South Dakota Workers’ Compensation Guide 2026
Understand voluntary employer coverage, the three-business-day notice, medical choice, wage-loss benefits and the DLR dispute process.
Coverage is not universally mandatory in South Dakota
South Dakota does not have a general law requiring every employer to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Many employers buy coverage, but an injured worker should verify the employer and insurer instead of assuming the system applies. An uninsured employer may face a civil lawsuit from an injured worker.
If coverage exists, the system can provide necessary medical care, temporary and permanent disability benefits, rehabilitation and death benefits for a qualifying work injury or occupational disease.
Give written notice within three business days
Notify the employer immediately and provide written notice no later than three business days after the occurrence. The notice does not need a special form, but it should state when, where and how the injury occurred. Actual employer knowledge or good cause may excuse late written notice, but those exceptions require proof.
After learning of the injury, the employer generally has seven days, excluding Sundays and holidays, to send the First Report of Injury to the carrier. If the employer refuses to report the claim, the worker may contact the Division of Labor and Management.
The employee makes the first medical-practitioner choice
The worker generally chooses the initial medical practitioner and should notify the employer before treatment or as soon as reasonably possible afterward. Emergency-room care does not count as that first selection. A later change generally requires written permission from the employer or insurer.
Keep treatment records, restrictions, bills, mileage and communications. The employer or carrier may seek a second opinion at its expense; a second opinion requested only by the employee is generally the employee’s expense.
Temporary benefits use distinct total and partial formulas
TTD generally pays two-thirds of AWW within the injury-date minimum and maximum after incapacity reaches seven consecutive days. TPD generally starts at half the difference between pre-injury earnings and later earnings or earning capacity, with special treatment when suitable work is unavailable, accepted or refused.
Necessary medical care, permanent impairment, permanent total disability, vocational rehabilitation and death benefits use separate standards. A rating, release to work or maximum medical improvement can materially change benefit type.
Mediation and a formal hearing are different routes
The Division can mediate a disagreement if both sides participate. If mediation is declined or unsuccessful, a party may petition for a hearing before the Department. A claimant generally has two years after written notice that the insurer or self-insurer intends to deny coverage in whole or in part to file the hearing request.
Do not wait for the limitation period when treatment, payment or work status is disputed. Preserve the denial, wage evidence, medical reports and proof of notice.
South Dakota Division of Labor and Management
Workers’ compensation assistance: 605-773-3681.
Open the official workers’ compensation program →Official sources
- South Dakota DLR workers’ compensation program.
- Employee rights and responsibilities.
- DLR return-to-work guidance.
- South Dakota Codified Laws, Title 62.
Reviewed: September 1, 2026.