Estate plan requirements

South Dakota

Everything your estate plan needs to be valid in South Dakota: execution requirements, the documents we generate, statutory citations, and the exact wording our generators insert.

Requirements at a glance

Document	Witnesses	Notary
Will	2 required	Recommended
Living trust	None required	Recommended
Power of attorney	None required	Required
Healthcare directive	2 required, or notary	Alternative to witnesses

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South Dakota content last reviewed May 18, 2026.

Will

S.D. Codified Laws §29A-2-501 et seq.

Witnesses: 2 required

Two witnesses must sign in the conscious presence of the testator after witnessing either the signing of the will or the testator's acknowledgment of that signature. Showing witnesses a will already signed in private is not enough, because South Dakota did not enact the alternative trigger of acknowledging the will itself. Witnesses may appear in the testator's electronic presence for a non-holographic will (SDCL §18-8-2, SL 2022, ch 56). SDCL §29A-2-502(b)(3)

Notarization: Recommended

Not legally required, but recommended for self-proving affidavit

Holographic will: Valid

Handwritten wills without witnesses are recognized in South Dakota

Self-proving affidavit: Available

South Dakota prints two forms in SDCL §29A-2-504 and they are not interchangeable. Subsection (a) is the one for a will executed, attested and made self-proved in a single ceremony, and it is the form this packet uses; subsection (b) is the retrospective form, for an already-attested will made self-proved later, and it speaks of the "attached or foregoing instrument". Neither form contains the generic UPC hedge that the witnesses signed "within a reasonable time": both have each witness swear that he or she signed "in the presence and hearing of the testator", which is the same standard §29A-2-502(b)(3) makes the condition of a valid attestation. Sign the will, the attestation and this affidavit at one sitting before a notary. §29A-2-504(c) is what the extra signatures buy: a signature affixed to a self-proving affidavit attached to a will is considered a signature affixed to the will, if necessary to prove the will's due execution.

ViewSelf-proving affidavit wording

I, {testatorName}, the testator, sign my name to this instrument this ______ day of ____________, and being first duly sworn, do hereby declare to the undersigned authority that I sign and execute this instrument as my will and that I sign it willingly (or willingly direct another to sign for me), that I execute it as my free and voluntary act for the purposes therein expressed, and that I am eighteen years of age or older, of sound mind, and under no constraint or undue influence. ______________________________ {testatorName}, Testator We, ________________, ________________, the witnesses, sign our names to this instrument, being first duly sworn, and do hereby declare to the undersigned authority that the testator signs and executes this instrument as his or her will and that he or she signs it willingly (or willingly directs another to sign for him or her), that he or she executes it as his or her free and voluntary act for the purposes therein expressed, and that each of us, in the presence and hearing of the testator, hereby signs this will as witness to the testator's signing, and that to the best of our knowledge the testator is eighteen years of age or older, of sound mind, and under no constraint or undue influence. ______________________________ Witness ______________________________ Witness The State of __________________ County of ________________________ Subscribed, sworn to and acknowledged before me by {testatorName}, the testator, and subscribed and sworn to before me by ________________, and ________________, witnesses, this ______ day of ____________. (Seal) (Signed) ______________________________ ______________________________ (Official capacity of officer)

ViewWitness disqualification / interested-witness rule

SDCL §29A-2-505 (the signing of a will by an interested witness does not invalidate the will or any provision of it; South Dakota has no purging-of-gifts rule)

Living Trust

Witnesses: None required

No formal execution requirements beyond settlor signature; notarization strongly recommended when funding real property

Notarization: Recommended

Not legally required for the trust document, but needed to transfer real property

Certification of trust: S.D. Codified Laws §55-4-51

South Dakota lets your trustee prove the trust to a bank, brokerage, title company, insurer, or transfer agent with a short certification instead of the trust itself. It states that the trust exists, who the trustee is, and what the trustee may do, and it leaves out who inherits and what each person receives. Will.com generates the South Dakota Certification of Trust with your trust, built to the contents that section requires. Sign it in front of the same notary, at the same sitting as the trust.

Durable Power of Attorney

Witnesses: None required

No witnesses required for power of attorney

Notarization: Required

Notarization is required for a valid durable power of attorney

State-specific notes

•Acknowledged before a notary public or other individual authorized by law to take acknowledgments. SDCL §59-12-4

•Durability is NOT presumed under South Dakota law. A power of attorney terminates on the principal's incapacity unless the instrument contains express durability language such as 'This power of attorney shall not be affected by disability of the principal,' 'This power of attorney shall become effective upon the disability of the principal,' or similar words showing the principal's intent that the authority is exercisable notwithstanding disability. SDCL §59-12-3

•A spouse-agent's authority terminates on the filing of an action for divorce, annulment, legal separation, or a protection order between the principal and the agent, unless the power of attorney provides otherwise. SDCL §59-12-9(2)(c)

Living Will Declaration

SDCL §59-7-2.1 (Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care); SDCL §34-12D-1 et seq. (Living Will Declaration), sample form at SDCL §34-12D-3

Last verified: 2026-08

Witnesses: 2 required, or notary

South Dakota accepts either 2 witnesses or notarization

Notarization: Accepted as alternative

Either two adult witnesses or notarization by a notary public satisfies execution, and the same either-or rule governs both halves of the directive (SDCL §59-7-2.1 for the Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, and SDCL §34-12D-2 for the Living Will Declaration, as amended by 2023 SD Sess. Laws ch. 115, §1)

State-specific notes

•Execution requires either two adult witnesses or notarization by a notary public; either method is valid. The 2023 amendment (SDCL §34-12D-2, Senate Bill 180, ch. 115) replaced the prior witnesses-mandatory-plus-optional-notary rule with this either-or framework.

•The statutory Living Will Declaration form pre-dates its own execution rule. The form still carries signature lines for you, two witnesses and a notary public, and its own instructions describe all three (SDCL §34-12D-3, last amended by SL 2007, ch 193). Treat that as belt-and-braces rather than a requirement: since the 2023 amendment, either two adult witnesses or a notary is enough (SDCL §34-12D-2).

•Witnesses may appear in the declarant's electronic presence. SDCL §18-8-3

ViewWitness disqualification recital

Neither South Dakota section governing this directive disqualifies anyone from serving as a witness. SDCL §59-7-2.1 requires only that the principal's signature be witnessed by two other adult individuals or by a notary public, and SDCL §34-12D-2 requires only that the living will declaration be signed by the declarant, or by another at the declarant's direction, and witnessed by two adults or by a notary public who then notarizes it. Neither section bars a relative, an heir or devisee, the attending physician, an employee of the principal's health care provider or facility, or a person financially responsible for the principal's care. Because §59-7-2.1 calls for two other adult individuals, the witnesses must be persons other than the principal and other than anyone who signs the principal's name at the principal's direction. Two disinterested adults remain sound practice, because a witness with no stake in the outcome is harder to challenge, but South Dakota does not require it.

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6 more documents with a subscription

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Affidavit Designating Person to Control Disposition of Remains

Names the agent who controls funeral, burial, or cremation decisions, with optional preferences.

In this state: South Dakota recognizes a statutory Affidavit Designating Person to Control Disposition of Remains; we follow that form. (SDCL §34-26-1)

HIPAA Authorization

Stand-alone PHI release that survives death for the period you specify, separate from the in-life authorization in your healthcare directive. The free packet includes it too whenever it has a healthcare directive.

Nomination of Conservator / Guardian of the Person and Estate

Pre-nominates the person you want a court to appoint if a conservator (or guardian of the estate) is ever needed.

Business Succession Declaration

Identifies your interests in any closely-held businesses and how they should be transferred or wound down.

Real-Estate Retitling Checklist

Step-by-step instructions for transferring real-property deeds into your trust so the trust actually controls those assets.

Letter of Instruction

Non-binding personal note to your executor and family: where to find documents, account access, funeral wishes, and other practical guidance.

Free vs. paid

	Free	Paid
All 4 state-specific documents	Included in free	Included in paid tier
State-specific signing guide	Included in free	Included in paid tier
Download as PDF, print forever	Included in free	Included in paid tier
Secure online storage	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Covers real estate, business, digital, and funeral wishes	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Disposition of remains authorization	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Standalone HIPAA authorization	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Nomination of conservator	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Business succession declaration	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Real-estate retitling checklist	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Special needs trust provisions	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Letter of instruction, pre-filled and editable	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Edit anytime	Not in free	Included in paid tier
Annual review reminder	Not in free	Included in paid tier

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Electronic will status

South Dakota has not adopted electronic will legislation. A traditional paper will with physical signatures is required.

Digital assets access

South Dakota has adopted RUFADAA (2017). This is the Revised Uniform Fiduciary Access to Digital Assets Act, which lets your executor, trustee, or agent access your email, social media, cryptocurrency wallets, cloud storage, and other digital accounts after death or incapacity.

To take advantage of RUFADAA, your will, trust, or power of attorney must explicitly grant authority to access digital assets. Without explicit authorization, service providers can deny access even to a court-appointed executor.

Remote online notarization (RON)

South Dakota authorized RON in 2019. South Dakota does not use notarization to execute a will, so a will cannot be remotely notarized into existence. The separate self-proving affidavit is a notarial act (SDCL §29A-2-504), and a South Dakota notary located in South Dakota may perform that act on the paper affidavit while you appear by video, but only where the notary already has personal knowledge of your identity from prior dealings (SDCL §18-1-11.1). Identity proofing as a substitute for the notary knowing you is authorized only for notarial acts on electronic records (SDCL §18-1-11.2), not for paper. If your notary does not already know you, plan to appear in person.

Will

Not allowed

Trust

Not allowed

POA

Allowed

Remote online witnessing (ROW)

South Dakota allows remote online witnessing for some estate planning documents. Witnesses can observe your signing over a live video call instead of being physically present. The 2022 SD remote-witnessing package (SL 2022, ch 56) is broader than wills alone: SDCL §18-8-2 (sec. 2 of ch. 56) covers non-holographic wills; SDCL §18-8-3 (sec. 3) covers SDCL §34-12D-2 living will declarations; SDCL §18-8-4 (sec. 4) covers SDCL §59-7-2.1 durable health care powers of attorney, witnessed by two other adult individuals in the principal's electronic presence; SDCL §18-8-5 (sec. 5) covers anatomical gifts and refusals under SDCL §34-26-52(b) and SDCL §34-26-54(b) with the additional requirement that at least one of the two witnesses be disinterested. Definitions in SDCL §18-8-1.

Will

Allowed

Trust

Not allowed

POA

Not allowed

HC Directive

Allowed

This information is general in nature and not legal advice. Laws change. Consult a licensed estate planning attorney in South Dakota for guidance specific to your situation.

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