This section covers South Dakota firearm rules that do not fit cleanly into the other sections of this guide: private sales, dealer transfers,...
Reviewed by Will Luker, Founder of CCW Hub. USCCA Training Counselor, USCCA Certified Instructor, NRA Certified Instructor, Law Enforcement.
This section covers South Dakota firearm rules that do not fit cleanly into the other sections of this guide: private sales, dealer transfers, ammunition rules, magazine capacity, juvenile sales prohibitions, mental-health prohibitor mechanics, civil immunity for justified use of force, enhanced penalties for using a firearm during a felony, hunting regulation, and the federal-law overlay.
South Dakota does not require a background check or any documentation for a private sale of a firearm between two South Dakota residents. The state has no universal-background-check law. SDCL Section 23-7-8.6 specifically prohibits the state and political subdivisions from keeping a list, record, or registry of privately owned firearms.
Federal law (18 U.S.C. Section 922(d)) prohibits any person from transferring a firearm to a prohibited person, regardless of whether the transfer happens through a dealer or privately. The transferor in a private sale is criminally liable if the transferee is a prohibited person and the transferor knew or had reasonable cause to believe so. Private-seller best practice: ask the buyer to provide a valid South Dakota concealed pistol permit (which requires a NICS check) or a valid driver's license, retain a bill of sale, and decline the sale if the seller has any concern about the buyer.
A Federal Firearms Licensee operating in South Dakota must perform a NICS check on every transfer to a non-licensee, except where the buyer's South Dakota Gold Card Permit (or any other state permit on the ATF's current Brady Permit Chart) qualifies as a NICS-alternative.
The Regular Permit and Enhanced Permit historically have not appeared on the ATF Brady Permit Chart, so a Regular or Enhanced Permit holder buying a handgun from a dealer is subject to a NICS check at the point of sale. Always verify the current ATF chart at atf.gov.
ATF Form 4473 is required for every dealer transfer.
There are no South Dakota laws restricting the type or quantity of ammunition civilians may purchase or possess. Armor-piercing handgun ammunition (as defined under 18 U.S.C. Section 921(a)(17)) is restricted by federal law - manufacture is restricted to government uses; civilian possession of ammunition meeting the federal definition is restricted.
Tracer, incendiary, and explosive ammunition is regulated by federal law (some types fall within the National Firearms Act as "destructive devices"). South Dakota does not add state-law restrictions beyond the federal rule.
Sales tax (currently 4.2% state plus county and municipal) applies to ammunition.
South Dakota has no magazine-capacity limit. There is no "assault weapons" ban. A South Dakota resident may purchase, possess, sell, and transport magazines of any capacity allowed by federal law (which imposes no general capacity limit on civilians).
Federal law (18 U.S.C. Section 922(x)) prohibits sale or transfer of a handgun or ammunition for a handgun to a person under 18. South Dakota law parallels this through the prohibited-person and minor-supervision provisions in SDCL Chapter 23-7 and SDCL Section 23-7-71.
A long gun may be sold to a person 18 or older. Federal law restricts sale of a long gun by a Federal Firearms Licensee to a person under 18 (18 U.S.C. Section 922(b)(1)). Private sales of long guns to a person 18 or older are not federally restricted, subject to the prohibited-person bar.
A person involuntarily committed for mental-health treatment under SDCL Chapter 27A becomes a prohibited person under federal 18 U.S.C. Section 922(g)(4). The prohibition is permanent unless lifted by an administrative-relief program under the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007 (18 U.S.C. Section 925(c)). South Dakota does not currently operate a fully-funded NICS-IAA restoration program.
The state-law eligibility provision in SDCL Section 23-7-7.1(5) bars permit issuance to any person "found in the previous ten years to be a danger to others or self, or currently adjudged mentally incompetent." This is a permit-eligibility bar, not a possession bar - federal law continues to apply.
A person reporting concerns about a family member's behavioral health may contact local law enforcement for a welfare check. The responding officers will assess whether the SDCL Chapter 27A involuntary-commitment standard is met. See the RED_FLAG section for additional discussion.
South Dakota's Stand Your Ground and Castle Doctrine framework (SDCL Sections 22-18-4 through 22-18-4.9) does not contain a separate pretrial-immunity hearing mechanism. The justification analysis is conducted as part of the criminal proceeding under SDCL Section 22-18-3's burden-shifting framework.
For civil liability, a person whose use of force is criminally justified under Section 22-18-4.1 or Section 22-18-4.2 has a defense to a civil tort claim arising from the same use of force. The civil-immunity defense is not automatic - it must be asserted as an affirmative defense.
A separate civil-immunity provision protects firearm instructors who teach the Enhanced Permit qualifying handgun course (SDCL Section 23-7-59.1): instructors are not liable for a student's conduct unless the instructor engaged in gross negligence or willful or wanton misconduct.
Permit-issuing authorities are immune from civil liability for injury or wrongful death arising from issuance of a permit in accordance with Chapter 23-7 (SDCL Section 23-7-7.2).
SDCL Section 22-14-12 (Commission of felony while armed) makes the use of a firearm during the commission of any felony a separate offense, with sentence enhancement. The state-law enhancement runs concurrently with the federal sentence-enhancement provisions under 18 U.S.C. Section 924(c).
SDCL Section 22-14-13 (Hostage-taking) and SDCL Section 22-14-14 (Drive-by shooting) carry separate enhanced penalties for firearm-related conduct.
Hunting in South Dakota is regulated by South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks under SDCL Title 41. Hunting-licensing and -seasonal rules are separate from the concealed-pistol-permit framework. A hunter on a state park or wildlife management area is not required to hold a concealed-pistol permit to carry a firearm in connection with the hunt - the hunting license and the hunter-education certificate are the operative authorities.
Suppressor use is permitted for legal take of game (Game, Fish and Parks Commission policy).
Antique firearms - generally those manufactured before 1899 or replicas of pre-1899 designs that are not designed or modified to fire fixed ammunition (or are designed to fire fixed ammunition that is no longer commercially available) - are exempt from the federal Gun Control Act under 18 U.S.C. Section 921(a)(16). They may be purchased without a NICS check at the federal level. South Dakota does not add state-law restrictions beyond the federal exemption.
A South Dakota resident wishing to deal in firearms must obtain a Federal Firearms License from the ATF. The application process under 27 C.F.R. Part 478 includes a background check, premises inspection, and state-law business licensing under SDCL Title 10. There is no separate South Dakota state-level firearm-dealer license.
Federal law (27 C.F.R. Part 478) requires a Federal Firearms Licensee to report stolen firearms within 48 hours. There is no parallel state-law deadline for a private owner. Most carriers report a stolen firearm to local law enforcement immediately, both as a matter of personal liability mitigation and to facilitate recovery.
South Dakota does not require a private owner to maintain records of firearms purchased, owned, sold, or transferred. The state's prohibition on a firearm registry (SDCL Section 23-7-8.6) operates against the state - not against private owners.
The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (15 U.S.C. Sections 7901 through 7903) provides a federal liability shield to firearm manufacturers, distributors, and dealers against most civil claims arising from criminal misuse of a firearm by a third party. The shield does not apply to manufacturing defects, design defects, negligent entrustment, or knowing violation of state or federal law in the sale of the firearm. PLCAA applies in South Dakota.
The federal 18 U.S.C. Section 922(g)(3) bar on firearm possession by unlawful users of controlled substances is currently the subject of significant Bruen-era Second Amendment litigation in the federal courts of appeals. The Eighth Circuit (which includes South Dakota) has not yet issued a controlling Bruen-framework decision on Section 922(g)(3) as of the publication date of this guide. The federal bar continues to apply in South Dakota pending further appellate development.
This page covers one part of our South Dakota concealed carry guide.
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