 30 days to 1 year, plus a SR22 filing requirement for 3 years.
- Reinstatement fees vary by offense: $75 (first DWI), $125 (second DWI), $175 (third or subsequent DWI), $100 (second reckless driving in a year or eluding), $200 (vehicular battery/homicide).
- Reinstating after a revocation needs a $50-$200 fee plus retaking the vision and knowledge tests -- unlike a plain suspension, which skips retesting unless the license expired.
- Reinstating after a plain suspension needs no retesting (unless expired) -- just an application fee plus a flat $50 reinstatement fee, doable online.
- License suspension periods escalate: 60 days (first), 6 months (second), 1 year (third or later).
- South Dakota bars anyone with an existing license withdrawal in South Dakota or any other state from getting a license here.
Rules and fees change — always confirm current details with South Dakota DPS before your exam. Cheat sheet v1.0, last checked 2026-08-07.