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South Dakota Department of Public Safety, Driver Licensing Program: Translation Requirements for Documents in Another Language
No published rule: South Dakota DPS says nothing on translating license or identity documents, so call 605-773-6883 before you order.
Who may translate: No published rule
How we know · policy checked on October 31, 2026
South Dakota's Department of Public Safety publishes no rule on translations of license or identity documents: its required-documents articles, SDCL chapter 32-12 and ARSD chapter 61:18:08 do not mention them.
That does not mean it refuses or accepts a translation, only that it has not said, so call 605-773-6883 before you order.
State law lets a nonresident drive on a valid license from a home country, and applicants surrender every other license and are examined.
South Dakota DPS at a glance
Does it accept eVerbary? No published rule
South Dakota publishes no rule, so nothing says whether DPS takes a translation from a professional service, eVerbary included (required documents, SDCL 32-12). Call 605-773-6883 before you order. Policy checked on October 31, 2026.
- Translation
- No published rule
- Who may translate
- No published rule
- Foreign license
- Written test in Spanish or English; all applicants examined
Checked on October 31, 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this page. Policies change: confirm on South Dakota DPS's own page before you submit.
Worth knowing about South Dakota DPS
No translation rule
Nothing published for a foreign license, passport or marriage certificate.
Originals only
DPS repeats it on every list: no photocopies.
Spanish or English test
State law sets both for the written knowledge test.
South Dakota DPS requirements in detail
Translation
No rule in the application article, the required documents, SDCL 32-12 or ARSD 61:18:08.
Who may translate
No published rule and no translator list (SDCL 32-12).
Foreign license, visitors
A nonresident at least 16 with a valid license from a home state or country in immediate possession may drive the vehicles it covers (SDCL 32-12-24, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
SDCL 32-12-26 makes that depend on the nonresident's home law granting South Dakota residents the same.
Foreign license, new residents
You must have a South Dakota license if you live in the state more than 90 days (South Dakota driver licensing information). You surrender all valid licenses from any jurisdiction; DPS destroys those and notifies the issuer (SDCL 32-12-18, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
Tests
The examination covers eyesight, highway signs, traffic law and a driving demonstration (SDCL 32-12-4, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits). DPS's pages and chapter 32-12 name no exchange agreement with any country.
Test languages
Applications, exam materials and the written knowledge test are in Spanish and English; driving test instructions are in English.
A native speaker of another language may bring a department-approved interpreter to the driving test, at the applicant's cost (SDCL 32-12-126, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
Identity
For non-citizens: permanent resident card, employment authorization card, or I-94 with a valid unexpired foreign passport (Driver license and ID card required documents). DPS keeps copies for ten years (SDCL 32-12-3.1, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
What South Dakota asks of a foreign applicant
Non-citizens apply in person at an exam station with one identity document, a Social Security document and two proofs of a South Dakota address (Driver license and ID card required documents).
By statute a foreign passport counts only when unexpired, with a valid US visa and the approved I-94 from the most recent entry (SDCL 32-12-3.1, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
None of those texts says what happens when a document is not in English, so that is the question to ask before you order anything.
The same section lets an examiner, through a documented exceptions process, accept other evidence of identity and date of birth when the applicant cannot produce the primary documents for good reason beyond their control (SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
If DPS suspects a false document, it may deny the application or issue a temporary permit while it investigates (ARSD 61:18:08:04).
The application form asks whether you hold a license in another state or country and, for the last ten years, where you have held one (forms listed here).
Testing and residency
SDCL 32-12-126, last amended in 2025, sets the written knowledge test in Spanish or English and the driving test instructions in English.
An interpreter on the driving test needs the department's approval, and you find and pay that person yourself (SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits). No text we read sets any other test language.
Living in the state for 90 days makes you a resident for licensing (SDCL 32-12-26.1, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
To get a license you need a physical address in South Dakota, full-time RV or camper living, or full-time travel for work; people in the US illegally and people who keep a full-time home in another state cannot get one (South Dakota driver licensing information).
Documents people usually translate
- Foreign passport, shown with an I-94 (no translation rule published)
- Foreign license, surrendered when you apply (no translation rule published)
- Marriage certificate or court order for a name change (no translation rule published)
What to do in South Dakota
Call DPS at 605-773-6883, 9 AM to 4 PM Central, Monday to Friday, and ask whether your document in another language needs a translation and of what kind (contact details).
Find an exam station; you apply there in person.
Bring originals from the required documents list: no photocopies.
If you need a Spanish test or an interpreter for the driving test, ask at the same time how approval works (SDCL 32-12-126).
What we do not do
eVerbary translates documents; it is not the DMV and does not issue licenses, International Driving Permits or REAL ID decisions. For South Dakota DPS we do not issue licenses or International Driving Permits, and we do not get records from abroad.
Need a certified translation for another office?
A certified translation from eVerbary is still useful for a different office, such as USCIS or a court, which sets its own rules; see certified translation.
Frequently asked questions
Does South Dakota accept a translated foreign driver's license?
DPS publishes no rule either way (SDCL 32-12, required documents). Call 605-773-6883 before you order a translation.
Can I drive in South Dakota on my foreign license?
A nonresident at least 16 may, with a valid license from a home country in immediate possession, for the vehicles it covers (SDCL 32-12-24, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
Does South Dakota require an International Driving Permit?
Neither DPS's articles nor chapter 32-12 mention an International Driving Permit (SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits). Ask DPS if you plan to rely on one.
Can I exchange my foreign license without tests?
DPS's pages and chapter 32-12 name no exchange agreement with any country. The statute has every applicant examined (SDCL 32-12-4, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits); ask DPS about your country.
Can I take the South Dakota test in my language?
The written knowledge test is in Spanish or English. Driving test instructions are in English, and a native speaker of another language may bring an approved interpreter at their own cost (SDCL 32-12-126, SDCL chapter 32-12: Driver licenses and permits).
What proves a name change from another country?
DPS lists a certified court order or a certified marriage certificate from a government entity, for each change (Driver license and ID card required documents). It publishes nothing on documents in another language.
Sources
South Dakota Department of Public Safety, Driver Licensing Program's own pages, read on October 31, 2026.
Need a certified translation for another office?
A certified translation from eVerbary is still useful for a different office, such as USCIS or a court, which sets its own rules; see certified translation.