In South Dakota the Vital Records Office takes file and issues death certificates that date back to July 1905. Other records may be found at the respective city offices of the place where the recorded death took place.

If your request for a death record is for genealogy purposes, then you must place your order directly through mail. This is so that your application can be set through the mail order process, which allows the office a more thorough search with respect to the record you are looking for and therefore increasing the chances of that record being successfully found.

"Looking for Public Death Records in South Dakota?"

"Why not save some time by searching billions of public records? Make things a lot faster by starting your preliminary search at the top or bottom of this page to see if there's a record available for your query."

For applications in person, you may either visit any Register of Deeds within South Dakota or at the State Office, which is located at:

South Dakota or at the State Office
207 E. Missouri, Suite1-A
Pierre , SD
57501

The state office is open on weekdays from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. At the office you will have to fill out an application, provide proof of your identity and pay the proper fees.

You need to provide information about the deceased (i.e. his or her full name, the place and date of death) as well as yours, along with your relationship with the deceased and the purpose for requesting for that death certificate. Otherwise, your request can't be processed. Identification is also required, and this means providing a state-issued photo ID or other documents that the state of South Dakota will accept.

For applications through the phone dial (605) 773-4961. The operator will guide you through the process. Of course, you also have to provide the necessary information above in order to get your request processed. Or you can apply online by filling the form at the top or bottom of this website. In both cases, credit card is used to pay for the request and you will also have to pay the expedite fee in addition to the regular fees.

Every certified or informational copy of the death certificate costs $15. For telephone and online requests, the expedite fee, which covers all shipping costs, is $11.50. For money orders and checks that would be enclosed in mail applications, they must be made payable to South Dakota Department of Health.

"Looking for Public Death Records in South Dakota?"

"Why not save some time by searching billions of public records? Make things a lot faster by starting your preliminary search at the top or bottom of this page to see if there's a record available for your query."