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Legal name change in South Dakota

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  • Page changed: Name Change Forms (2026-10-05) · #177
  • Page changed: Fee Waivers (2026-10-05) · #176
Change your legal name
Limited
Publication requirementA rule in some states that a name-change petition be printed in a newspaper before it is granted. Many states waive it for trans petitioners or for safety.
Required
Court hearing
Required
Sealed recordA court file that is kept confidential and not available to the public.
Not offered

You can change your name in South Dakota by petitioning the circuit court in the county where you have lived for at least six months. You must publish a notice in a newspaper once a week for four weeks and attend a hearing; there is no exception for trans people (only for victims of domestic abuse or trafficking).

Main cost
$72, can be waived
Apply
In person
Typical wait
about 6 weeks

Draft from official sources, September 24, 2026. Not yet checked by a person. How we verify

On this page
  1. How it works
  2. Steps
  3. Costs and fee waivers
  4. Free help
  5. Forms
  6. Requirements
  7. Minors
  8. After you finish
  9. Tips
  10. Laws and other guides
  11. Sources

How it works

Name changes are governed by SDCL chapter 21-37. You file a Verified Petition for Adult Name Change (UJS-025) with the clerk of courts in the county where you have lived for at least six months, pay the filing fee (or ask for a fee waiver), schedule a hearing about six weeks out, publish the hearing notice in a legal newspaper for four weeks in a row, and then go to the hearing. If the judge finds "proper and reasonable cause," they sign the order.

The court system publishes free fill-in forms and runs a legal form helpline (1-855-784-0004, ujssrlhelp@ujs.state.sd.us). The clerk cannot give legal advice.

A court order changes your name only. It does not change the sex on your birth certificate, which South Dakota no longer allows (see the birth certificate guide).

Steps

  1. Get the adult name change packet[9][10][14]

    Download the "Adult Name Change Print All Packet" from the court's Name Change Forms page, or the individual forms (UJS-024 instructions, UJS-232, UJS-025, UJS-026, UJS-027). Print single-sided and fill in with black ink. For help with the forms, call the free legal form helpline at 1-855-784-0004. The Transformation Project also helps with paperwork.

  2. File the petition with the clerk of courts in your county[10][8]

    File UJS-232 and UJS-025 with the clerk of courts in the county where you have lived for six months or more, and pay the $72 name change fee (or file UJS-022 to ask for a waiver). The clerk assigns a case number, which goes on every later form.

    Cost
    $72 name change filing fee and court costs

  3. Schedule the hearing and publish the notice for four weeks[3][10]

    Ask the clerk or court administrator for a hearing date about six weeks away. Fill in UJS-026 and have the judge or clerk sign it. Take the filed notice to a legal newspaper in your county (the county auditor can tell you which papers qualify) and have it published once a week for four weeks in a row. Ask the newspaper its deadline and price before you schedule. The newspaper gives you an Affidavit of Publication; file it with the clerk on or before the hearing date. If publication is not finished in time, you may have to publish again at your own cost.

    Cost
    Varies newspaper publication (4 weeks)
    Time
    about 6 weeks

  4. Go to the hearing with your proposed order[4][10]

    Bring the completed Order for Adult Name Change (UJS-027) and your ID. The judge confirms that notice was published and that the petition is true, and signs the order if there is "proper and reasonable cause." The hearing is in open court.

  5. Get certified copies of the signed order[7]

    Ask the clerk for several certified copies. Social Security, the driver license office, the passport agency, and the Department of Health each want one. Ask the clerk for the per-copy price.

    Cost
    Varies certified copy of the order (each)

Costs and fee waivers

Can’t afford it? You may not have to pay.[13][12]

There is no fixed income cutoff. The judge decides based on your income, household size, property, savings, expenses, and public benefits listed on UJS-022.

File UJS-022 with your petition. If you hear nothing in five business days, call the clerk. If the judge denies it, you have 30 days to pay or the case is dismissed.

UJS-022

WhatCostNotes
Name change filing fee and court costs[8][7]$72Can be waived$25 filing fee plus $40 court automation surcharge and $7 liquidated court costs, per the UJS schedule effective July 1, 2026.
Newspaper publication (4 weeks)[10]VariesVaries by vendorSet by each newspaper. The court fee waiver does not cover it. Ask for a price quote before scheduling your hearing.
Certified copy of the order (each)[8][7]VariesVaries by courtNot listed on the UJS schedule; ask the clerk. Authenticated (exemplified) copies are $15.

Free help

Legal clinics, organizations, and funds that help with this.

More detail

Forms8 forms: UJS-024, UJS-232, UJS-025, UJS-026, and more

Open a form for tips on filling it out.

Forms everyone files (4)

UJS-232Case Filing StatementRequired

Fill in only the "Information for Plaintiff/Petitioner/Applicant" box; leave the defendant box blank.

Open UJS-232[10]

UJS-025Verified Petition for Adult Name ChangeRequired

How to fill it out

  • Paragraph 4 asks your "gender at birth" (male/female). The form requires an answer; it does not change anything on your records.
  • Paragraph 12 (reason): this must be filled in or the petition is rejected. A short, truthful reason is enough, for example "to use the name I am known by, which matches my gender identity." Only check the two boxes if you are a victim of human trafficking or domestic abuse; those boxes are what allow a judge to skip publication and seal the file.
  • Paragraph 15 (optional): check it if you also want your South Dakota birth certificate amended to the new name. This amends the name only.
  • You do not need a notary, but you sign under penalty of perjury. Print single-sided in black ink.

Open UJS-025[11][10]

UJS-026Notice of Hearing for Adult Name ChangeRequired

The clerk gives you a hearing date at least six weeks out; a judge or clerk signs the notice. You then take it to a legal newspaper for publication.

Open UJS-026[10]

UJS-027Order for Adult Name ChangeRequired

Prepare it before the hearing. Check the box for the newspaper where you published, and the birth certificate box if you want the name amended on a South Dakota birth certificate.

Open UJS-027[10]

Forms only some people need (4)

UJS-024Instructions for Adult Name ChangeOptional

Read first. Explains every paragraph of the petition, the notice, and the order.

Open UJS-024[10]

UJS-022Motion, Affidavit, and Order for Waiver of Filing and/or Service FeesOptional

Only if you cannot afford the filing fee. It does not cover newspaper publication.

How to fill it out

  • Check "Filing Fee." List your weekly take-home pay, household income and size, home, vehicles, savings, and monthly expenses.
  • Item 11: check every benefit you receive (SSI, SSD, TANF, Medicaid, WIC, food stamps).
  • Sign under penalty of perjury and file it with your petition. If you hear nothing in five business days, call the clerk.

Open UJS-022[12][13]

UJS-030Verified Petition for Name Change of a MinorSometimes required: Only for a child under 18. Part of the Minor Name Change packet; read UJS-029…

Only for a child under 18. Part of the Minor Name Change packet; read UJS-029 instructions first.

Open UJS-030[9]

UJS-033Consent for Uncontested Change of Name, Minor ChildSometimes required: Signed by each parent (and guardian) so the court can skip publication and the hearing.

Signed by each parent (and guardian) so the court can skip publication and the hearing. A child 12 or older also signs UJS-037.

Open UJS-033[9][5]

RequirementsWhere you live, age, newspaper notice, hearing, background check, privacy and sealing, timeline
Where you live
You must have been a bona fide resident of the county where you file for at least six months before filing (SDCL 21-37-2 and 21-37-3).[1][2][11]
Age
18 or older for the adult forms. Minors use a separate packet; see Minors.
Other
You swear the petition is made in good faith and not to defraud anyone or hide from creditors or government agencies.
Newspaper publication
Yes.

SDCL 21-37-4 requires publishing the notice of hearing once a week for four successive weeks in a legal newspaper of your county. There is no exception for gender identity.

A judge may skip publication and the open hearing only for adults who are victims of domestic abuse or human trafficking and show a particular need to hide from the abuser (SDCL 21-37-5.2). If that applies to you, check the matching box in paragraph 12 of UJS-025.

[3][6][10][18]
Court hearing
Yes.

A hearing in open court is required (SDCL 21-37-5), except for the domestic-abuse and trafficking exception and for uncontested minor name changes where all parents consent.

[4][6][5]
Background check
No.

Chapter 21-37 does not require fingerprints or a background check. You swear on the petition that the change is not to defraud anyone or avoid creditors or government agencies.

[2][11]
Privacy and sealed records
Not available.

Name change files are public, and the newspaper notice prints your old and new names. Sealing is available only to domestic-abuse and trafficking victims who qualify under SDCL 21-37-5.2.

[6][3]
How long it takes

Plan on 6 to 8 weeks from filing to a signed order, mostly the four weeks of publication plus scheduling.

MinorsUse the Minor Name Change packet (UJS-029 instructions, UJS-030 petition, and related forms).

Use the Minor Name Change packet (UJS-029 instructions, UJS-030 petition, and related forms). If every parent whose rights have not been terminated, and any guardian, signs a written consent (UJS-033), and the child consents in writing if 12 or older (UJS-037), the judge may grant the change without publication or a hearing if it is in the child's best interests (SDCL 21-37-5.1). Otherwise you must publish and have a hearing, and any parent who is not a petitioner must be formally served (SDCL 21-37-4).

[5][3][9]
After you finish1. Social Security first (bring the certified order and photo ID).
  1. Social Security first (bring the certified order and photo ID). The name changes; the sex field cannot currently be changed.
  2. Driver license or ID at a Driver Licensing exam station ($20 for a name change; see the driver's license guide).
  3. Birth certificate (South Dakota births): send the certified order with the Birth Record Amendment Request form and $8 to Vital Records; only the name can be changed.
  4. Passport, bank, employer, insurance, voter registration, school records.
Tips3 tips from people who have done this
  • Call the newspaper before you pick a hearing date. Publication must finish, and the affidavit must be filed, before the hearing, or you may have to pay to publish again.
  • The published notice shows your old and new names. If you are escaping abuse, tell the court; SDCL 21-37-5.2 lets victims skip publication and seal the file.
  • Married couples and their children can change names on one petition (SDCL 21-37-3.1).
Laws and other guides4 laws, 2 other guides

Laws and rules

Other trusted guides

Sources

18 sources. Numbers in the text, like [1], point here.Show all
  1. SDCL 21-37-2, Residence required for change of nameSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
    “Any person who has been a bona fide resident of any county of this state for a period of six months next preceding the filing of the petition”
  2. SDCL 21-37-3, Petition for change of name, contentsSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
  3. SDCL 21-37-4, Notice of hearing on change of nameSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
    “by publishing the notice once each week for four successive weeks in any legal newspaper of the county of petitioner's residence”
  4. SDCL 21-37-5, Hearing and order changing nameSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
    “upon proof in open court ... that there exists proper and reasonable cause for changing the name of the petitioner”
  5. SDCL 21-37-5.1, Exception for name change of minorSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
  6. SDCL 21-37-5.2, Exception for victims, sealed recordsSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
  7. SDCL 16-2-29, Fees charged by clerk of courtsSouth Dakota Legislature, Law. accessed
  8. Schedule of Court Costs (Rev. July 1, 2026)South Dakota Unified Judicial System, Court. accessed
    “Name Change $25.00 $40.00 $7.00 $72.00”
  9. Name Change FormsSouth Dakota Unified Judicial System, Court. accessed
  10. UJS-024 Instructions, Adult Name Change (Rev. 04/2026)South Dakota Unified Judicial System, Form. accessed
    “It must be published one time each week for four successive weeks in any legal newspaper in the county where you reside.”
  11. UJS-025 Verified Petition for Adult Name Change (Rev. 04/2026)South Dakota Unified Judicial System, Form. accessed
  12. UJS-022 Motion, Affidavit, and Order for Waiver of Filing and/or Service FeesSouth Dakota Unified Judicial System, Form. accessed
  13. Fee WaiversSouth Dakota Unified Judicial System, Court. accessed
    “If the Judge did not sign your Order, you have 30 days to pay the filing fee or your case will be dismissed.”
  14. Name Change & Gender CorrectionThe Transformation Project, Organization. accessed
  15. ContactThe Transformation Project, Organization. accessed
  16. East River Legal ServicesOrganization. accessed
  17. Name Change ProjectAdvocates for Trans Equality, Organization. accessed
  18. South Dakota Identity DocumentsAdvocates for Trans Equality, Organization. accessed