At a glance
| State estate tax | No |
|---|---|
| Estate top rate | — |
| Inheritance tax | No |
| Small-estate ceiling | $100,000S.D. Codified Laws § 29A-3-1201 · current |
| TOD deed for real estate | AvailableS.D. Codified Laws § 29A-6-401 et seq. (Real Property TOD Act) · 2014 |
| Community-property state | No |
Estate tax
South Dakota does not levy its own estate tax. An estate here is subject only to the federal estate tax, which most estates never owe — the federal exclusion is measured in the millions. See the federal lifetime exemption for how that works.
Inheritance tax
South Dakota has no inheritance tax — beneficiaries are not taxed on what they receive by the state. South Dakota imposes no inheritance tax; it was repealed by voter-approved constitutional amendment effective July 1, 2001, and the constitution now bars the Legislature from enacting one.
Probate basics
Estates within the $100,000 personal-property threshold may be collected by affidavit under § 29A-3-1201 (30 days after death, no representative appointed). Summary administration is also available for estates within statutory allowances and costs.
South Dakota is a common-law (separate-property) state for ownership between spouses. A transfer-on-death deed for real estate is Available S.D. Codified Laws § 29A-6-401 et seq. (Real Property TOD Act) · 2014. The probate deadlines for this state — filing the will, the creditor-claim window, the inventory — are cited in the Executor & Heir’s Guide.
State-specific quirks
The inheritance-tax ban is constitutional
South Dakota's ban on inheritance taxation is not merely statutory — a voter-adopted constitutional amendment (effective July 1, 2001) prohibits any inheritance tax and forbids the Legislature from enacting one, making reinstatement effectively off the table.
The affidavit carries a Medicaid-debt condition
Beyond the $100,000 ceiling, § 29A-3-1201 requires the affidavit to state that the decedent owed no debt to the Department of Social Services for Medicaid — an extra sworn condition many states do not impose.
The TOD deed must be recorded before death
A transfer-on-death deed under § 29A-6-401 et seq. is revocable and nontestamentary but effective only if recorded in the property's county before the transferor dies.
Where to read next
- the federal lifetime exemption — how the far larger federal exclusion works — and why a state tax can still apply below it
- funding a revocable trust — the most common way to keep property out of probate entirely
- the ILIT cluster — keeping a life-insurance death benefit out of a taxable estate
- the Executor & Heir's Guide — the probate deadlines for this state, cited to the statute
- ← Back to the 51-jurisdiction comparison
Sources & methodology
Methodology & sources
Every tax figure on this page links to the primary source it was verified against — a South Dakota statute or department-of-revenue page — with that source’s own effective date. Aggregator round-ups are never used as a source. State death and probate law changes every legislative session; this page carries the date it was last re-verified, and any figure that could not be confirmed from a primary source is flagged for you to check with the state rather than guessed. See our editorial standards.
This page is educational and is not legal or tax advice. Whether a death tax applies turns on residency, where property sits, and how title is held — details a general page cannot resolve. Confirm your own situation with a professional licensed in South Dakota.
Last verified July 20, 2026.