South Dakota is a shall-issue state for concealed weapon permits, done at the local county level by the sheriff’s office, and the secretary office in the state for a permanent license.

There are no permits issued to non-residents of the state; however, South Dakota has a permitless carry notwithstanding.

South Dakota has various types of permits for different purposes. If you meet all the requirements for a license, then the state will accept your application.

If you intend to use a firearm in the state, you need to be aware of all gun laws.

South Dakota Gun Laws

To conceal carry in South Dakota you must apply for the state concealed pistol permit.

South Dakota only issues firearms to residents of the state, and members of the military posted to the state.

In South Dakota, there are three various types of concealed carry permits. They include:

• The regular permit
• The gold card permit
• An enhanced permit.

As a regular permit holder, you can use the permit to conceal carry in some states.

You can also use this permit in other states, but it additionally implies that you have done the background record check; hence you can use this permit to buy a firearm.

For the enhanced permit, you must first complete a state-recognized firearm training.

The enhanced permit is also the best South Dakota CCW permit for possession of firearms in other states.

South Dakota Reciprocity For CCW Permits

South Dakota honors CCW permits from every state in the country, and you can also conceal carry within its territory without a license. It is a permitless state

Other aspects of the reciprocity include the following:

• States that South Dakota will accept their CCW permits: South Dakota honors CCW permits of every state in the country, as long as the holder meets the age requirement of eighteen. This also applies to permitless carry in the state.
• States that will accept a South Dakota CCW permit: If you have any of the three CCW permits South Dakota offers, you can conceal carry in these states without an issue. There are three such states.
• States that have restricted reciprocity with South Dakota: In these states, you can conceal carry with a South Dakota permit, but they all have special restrictions. An example of such restriction is Colorado that will only accept a South Dakota CCW permit if the older is at least twenty-one years old, or Delaware that will only accept South Dakota enhanced CCW permit. There are twenty-one of such states
• States that have a permitless policy: Just like in South Dakota, you can conceal carry in these states without a permit. However, you must meet all the requirements to do so, and honor state restrictions for concealed carry. There are thirteen of them.

Make sure that at all times, you respect the gun law in any state you conceal carry.

Also, handle the firearms according to state regulations; hence you have to read about them.

Location Restrictions In South Dakota

The possession of firearms in some areas in South Dakota is limited, just as it is with most states in the USA.

Note that even if you have any of South Dakota CCW permits to conceal, you must not be with your firearms in these places except if you are a law enforcement officer.

Places Where You Cannot Conceal Carry In South Dakota

• You are not allowed to conceal carry in a public secondary, preteen, and elementary school, and this includes all buildings in these schools and vehicles used by schools.
• You are not allowed to conceal carry in any courthouse in the state and during court proceedings.
• You are not allowed to conceal carry in places like state capitol buildings. An exception to this is holders of an enhanced permit who must provide a twenty-four hours’ notification before they conceal carry in these locations.
• You cannot conceal carry in a business organization that sells alcohol if it warrants for more than half of the income.
• You cannot conceal carry at game reserved areas and refuge.
• You cannot conceal carry in any place where gun laws of the United State prohibit the possession of a firearm.

Places Where You Can Conceal Carry In South Dakota

Gun laws in South Dakota does not provide you with limitations to conceal carry in any of the following places or situations:

• Restaurants and Bars: In a restaurant and bar venture, you are only allowed to conceal carry in the restaurant area, except there is a limitation provided by the management of the place. However, you are not allowed to conceal carry in bar areas.
• Personal Vehicle: You can conceal carry in your private car or any other vehicle you own.
• Business place: You can conceal carry in your business place, your home of residence, or any property that you lease/rent, without a permit.
• Roadsides and recreational areas: You can conceal carry in roadside areas and recreational locations.
• State/ national parks, forests: You can conceal carry in state/national parks and forests, as well as wildlife management areas.
• Places of Worship: You can conceal carry in churches, mosques, and synagogues. However, these places are also private properties, and they can prohibit the possession of firearms on their premises.
• The state capitol building: Since July twenty-nineteen, only enhanced CCW holders in South Dakota can carry a firearm in a state capitol building, and this is after notifying the highway patrol twenty-four hours before doing so.

Concealed Carry For Law Enforcement Officers In South Dakota

The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act in America states that all officers of the law can conceal carry in any jurisdiction of the country, without a limitation to state and municipality laws like location restriction.

However, all officers, active, out of service, and retired, must meet LEOSA standards before given permission to conceal carry according to the act.

In South Dakota, retired officers must complete a state-certified firearm course that a licensed firearm trainer conducts.

This firearm trainer must have a certification from the state Law Enforcement Officers’ Standards and Training Commission.

A score of at least seventy-five percent is the pass mark, and only retired officers that meet up with this can conceal carry without location restrictions in the state.

Buying And Selling Of Firearms In South Dakota

Another thing you must understand before dealing with firearms or concealed carry in South Dakota is the laws and requirements you must meet to buy, sell, transport, or transfer a gun in the state.

Some of the things you must know include the following:

Purchase Permit And Firearm Registration In South Dakota

Unlike some states in the USA, South Dakota does not require you to have a purchase permit before you buy a firearm.

Also, there are no gun laws in the state that says that you have to register your firearm before you start using it.

Criminal Record Background Check In South Dakota

Federal and state license dealers are to conduct the NICS background check before selling a firearm in the state.

However, this may not be the case with private dealers, but other requirements would still apply.

Firearm buyers that already have a gold card CCW permit or an enhanced CCW permit do not have to undergo a criminal record background check since they already meet this requirement by owning these permits.

Waiting Period For Firearm Purchase In South Dakota

There are no required waiting periods to complete a firearm purchase in South Dakota.

As soon as your background record comes out clean, you can complete the purchase.

Age Requirement For The Possession Of Firearm In South Dakota

The minimum age to transport, transfer, possess, buy, sell, and apply for South Dakota CCW regular permit is eighteen.

For gold cards and enhanced permits, you must be at least twenty-one years old.

Castle Doctrine In South Dakota

South Dakota adopts the castle doctrine policy; it is a stand your ground state.

When in your home or a household you are meant to protect, the use of violent force against an intruder committing a criminal activity is justified.

However, the use of force, according to castle doctrine, must warrant the situation if it is a deadly or excessive force.

This means that you have a right to self-defense with no duty to retreat as long as you are in your dwelling place, and you are not the invoker of such an attack.

South Dakota CCW Permit Requirements

You must meet up with all South Dakota regular concealed carry permit requirements before you apply for any of the three CCW licenses.

Note that failure to meet up with at least one means that your application will not be accepted.

The requirements include the following:

• You must meet the age requirement of eighteen for a regular CCW permit, and twenty-one for gold and enhanced license.
• You must be a resident of the local country where you are making a South Dakota concealed carry permit application for at least thirty days. The only exception to this is members of the military posted to the state and their spouses.
• You must be a citizen of America and reside legally in the country.
• You must not be guilty or a convict of any felony or crime that has to do with violence.
• You must not be a drug addict or live in an intoxicated condition.
• You must not be previously involved in any violent case.
• You must not be mentally impaired or adjudged to be dangerous to yourself or others for ten years before South Dakota concealed carry permit application.
• You must not have any firearm violation or involvement in the illegal use of firearms, controlled substances, or any misdemeanor charge, five years before CCW application in South Dakota.
• You must not be a fugitive or have an arrest warrant in your name.
• You must meet all federal law requirements for Concealed carry application in the USA.

How To Apply For CCW Permit Application In South Dakota

Having met all of the above requirements for CCW permits application, you can continue with the whole process.

This includes the following:

Choose The Permit You Want

You need first to determine if you want the regular permit, the gold permit, or the enhanced permit.

Your choice will determine how you go ahead with the whole process.

Complete Firearm Training

If you want an enhanced CCW permit, you must complete a South Dakota concealed carry permit class. This must be done twelve months before the application.

For other types of permit, CCW training isn’t a requirement.

However, according to USCCA advice for concealed firearm holders, you can still enroll for training. This could be a South Dakota concealed carry permit online course.

Make sure that a state-certified instructor is in charge of the training.

Complete Application

Visit your county sheriff’s office to apply for a provisional application. If it is a gold card or an enhanced permit, then you have to provide your fingerprints too.

Note that the fingerprint will carry a separate payment for the criminal record background check.

Get Your Temporary Permit Card

The local sheriff will issue you a temporary card within five days of CCW permits application.

Get Your Permanent Card

After about seven days of application, your local sheriff will send a copy of your form to the state secretary, who will be in charge of issuing you an official permit.

South Dakota Firearms Training Requirements

Training is compulsory if you are applying for a South Dakota Enhanced permit.

A South Dakota concealed carry permit class must include the following in their course outline:

• Gun laws in the state, having to do with the use and possession of firearms, and use of force according to castle doctrine.
• The basic principles of firearm safety and how to handle a gun responsibly.
• Basics of self-defense according to the castle doctrine policy.
• A live-fire session with at least ninety-eight shooting rounds of ammunition completed by the applicant.

Note that only a firearm training under a state-certified instructor is valid for the South Dakota concealed carry permit application.

South Dakota Concealed Carry FAQs

Here are some of the frequently asked questions about CCW permits in South Dakota.

How Long Will My South Dakota CCW Permit Last?

All South Dakota CCW permits are valid for five years, after which you have to apply for a renewal permit.

How Much Does A CCW Permit Application Cost In South Dakota?

A regular permit costs ten dollars, a gold card permit costs seventy dollars, and an enhanced license costs a hundred dollars.

The renewal permit price is the same for both regular and gold permit, except enhanced permit that will cost fifty dollars.

There is also an additional cost of forty-three dollars and twenty-five cents for fingerprint while applying for both gold and enhanced permits.

How Long Will It Take To Get My South Dakota CCW Permit?

It will take at least five days before you get a temporary permit for a regular CCW license.

However, because of the criminal record background checks for gold and enhanced permit, it may take longer.

Official permits from the state secretary have a processing period of thirty days.

How Soon Can I Apply For A Renewal Permit?

You can start applying for a new permit ninety days before it expires, and you have grace until thirty days after it expires to complete the application.

Additional Resources

South Dakota Gun Laws
South Dakota Open Carry Laws
South Dakota Gun Permit Laws